West Coast Eats: May the Pho Be With You

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DATE: Summer 2015
LOCATION: OB Noodle House
2218 Cable St
San Diego, California 92107

Vietnamese Pho is not on the top of my favorite Asian go-to food or noodle soups. Personally, I haven't had a really good, amazing pho in all my life in NYC. But friends had told me that pho is really good in California, and after stalking BuzzFeed lists, I was psyched to give it a try. By the recommendation of a friend and a feature on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, we decided to go to OB Noodle House.

I could already tell this dive looking bar was going to be good, based on not just the amount of people also waiting for a table, but the look and fragrance of the bowls of noodles that wafted past us. While we patiently stood waiting for our table, I scrolled through Yelp and read a number of reviews mentioning how the wings were a must. Needless to say, I was glad to have an excuse to order even more food besides the pho. Well, if people say you have to get the wings, then HAVE to we must!


The spicy garlic wings were a great appetizer before we dived into the pho. Well-seasoned with spices and garlic, these wings were juicy, while the skin was nice and crispy. Don't be afraid of the "spicy" factor, as I don't recall these wings being spicy at all in terms of heat. It was more of a kick with the dry spices, but even if your tolerance level is low, there is plenty of ranch sauce for your dipping pleasure.

Now, onto the REAL deal at OB Noodle House... my husband went for their special, the OB Special (XL) with rare steak, well done steak, brisket, flank & tripe. I was hesitant with my pick, the well-done steak & meatballs. But it didn't make sense for me to get the traditional. I'm not a huge fan of flank and tripe and I was oddly in the mood for meatballs. I took a chance on the well-done steak, even though I WOULD have preferred rare steak & was also afraid that the hot soup would overcook the already well-done meat. After our bowls were set down on the table (and a few photo snaps ensued)...



OH-MY-NOSH!  Just as promised on their menu, "this healthy and very popular beef broth, rice noodle soup is richly flavored, complicated yet deliciously prepared. Topped with onions and cilantro. Served with fresh basil leaves, bean sprouts, jalapenos  and lime on the side." OB Noodle House restored my faith in a great bowl of pho!! The lime and jalapenos were a great addition, with plenty of onions and scallions. I skipped the bean sprouts, as I always find these to be an annoying, empty filler food that thwarts my way to the noodles. I slurped up every bit of this bowl.

Wait, let me rewind and explain why I was immensely impressed and surprised with the tastiness of this pho. In NYC, whenever you go to a pho restaurant, there are several sauces at your disposal to doctor up your bowl. There's the sriracha, soy sauce, the sweet plum and/or hoisin sauces. I always find myself globbing loads of the sweet sauces to give my broth and noodles some flavor. Pho on the east coast tends to be flat and bland, and no amount of sauce additions can coalesce just right with the soup base & noodles. I tend to leave a good amount of soup left once the noodles are done, due to the dullness of the broth. So out of habit, when we were at OB Noodle House, I added some of the sweet sauce to my OB Noodles. But I could tell NO sauces were needed!! While the steak, meatballs, noodles and all of the ingredients were slurp-a-licious, the game changer for me was their broth. OB Noodle House took me to the Pho side! No Jedi tricks needed, my eyes and taste buds were opened by the amazing and deliciousness that is Pho.

Bottom Line: Oh-my-nosh worthy, OB Noodle House will bring you to the pho side. Pick any meat variety of your choosing, the heart of it will be in their slurp-a-licious, richly flavored beef broth. Your bowl will be bone dry even after all the noodles are gone. For added nosh, get the spicy garlic wings to its crispy perfection!

 P.S. Oh, and my husband bought this cool OB Noodle House t-shirt to remember their awesomeness :D

Happy Noshing, Jeanne
Location: 2218 Cable St, San Diego, CA 92107, USA

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