26 July 2012

Saigon Queen: Vietnamese, Darlinghurst (25 July 2012)

137 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010


Pho time on Oxford

I've been curious to try this new Vietnamese eatery I keep passing by each day on the bus. I'm always on the look out for a good pho soup. I noticed lunch time offered a special priced menu for two dish options. I chose the Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup with thinly sliced rare beef ($8 lunch special). Served in a generous bowl with plenty of beef and ingredients makes it good value and the broth has enough flavour to make it enjoyable. The side of freshly cut chilli is very hot so I'd be surprised if anyone could actually use all of the generous serving. I also ordered the Crispy Pork Spring Rolls ($12, 6 pieces) which are cooked to a good crisp and quite tasty although more filling would have made them even better. It came with a more than plentiful supply of super fresh mint and just enough crisp fresh iceberg lettuce. The dipping sauce was flavoursome but a slightly larger bowl would have made it easier for dipping the wrapped spring roll. My favourite springs rolls are still to be found at Pasteur in Haymarket.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:
PROS: Polite and friendly service, Reasonably priced menu, Fresh ingredients, Generous serving size of pho
CONS: Not close enough to the CBD for a regular lunch spot for me, Spring rolls could do with a bit more filling to pastry ratio
MUST TRY: Pho, Returning to try other menu items
VERDICT: A pleasant eatery for reasonably priced dishes that are served by friendly staff entices me to return to try other dishes
Pho Tai: Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup with thinly sliced rare beef ($8 lunch special)
Wrapping up the spring roll

A bit more filling versus pastry would be good

Cha Gio: Crispy Pork Spring Rolls ($12, 6 pieces)


Table water — sponsored by Coca-Cola glasses

Menu


Wine menu


Beer menu

Spirits menu

Drinks menu



$8 Lunch Special Menu

Table setting

Seating and decor





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Saigon Queen on Urbanspoon

6 comments:

joey@forkingaroundsydney said...

Have passed this place many times too, and there is never anyone inside .... this area of Oxford doesn't exactly have the best track record for eateries, and Xage is not that far around the corner.

Simon Leong said...

hi joey, if you get to check it out let me know what you think. i'm hoping to try a few more of their dishes which looked pretty good on other tables.

Anonymous said...

Hmm. I'm not too sure I agree with you on this review.
I have been here, the Pho is mediocre and the restaurant is not "authentic" Vietnamese, the staff are Korean. If you want authentic around this area try Dragon's Den in Darlinghurst. Otherwise go to Chinatown, Chatswood and beyond.

Simon Leong said...

hi anonymous, thanks for the recommendation. i've added dragon's den to my wish list now to check out when I get a chance. what dishes would you recommend for lunch there?

Anonymous said...

Hi Simon. The pho at dragon's is great - highly recommended.

Anonymous said...

I personally like the pho. Broth is clean (not oily like a lot of places) and everything is very fresh. Plus the price is unbeatable. You're right, there are some Korean front house staff, but I've been told the head chef is a Vietnamese lady who ran a restaurant in marrickville.

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