Pho Le located at 324 Hwy 7, Unit 7, Richmond Hill

I’ve noticed some foodies post about this newly opened Vietnamese restaurant at the Golden Court Plaza in Richmond Hill called Phở Lệ 錦麗.  Their original location in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam has received a Michelin Bib gourmand in 2023.  And so recently when I dined at a next-door restaurant with a friend and happened to see a line-up of people outside this restaurant, I noticed it was Pho Le and realized that this was where it was!  Thus, my family and I went there tonight for dinner to check it out.

We arrived at 5:20 p.m. on a weekday and there was luckily no line-up.  We walked straight in for a table for a party of 5.

Storefront

There was a simple dark green menu on the table and the servers immediately served us cups of cold water infused with lime as well as two platters of pho accompaniments (the typical bean sprouts, quartered lime, mint leaves).

Menu cover

Menu

Drinks menu

Utensils and condiments on the table

I knew ahead of time from the social media posts I saw during this soft opening period (December 20, 2023 to January 11, 2024) that there would be a 10% discount to the final bill (cash or debit only).  Unfortunately, it wasn’t until we placed our order with the server that I found out that basically half of their menu was not available during this soft opening period.  Sigh.  I was really looking forward to trying their laksa and tom yum soup in addition to the pho.  The menu pictures made it look really enticing.  They also didn’t have the papaya and mango salad either.  That would have been a great dish for the toddler and baby to snack on.

Thus, we ended up ordering a side of Deep Fried Chicken Wings (6 for $12), the Combo Set of pho (“Pho Dac Biet” — signature beef noodle soup with rare beef, brisket, tendon, and beef balls) with 4 pieces of Deep Fried Wontons for $18.50, a bowl of “Pho Tai, Nam” (pho with rare beef and brisket) for $14.75, and a bowl of “Pho Nam, Bo Vien” (pho with brisket and beef balls) for $14.75.

I liked that they had combo sets where you could order the type of noodle plus a side.  (Their noodles were around $15, so with an additional $3.50, you could get a side.)

Deep Fried Chicken Wings (fish sauce wings).  $12

The fried chicken wings were infused with fish sauce and tasted sweet and had a crunchy exterior.  They came with a small portion of pickled carrots and radish.  I liked the wings.

Pho Dac Biet (signature beef noodle soup with rare beef, brisket, tendon and beef balls) and 4 Deep Fried Wontons combo set. $18.50

The “Pho Dac Biet” signature beef noodle soup came piping hot with the top pieces of rare beef pink and red.  Yes!  This is a sign that the beef will be tender and juicy — and it was.  The soup was slightly sweet (it’s due to the vegetables they add to the soup) and very flavourful and refreshing.  It definitely was different from the regular pho that I’ve tried before.  The brisket and beef balls were so tender and tasted of quality meats.

Pho Tai, Nam (pho with rare beef and brisket). $14.75

Pho Nam, Bo Vien (pho with brisket and beef balls). $14.75

For one of the beef noodle soups, I chose the instant noodle option.  I’ve never seen that option before at a pho restaurant and since we had three bowls of beef noodle soup in total, I figured “why not try it”?  The instant noodle turned out to be nothing special and I would say that if you’re coming to this restaurant and not sharing bowls of noodles, definitely don’t get this option for yourself to try.  I love eating instant noodles usually though so it was unique to try this out — especially with the sriracha and seafood sauce.

Deep Fried Wonton

The Deep Fried Wonton (made with pork and shrimp) was SO crunchy.  The skin of the wonton was paper thin and the meat of the wonton was very juicy and tender.  It came with a vinegar dipping sauce.

It’s really too bad that Pho Le didn’t have the laksa or tom yum soup available.  This means that we have to come back  (likely after their grand opening on January 12th) in order to try the rest of their items.  I mean this means another visit for us, which may or may not happen — depending on how desperate we are to try the rest of their menu.  I usually like to visit a restaurant once and that’s it (unless they are really right up my alley with lots of options to try).  So it could potentially mean we might not visit at all.  But if I do visit again, I will amend this blog post to include my thoughts.

I ended up drinking all of the broth in my bowl.  It really was tasty.  However, when I got home about an hour or so later, I felt the familiar feeling you get after eating something with too much MSG — thirst.  I drank lots of water and had some almond milk to neutralize the thirst sensation.  The toddler said she was thirsty too.

Our spread

My husband commented that their price point of $14.75 to $15 for a bowl of pho is much higher than the regular market price.  I mean the ingredients and taste were fine, but will this restaurant survive after the hype is over?  This new outpost in Canada is not the same as the original one in Vietnam which earned a Michelin Bib gourmand.  We’ll have to see if they continue to have line-ups out the door once they are steadily in business.

View from my seat

The staff were all really nice and pleasant.  They accept cash or debit only.  You pay at the counter when you are done eating.  The place is also kind of small.  The decor was nice though.

When we left the restaurant around 6:30 p.m., there was a line-up and lots of people waiting for a table.