Comfort in a Bowl: Satisfying My Craving at Pho Hoa

We had just gotten home from Binondo, Manila after meeting our friends for lunch and snacks. It was such a fun day!! We walked around, tried different food, and talked for hours. But after all that walking, I was sooo tired and all I could think about was soup, because it started raining!

Whenever I crave soup, my top picks are sopas, lugaw, lomi, and of course, ramen. That night though, I didn’t want to wait or cook anything. I just wanted something hot right away. So I told Gabbie that the first restaurant we see that serves soup, that’s where we’re eating.

And the first one we saw was Pho Hoa. Vietnamese pho is exactly like what I needed. The branch at Uptown Mall is quite interesting, it’s literally just along the hallway 😂 The counter is separated from the dining area.

Thankfully, there were still seats available. Usually, Pho Hoa is full, so I was really happy we got in. The staff led us to our table and handed us the menu. At first, we thought we had to go to the counter to order, but apparently, that’s only for take-out. When you dine in, the waiters take your order.

We started off with Vietnamese spring rolls, or Goi Cuon. We picked the shrimp and pork variant with peanut sauce (Php 195 / $3.34). Not long after, the plate of fresh garnish for the pho arrived. I love the smeeell!

Then the spring rolls came. They were so good! The rice paper was soft and the fillings were fresh! It blends well with the peanut sauce!

A few minutes later, our main dish arrived. Pho Chin, Nam, Gan, Bo Vien (brisket, flank, tendon, and meatballs pho) for Php 390 / $6.68. We got the small size but the serving was still pretty big! The soup was hot, just what I needed! The broth was comforting! The meatballs were huge too!

Of course, we always save room for dessert so we ordered Mango Sticky Rice. It came with ice cream. The milk wasn’t too sweet which made the whole thing even better.

By the time we finished, we were so full! My craving was totally satisfied. I didn’t expect to end the night with Vietnamese food, but it turned out to be exactly what I needed after a long day in Binondo.