The best Pho Restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City for over 50 years

Pho is a typical noodle soup in Vietnam. Some famous noodle shops in Ho Chi Minh City have maintained their brand name for over 50 years and are still very popular.

Pho restaurants in HCMC
Tasty Pho in HCMC | (FB) Đặng Thọ Thiện Tâm

Saigon has a lot of delicious pho restaurants that are well-known for local people and tourists. However, it comes to the best Pho shops living for a long time here that can’t miss six following restaurants.

1. Pho Dau Restaurant

pho dau restaurant saigon
© Pho Dau Restaurant

Many Saigon people also love the North flavor of Vietnamese Pho, so many noodle shops, even though they have been in the South for many years, still hold the North taste to please diners.

Referring to the true North noodle restaurant in Saigon, gourmets will immediately think of the Pho Dau restaurant near Nguyen Van Troi Bridge. In the old days, this shop also was called “Pho Nguyen Cao Ky” because Mr. Nguyen Cao Ky, who was famous in Saigon, often came to taste it here.

pho dau saigon
A big bowl of Pho Dau Restaurant

For nearly 60 years, Pho Dau Restaurant has not disappointed Pho Bac lovers when visiting alley 288 on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia street to enjoy. A rich flavor of a noodle bowl covered the clear broth is served with thinly sliced ​​onions.

Pho Dau has so far no vegetables, bean sprouts, and black soy sauce served as noodle shops in Saigon. And of course, there are no beef balls for those who love the South Vietnamese taste.

Plenty of famous Pho restaurants are available in Saigon. But, Pho Dau, one of the rare shops, is both delicious and renowned for a long time with crowded guests, but not cheap (compared to the Pho price). The shop in an alley only opens in the morning, is always full of customers.

  • Address: Alley 288 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street, Ward 8, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City
  • Phone: 028 3846 5866
  • Opening hours: 6:00 am – 12:00 pm (early morning to midday)

2. Pho Hoa Restaurant

pho hoa restaurant
Pho Hoa Restaurant | @sangbum4485

If the Pho Dau is the popular North Vietnamese restaurant in Saigon, then Pho Hoa is the most famous shop for foreign tourists.

Since the official opening of the shop, Pho Hoa has not been for a long time, but because Pho Hoa used to be a small cart that has sold the noodle soup since before 1975, so on the list of famous long-standing Pho restaurants in Saigon is indispensable for Pho Hoa.

Pho Hoa is on Pasteur Street that is a typical road in Saigon. It is because more than 50 years ago, there was a concentration of carts selling delicious noodle soup in this city. And now, a big restaurant of Pho Hoa still sells a lovely flavor for the diners in the same memorial Pho street.

Pho Saigon
Lovely Pho Hoa in Saigon | @ankyon

Although this is not the best noodle shop in HCMC, Pho Hoa often appears in guidebooks in Ho Chi Minh City. So, this restaurant has a lot of foreign customers.

And, a bowl here is very big with lots of noodles, meat, vegetables, bean sprouts, and soy sauce. Although there are many different reviews about this shop, until now, Pho Hoa is still one of the most crowded noodle-soup restaurants in Saigon.

  • Address: 260C Pasteur Street, Ward 8, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Phone: 028 3829 7943
  • Opening hours: 6:00 am – 12:00 am (early morning to midnight, every day)

3. Pho Minh Restaurant

Pho Minh Restaurant
Pho Minh Restaurant | @quangpnt

Also located on the busy road of Pasteur, Pho Minh is different from Pho Hoa. Amid the bustling Saigon, this over 60-year-old noodle shop is still as calm as the vibrant life that has untouched it.

The small shop locates in a small alley (alley 63). If not know it in advance, you will be easy to glance; therefore, you miss an opportunity to enjoy delicious Bac Pho in the heart of District 1 HCMC.

As the ancient Pho restaurants, Pho Minh is part of the old Saigon cuisine, where alley 63 was a familiar address for a long time of Northern food lovers.

The Casino next to the small road, the vermicelli shops and spring-roll eateries were classified in the memory, but Pho Minh was still there, still open in the morning to welcome patrons, and strangers who listen to the name also come to taste it.

pho minh saigon
Lovely Pho Minh | @giatientran

Accompanied by the years, the space of Pho Minh also is tinged with ancient color. The tables and chairs are still old wooden tables, but it’s airy, and the guests are not noisy. Pho Minh is the flavor for those who love the North Vietnamese Pho, light taste, not too strong.

Many people, who have been away from Saigon for a long time when coming back to look for Pho Minh, are still very satisfied with the same noodle for many years. A bowl of North Vietnamese noodle soup has lived forever in the memories although Saigon has so many delicious dishes like the present.

  • Address: 63/6 Pasteur Street, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Opening hours: 6:30 am – 10:00 am (only morning)
  • Phone: 028 3822 0345

4. Pho Cao Van Restaurant

pho cao van
Pho Cao Van Restaurant | @ajenopotd

Speaking of Cao Van Pho (25 Mac Dinh Chi, District 1), the patrons of the restaurant will immediately remember the elderly over 90 years of age who collects money at the corner of the shop. That is the owner Tran Van Phon.

From the Pho cart in Hanoi, then sold in Saigon along streets, after that, a shop was opened on Tran Cao Van Street in 1952, finally moved to Mac Dinh Chi. The traditional North Vietnamese Pho followed Mr. Phon to supply a tasty one nowadays.

pho in ho chi minh
One of falvorful Pho in Ho Chi Minh | @kalelaw

Among modern buildings and many new eateries on Mac Dinh Chi Street, Pho Cao Van still quietly marks its presence with patrons who love Pho North. It is because when you must be familiar with the new North Vietnamese taste, you like Pho Cao Van.

The shop has tasty broth, not greasy like many other places but a very rich flavor. With their own secrets and valuable experience of making noodles, the owner of Pho Cao Van has created this typical flavor, making customers when eating will remember it forever.

  • Address: 25 Mach Dinh Chi Street, Da Kao Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Opening hours: 6:00 am – 9:00 pm (early morning to evening)
  • Phone: 028 3822 0509

5. Pho Le Restaurant

pho le restaurant
Pho Le Restaurant | @vanco.sj

Among the long-standing famous Pho restaurants with the Northern Vietnam flavor, Pho Le with the Southern-style is particularly popular among Saigon people.

It is also one of the rare Pho restaurants that are rated clean, luxurious in comparison to the famous Pho restaurants. The Pho Le Restaurant is crowded from morning to evening.

saigon pho
Tasty Saigon Pho | @naomi.takiguchi

Pho Le has been since 1970, the first restaurant is located in District 5 (413 Nguyen Trai) – an area of ​​noodle, hu tieu and dumpling shops. Pho Le now has 2 places in Nguyen Trai and 303 Vo Van Tan.

When coming to Pho Le, the diners who love the taste of South Vietnam will feel that they find the right place to eat Vietnamese Pho, because they can order a different style of nam-tai-gau beef noodles.

  • Address 1: 415 Nguyen Trai Street, Ward 7, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Phone number: 028 3923 4008
  • Address 2: 303 Vo Van Tan Street, Ward 5, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Phone number: 028 3834 4486
  • Opening hours: 6:00 am – 12:00 am (early morning to midnight)

6. Pho Tau Bay Restaurant

pho tau bay restaurant hcmc
Tasty noodle soup in Pho Tau Bay | (FB) Đặng Thọ Thiện Tâm

Among the oldest famous Pho restaurants in HCMC, there is a famous brand named Pho Tau Bay. For many Saigoneers, it’s not just a noodle shop but a part of Saigon cuisine, associated with a lot of anecdotes and memories.

Many people far from their homeland, returning to Saigon, have stopped at Pho Tau Bay (435 Ly Thai To, District 10). But, eaters have to be very hungry to eat up a big bowl of this famous noodle shop.

Pho Tau Bay is a North Vietnamese noodle soup. It was present in Saigon in 1954 and quickly became the most favorite Pho Bac in this city. Like many other Vietnamese noodle shops following the North style, Pho Tau Bay initially had no vegetables, bean sprouts and back sauce.

vietnamese noodle soup
One of famous Vietnamese noodle soup in HCMC | (FB) Đạt Trương

But, many people remember the rich taste of this restaurant when having the opportunity to return to enjoy it. They will be surprised when seeing the vegetables and sauce to add to the soup.

It is because the Pho Tau Bay restaurant has related to the old memory, so it has received both the most compliments and criticisms. In spite of that, it is still a long-standing Pho restaurant, whenever mentioning Saigon cuisine in the past and now, Pho Tau Bay restaurant is indispensable.

  • Address: 435 Ly Thai To Street, Ward 9, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Phone number: 090 730 45 46
  • Opening hours: 6:00 am – 11:00 am

In the list of the famous Pho in Ho Chi Minh City, you see a lot of restaurants with the North style. It is because Pho, a well-known Vietnamese noodle soup, originally comes from the North of Vietnam. For that reason, the ancient Pho in Saigon covers a lot of Pho Bac (North Pho).

Nam Dinh is one the first place creating it, but the people refer to Hanoi because when Pho came from Nam Dinh to Hanoi, this noodle soup has changed and upgraded to become a better level.

Year by year, the taste of Saigon Pho has changed to be suitable for the flavor of the diners in South Vietnam. So, Pho in Saigon has become a little sweeter one, and the eaters add vegetables and more sauce.

But, the general taste of Vietnamese Pho still lives in each bowl of the noodle soup although it is cooked in different styles in various places in Vietnam.

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    The editorial staff of Vietnamdrive is a team of travel experts managed by Mr. Thom who has worked in tourism for 14 years. Trusted by thousands of tourists from all over the world.