Phở Me (Old Airport Road Food Centre)

Had came across some social media posts mentioning about a new stall specialising in Pho that had recently opened at Old Airport Road Food Centre recently. Old Airport Road Food Centre isn’t a stranger to Vietnamese food stalls however; the food centre does house other notable tenants serving up Vietnamese fare, such as that of Pho Mien Tay Vietnamese Food as well as Eminami; the former being a halal establishment that had since also expanded their operations with a second location that operates as a bistro at Kandahar Street in Kampong Glam. The stall is located in the middle row of the food centre quite near to the side entrance / exit closest to the Pine Green housing estate along Jalan Tiga; it is not difficult to locate the stall considering how the stall’s signboard is relatively modern-looking and is rather bright as compared to the neighbours that are located directly beside them. The emphasis of the dishes being served up at Pho Me are their beef noodles — do expect beef pho that are served with different cuts of beef here, though they do serve Pho with chicken and marrow bone for those who do not wish to have beef. For those do not necessarily prefer Pho, Pho Me does also serve up Beef Stew in Red Wine — this item is served either with rice or noodles, which is up to the patron’s preferences.

It is interesting to see how Pho Me is pretty transparent about the different types of meat that they serve up — the meat is stored in a display chiller box that has clear labels of the various types of meats so patrons can get to see what they are exactly ordering. We were particularly interested with their Smashed Rare Beef Pho, and this is where it really gets interesting. The beef used in the Smashed Rare Beef Pho is essentially the same as the beef slices that one would find in a typical bowl of Pho featuring beef slices at other establishments. Upon order, the Vietnamese lady behind the counter will mash the beef into a round patty, before smashing it with the back of her knife and just seemingly breaking up the the fibres of the meat – in doing so, there is this “Tok Tok Tok” sound involved as the back of the blade hits the beef that sits atop the chopping board — sounded really skilled, if one would say.

The rice noodles then gets cooked and placed in the bowl along with the beansprouts, before she pours in the broth and tops off the order with the smashed rare beef and then the Youtiao on the top. For our order, we had also opted for a poached egg to come as an add-on; this comes at an additional dollar to the base price of the Pho. Taking a sip into the broth, we liked how this broth was adequately flavourful; despite looking pretty clear, the broth is especially savoury — great to have on its own even though the rice noodles came slippery smooth. The smashed beef was also on-point; it comes a little pinkish considering how the beef slices were cooked from the heat of the broth — comes with a little chew and just with a very light touch of gaminess which is quite the requirement when it comes to beef slices in Vietnamese pho, which adds that meaty touch to the bowl of noodles. The YouTiao comes crisp on its own, but becomes all soft when it absorbs all of the goodness of the broth — this is also the way that it should be had as well since its almost akin to having beancurd puffs in our Laksa; something which we didn’t know during our visit to VietSmith at Millenia Walk previously (also the first time which we encountered Youtiao served alongside our Pho). We are not sure about how we were supposed to have the poached egg — the only time which we came across a poached egg in our pho was during our visit to Long Phung Vietnamese Restaurant; the best way for us is to have the poached egg on its own. Here, the poached egg eagerly bursts as one attempts to have it on its own — that eggy flavour just spreading in the mouth as one does so. Other condiments like the onions and beansprouts helped to add a crunch for a variance of textures; the former also adding a slight hint of sweetness to the broth.

We were actually pretty impressed with the Smashed Rare Beef Pho that we have had from Pho Me. It is interesting that Pho Me had adopted a tagline of “Vietnam Real Beef Noodles” in its branding. Whilst we had not been to Vietnam to be able to comment on its authenticity, we must say that Pho Me’s rendition of the Pho is one that we found relatively interesting — this is especially for the Smashed Rare Beef Pho where one could actually see the lady behind the counter doing the smashing right before their eyes; something which does not really come by often at other Vietnamese establishments around the island. One thing is for sure though, Pho Me’s rendition of the Pho (at least from what we understood from the bowl of Smashed Rare Beef Pho that we have had) is missing of the herbs that sound places would use in their rendition of the Pho; not sure if this is due to it being of a different style of Pho being served at Pho Me altogether, though that was something that we observed. Still, patrons still get the usual sauces alongside with the lime to be squeezed into the broth if one chooses to do so. The prices of the pho at Pho Me are considered to be reasonable, considering how this isn’t quite usual fare that one would find at a hawker centre — all their main dishes are priced at $6; a price that should be within reach to most average folks who dine at a hawker centre. A stall that we would say is worth a try for their Smashed Rare Beef Pho; definitely one stall which would not mind dining from again as well!