Pho Friendly 18's name begs just one question: are there 17 predecessors? I looked it up to confirm there were none. It's located in a nondescript industrial plaza near Vaughan Mills. I assume it's fairly authentic as this cavernous pho spot is still fairly packed.We have a ton of pho options nearby, and were curious to try Pho Friendly 18. The House Special Beef Rice Noodle Soup has the typical assortment of thin beef cuts, tripe, tendon & beef balls, along w/ a heap of garnishes (bean sprouts, basil, lemongrass, lime & hot pepper). The relatively dark beef broth is quite strong in umami flavour; they don't seem to hold back on good ol' MSG & salt. Still overall, a large bowl is filling & decent value.Grilled Pork on Vermicelli hit the spot, with a faint BBQ char on the edges of the thin marinated pork pieces. Bun Rieu noodle bowl however was a bit disappointing; it contained mainly tofu & ham slices in tomato noodle soup but no meatballs or truly distinguishing flavour. Shrimp & Pork Fresh Roll is fairly light in protein among its stuffing; luckily the hoisin peanut dipping sauce helps to devour the roll.Pho Friendly 18 serves up decent flavours in its staple pho & grilled dishes. Our takeout was well-packed. But 1-star is docked as I went to pickup for a family member, and wasn't directed to take both bags from the table. Usually places are careful with these handoffs. I drove back from home for the second portion. No apologies, so perhaps they're not always that friendly!
Dined in, they have booth seats with high walls which separates from each other. Their food is phenomenal, the spring rolls were soooo delish, not sure if there’s a batter they used but it was very crispy! Enjoyed every bite! My son loved it! We also ordered a large bowl of pho with a very generous amount of beef, the broth was superb! The bun cha ha noi was good too, the pork was tasty but my partner who’s an expert at this dish didn’t find it that great. All in all, the service was exceptional. They also have boaster seats available that fits perfectly in the booths as well.
11/10 pho restaurant!!! I’ve been to 150+ viet restaurants across Canada, this has got to be in the top 10 places.Let’s talk about flavour: so authentic, so delicious! the quality of the food is top tier, meat is fresh, soup is so flavourful and is always hot (NOT warm). Can’t go wrong with their pho or bun rieu!Portions: huge!!! they do not skimp out on the meatPrice: extremely competitive!! i don’t think you will find better prices anywhere for the portions. so many places in toronto and markham are $15+ for a large pho because of the more high-end atmosphereService: amazing, family run establishment. the owners really care about the guests. truly living up to their name!if you’re in the west end, please come and support your local restaurants, i promise you will not be disappointed!!!
We decided to have lunch today at Pho Friendly and it was a great! We Loved the booth seating, the friendly staff, the food was really good and tasty! The portions were great too! We got apps and different Vietnamese soups and they were all delicious! I would definitely recommend and come back!
Hands down our favourite Pho place in Vaughan. Great flavours, wide selection, everything is always fresh, generous portions, and very friendly staff (hence the name!). I’ve probably spent well over a thousand dollars there over the years, and expect many more return visits.
Was wondering how come there’s a pho in this weird plaza. Don’t seem to have much foot traffic but on Google there’s 400 plus reviews and 4.5 star.Decided to give it a try and were not disappoint. All of us agree its the best pho in Vaughan.Portion is huge! I wish they can offer smaller size. It’s enough for 2 ppl for regular size pho.Love that they have Bun rieu as it’s not available at most pho place and it’s actually taste good!The coffee is super sweet. It’s ok with me but for some of u may want to request less sweet.The take out box comes with dipping sauce too for our spring roll. So thoughtful!
Our best vietnamese restaurant....amazing foods especially the fried spring rolls and pho soup...totally recommended ? ? ?
Roomy seating, great service and good food. We accidentally ordered S4 and it turned out to be an amazing surprise. Picture is missing the rice paper wrap. You basically make your own pork roll at the table.
Good tasting Vietnamese cuisine at a reasonable price. Bun cha was really good and the pho is decent too. Both good portions.
My husband and I come here quite often. The service and food is great. We always get pho and the rice dishes with pork and chicken. Over all, we've always had a great experience here. Our favourite pho spot in Vaughan.