HARAJUKU: PHO 321... mish-mash, wacky fushion, undeniably the worst Pho I Have Ever Had... Pho Sho~

A line of restaurants and this super cozy wood interior and my lack of  Pho in my diet lured me in... and I dragged my co-worker in who just spend 10 days in Vietnam.

Friday Banh Mi... hmm... looked suspicious.

Menu... pho's are S or M sized.

I went with the M size Seafood Pho for 1,080 yen... 

Love this interior... and there was a truly distinct Vietnamese restaurant smell here.

Specially priced rolls fo lunch.

So this me... my colleague got the chicken pho which meant small slices of boiled chicken.

Sooo many clams in mine...  It just seemed so wacky... there was some sense of fushion that got lost and ended up confused.

Noodles were unusually wide and al'dente... didn't get it.

There was a treasure trove of clams.  I was so tired of avoiding these as I was trying to dig for my noodles.  Japanese version pho?

Over all... Over priced and lacked any depth in flavor.  Hands down this place was has the worst Pho in my entire history of eating Vietnamese food.  Honestly my only Pho experience has been my Hawaii outings with hardcore Vietnamese friends whose parents who only spoke Vietnamese.  I WILL NEVER BE BACK... Pho Sho~

Will leave you with a photo from Honda's design center nearby with a few guys working on clay models... wow in central Tokyo.

And as I left work today I heard rumbling... turned around an a parade of Lamborghini's!

Restaurant: Pho 321

Tabelog Foodie: http://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1306/A130601/13174201/

Website: http://thedaymag.jp/archives/pho-321-noodle-bar2/

Address J: 東京都渋谷区神宮前2-35-9 #102

Address E: Tokyo, Shibuya-ku, Jingumae 2-35-9
MAP: https://goo.gl/maps/wRNwrviEMUx

Pho 321, フォー スリーツーワン,  ベトナム料理, 北参道, 原宿, Japan, Japanese, Sony RX100, foodie, vietnam, asian, lunch, noodles, expensive, canon s120, cat street, yelp, tokyobelly

IKEBUKURO: Pho-Viet 650yen Lunch and College Girls Girls Girls!

Off to Ikebukuro to test out a solidly ranked Vietnamese Spot located just 1-2 minutes from Rikkyo University (aka St. Pauls).  If you arrive after 1pm all the lunch sets are 100yen Off!  Cheehoo!

Looks like a few girls coming down in the elevator...

Arrived about 1:15 and line was only 3 deep... guess there must have been a 1pm rush for the 100 off deal.  Seems 2 workers here also served former President Clinton in Vietnam. Cool.

Learn a little Vietnamese while you wait.

Several nice selections.  Torn between the Pho and Fried Spring Roll set and the Pho with the Daily Special "D Set."

How to Vietnamese Coffee

Seems they sell some Viet items.

There it is!  Volume wise it was very conservative

The daily special was the seasoned chicken!  Almost like Filipino Chicken Adobo... very tender and flavorful

Went for the waitress recommended Beef Pho.  Very tasty broth and it hit the spot.  Hmm... How can I fault this 650yen set.

A little red seasoning.  Not spicy and it almost tasted like red shredded squid... was great with the chicken.  Plus my lunch Mango Juice!  The Indian restaurants definitely do this better... shoulda went for the Tapioca Iced Coffee.

The crowd here mainly consisted of young college girls chatting away... and the center of conversation was all boys.  I never realized how sweet Japanese girls can get so super loud and wild when in groups.  Anyways here's a video of all the girls deep in conversation next to me.

Lots of interesting businesses in this building.  All Hostess Bars?

And if you time it just right there is a great park across the street filled with Cherry Blossom Flowers.  Anyways for 650yen and a very lively atmosphere I'll definitely be back to check out some other lunch menu items after 1pm!

Shop: Pho Viet Vietnamese Restaurant

Shop Website: http://www.ikesen.net/food/ethnic_phoviet/index.html

Foodie Website: http://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1305/A130501/13002878/

Address J: 東京都豊島区西池袋3-31-15 ロイヤルプラザ 4F

Address E: Tokyo, Toshima-ku, Nishi Ikebukuro 3-31-15, Royal Plaza 4F

MAP:

View Larger Map

SanGenChaya: Asian Yatai FO! The most reasonable Pho in Tokyo...starting at 525yen.

Pho in Sangenchaya!  You can't miss this place... its on the corner of the main intersection.  

Pho's started at 525yen (Click on menu to enlarge).  

There are only 8 seats in this tiny semi-outdoor "yatai" style spot.  It was a full house when we first entered... if the chef says we are full i'd suggest waiting for a seat to open up.  Rotation was quick.

Pho was tasty.  I've had my share of great Pho in Hawaii and this was pretty good.

SHOP: Asian Yatai FO

LOCATON: Sangenchaya-Station (Only 1 stop from Shibuya).

Foodie Website: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1317/A131706/13077338/

Address J: 東京都世田谷区太子堂4-23-3

Address E: Tokyo, Setagaya-ku, Taishido 4-23-3

MAP:  

View Larger Map