Phở Gà Phố Cổ Thao Dien Review: Authentic Northern Chicken Pho
Discover Phở Gà Phố Cổ in Ho Chi Minh City's Thao Dien, a hidden gem serving delicious Northern Vietnamese chicken pho. Explore their diverse menu and find your perfect bowl!
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Discover Phở Gà Phố Cổ in Ho Chi Minh City's Thao Dien, a hidden gem serving delicious Northern Vietnamese chicken pho. Explore their diverse menu and find your perfect bowl!
After downing a large bottle of sake the night before, it was time for some hangover food!
We took a leisurely stroll and remembered a Northern-style pho spot we'd seen near District 2's Thao Dien.
That's how we ended up at Pho Ga Po Co, a Northern-style pho restaurant specializing in chicken pho.
To our surprise, they had a pretty extensive chicken menu,
and it was a rather large restaurant!
For pho, you could choose from classic pho noodles, glass noodles, or round pho noodles.
They also had options like chicken rice bowls or sticky rice with chicken.
Beyond pho, they had other rice dishes and even a whole chicken menu!
Near Thao Dien's An Phu Station,
I even thought it would be a great spot to visit for Boknal (Korean Dog Days of Summer, traditionally when Koreans eat chicken soup for energy) (but...)
Chicken Wing Pho with Bamboo Shoots (Glass Noodles)
75,000 VND (~$3)
The basic chicken breast pho was
60,000 VND (~$2).
Adding bamboo shoots cost an extra 10,000 VND.
Choosing chicken wings was an additional 5,000 VND.
The menu was quite detailed, offering many customizable options like this.
My partner (Yongbam) ordered the basic chicken breast pho (glass noodles) for 60,000 VND.
The broth was clean and tasted like dakgomtang (Korean chicken soup),
a flavor that's almost guaranteed to please Korean palates.
However, the chicken was a bit tough – past chewy and leaning towards stringy.
It reminded me of the rustic, free-range chicken you'd find in the countryside.
I saw on Google reviews that if you tell them you don't like chicken skin,
they might serve you parts without it.
Like many Vietnamese restaurants,
wet wipes are charged per sheet.
Salt, pepper, chili sauce, soy sauce, and more,
a variety of condiments are available on the table,
so you can customize your pho to your liking!
They had sliced pickled garlic,
and apparently, adding this with some spicy chili peppers
gives you an authentic taste of Korea.
We only added the spicy chili peppers,
and the broth was still deliciously spicy and refreshing.
It's a bit of a shame we both chose glass noodles.
One of us should have tried the regular pho noodles!
Avocado Smoothie: 35,000 VND
Apricot Syrup Juice: 30,000 VND
The avocado smoothie wasn't overly sweet with condensed milk,
so it was delicious and didn't leave you feeling thirsty.
The apricot syrup juice also had three pickled apricots in it,
giving it a taste similar to plum juice!
However, while eating, something like this appeared.
At first, I thought it was a vegetable,
but it turned out to be a plastic tie used for bundling bamboo shoots... Ugh!
I just removed it and continued eating, then mentioned it when paying the bill.
The staff member said 'Sorry, sorry' and seemed to relay the message to the kitchen.
Overall, the hygiene wasn't top-notch,
and the prices were on the higher side for local pho.
So, would I visit again? Probably not.
Inside our apartment complex, Masteri Thao Dien,
there's also a chicken pho specialty restaurant in front of T3.
Next time, I'll definitely check that one out and compare!
📍 Pho Ga Po Co
12 Đ. Số 10, An Khánh, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Payment is cash only;
cards are not accepted.
The inside is quite spacious, and there are outdoor seats too.
It's always packed with people and business is clearly thriving, regardless of any hygiene concerns.
With options like whole chicken, chicken pho, and chicken rice bowls,
it's a chicken pho spot worth visiting at least once for its diverse menu.
After downing a large bottle of sake the night before, it was time for some hangover relief!
I casually walked over to Pho Ga Po Co, a Northern-style chicken pho place that I'd spotted previously near Thao Dien in District 2.
It was a surprisingly large restaurant
with many different chicken dishes.
For pho, you could choose between classic pho noodles, glass noodles, or round pho noodles,
and they also had rice dishes like chicken rice bowls and sticky chicken rice,
plus a whole chicken menu item.
I thought it would be a great spot to visit near An Phu Station in Thao Dien
to enjoy some chicken on Boknal (Korea's 'dog days' of summer, traditionally when people eat chicken dishes for vitality) (but...)
Chicken Wing Pho with Bamboo Shoots (glass noodles)
75,000VND (~$3)
The basic pho with chicken breast is
60,000VND (~$2)
Adding bamboo shoots costs an extra 10,000VND
and the chicken wing part is an extra 5,000VND.
The menu is diversified and segmented in this way.
Yongbam had the basic chicken breast pho (glass noodles) for 60,000VND.
The broth was clean and had a comforting dakgomtang (Korean chicken soup) feel to it,
a flavor that Koreans just can't resist,
but the chicken itself was a bit tough. More chewy than tender,
like free-range chicken you'd find in the countryside.
Looking at Google reviews, it seems if you tell them you don't like chicken skin,
they'll give you parts without it.
Like in most Vietnamese restaurants,
you have to pay for each wet wipe you use,
and there are various sauces on the table like salt, pepper, chili sauce, and soy sauce,
so you can customize your dish to your liking.
There were pickled garlic slices,
and apparently, if you add these with some spicy chili peppers,
you can truly get an authentic Korean flavor.
We only added the spicy chili peppers,
and the broth was still deliciously spicy and refreshing.
Menu at Pho Ga Po Co, the Chicken Pho Spot in Ho Chi Minh
The diverse menu makes it great for a group to come and share.
It's a bit of a shame we both chose glass noodles.
One of us should have tried the regular pho noodles!
Avocado Smoothie 35,000VND
Apricot Syrup Juice 30,000VND
The avocado smoothie wasn't overly sweet with condensed milk,
so even after drinking it, I didn't feel thirsty, and it was delicious!
The apricot preserve juice also had three whole preserved apricots in it,
giving it a plum juice vibe~
But while eating, something like this came out,
and at first, I thought it was a vegetable,
but it turned out to be a plastic tie for bamboo shoots... Ugh!
I just removed it and continued eating, and when I mentioned it at the end while paying,
the staff member said 'Sorry, sorry' and did pass the message to the kitchen.
The hygiene wasn't top-notch,
and the price was a bit high for local pho,
so as for revisiting...? I'm not so sure.
Even within our apartment complex, Masteri Thao Dien,
there's a specialty chicken pho restaurant in front of T3,
so next time, I'll have to go there and compare.
📍 Phở Gà Pò Kô
12 Đ. Số 10, An Khánh, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
You can't pay by card,
only cash is accepted.
The interior is quite spacious, and there's outdoor seating available too.
Despite the hygiene concerns, it was still busy with lots of people, doing good business.
With a variety of menu options like whole chicken, chicken pho, and chicken rice bowls,
it's a chicken pho spot worth checking out at least once due to its diverse menu.
The chicken wing pho (with glass noodles) including bamboo shoots is ~$52, and the basic chicken breast pho is ~$41. Adding extra bamboo shoots costs ~$7, and adding extra chicken wing parts costs ~$3.
You can choose from basic pho noodles, glass noodles, or round pho noodles. Also, according to Google reviews, if you don't like chicken skin, you can request parts without skin.
Card payments are not accepted at Phở Gà Phố Cổ; only cash is accepted. It's advisable to prepare cash in advance before your visit.
Various sauces such as salt, pepper, chili sauce, and soy sauce are available on the table. It is said that adding pickled sliced garlic and spicy chili peppers can give it a Korean flavor.
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