Pho at Pho Hong Credit: Suzanne Podhaizer
In February 2008, Pho Hong opened in the former bus station on North Winooski Avenue. At the time, it was the Burlington area’s third Vietnamese restaurant. But Pho Hong introduced to many local diners the rice-noodle soup called pho. It is typically made with spiced beef broth and laced with onion or shallot, cilantro, basil, scallion and bean sprouts.

At the time, I lived in the Old North End and thought it was thrilling to have the restaurant in my hood. As with any just-opened spot, there was the excitement of discovering new dishes, or new spins on familiar ones. Nine years after those initial meals, Pho Hong is still on my regular restaurant rotation, especially when my food budget is small. And the namesake soup is even better now. On Thursday nights, at least, so is the service.

Cha Giò pork rolls at Pho Hong Credit: Suzanne Podhaizer
On most visits, I start with cha giò ($3.75). The fried rolls are stuffed with ground pork, carrots, cabbage and mushrooms and arrive with a glowing, reddish-orange, sweet and tangy dipping sauce. Always crisp and scalding hot, the rolls take the edge off my hunger. And with four to an order, there’s enough to share.

The rolls are followed with a regular-size bowl of the No. 8, otherwise known as pho dac biet ($7.50), which translates to something like “special combo pho.” Why? Because it has all of the meats, including meatballs, tripe, bits of cartilage, slow-cooked beef, and beef that was raw until it hit the simmering broth. The flavor is rich and deep, and the portion is plentiful. Leftovers often provide my lunch the next day.

Many of the restaurants I wrote about in 2008 are long gone. I’m glad that Pho Hong is still there.

Pho Hong doesn’t have a website but you can see its menu here. (Prices are outdated.) The restaurant is BYOB, so plan accordingly.

Dining on a Dime is a weekly series featuring well-made, filling bites (something substantial enough to qualify as a small meal or better) for $12 or less. Know of a tasty dish we should feature? Drop us a line: food@sevendaysvt.com.

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Former contributor Suzanne Podhaizer is an award-winning food writer (and the first Seven Days food editor) as well as a chef, farmer, and food-systems consultant. She has given talks at the Stone Barns Center for Agriculture's "Poultry School" and its...

6 replies on “Dining on a Dime: Pho Hong”

  1. Suzanne , you say Pho Hong is BYOB . This means I can bring my own wine/beer ? What about other places without licences in Vermont . Do they , can they charge a corkage fee ? Thank anyone .

  2. Pho Hong is the best! They have been keeping me happily fed for many years and I’m so glad they are still around too, and still busy 🙂

  3. Hi Rich ard,

    Yes, at Pho Hong you can bring wine or beer, and they’ll bring you an opener so you can pop the cork, or the top, yourself. No fee.

    I’ve been told that charging a corkage fee is illegal in Vermont. However, I wasn’t able to find anything about it on the DLC website. What I do know for sure is that in Vermont, if you have a liquor license, people are not allowed to bring their own.

    I’m pretty sure that Tiny Thai is also BYOB, and corkage-fee free.

  4. As the writer was obviously alluding too, the service is terrible FYI, maybe the worst in Burlington. Table service is spotty at best, down right walk out of the restaurant, intolerable at worst. Take out is no better, they will frequently quote you 15 minutes even if the wait is 45 minutes or more (which it often is).

    The food is amazing, would truly be a highlight destination coming to Burlington for, if the service was even remotely up to par.

    Worth going for an early dinner or late lunch but any other time means the service is too poor to make an attempt

  5. “UglyTown” is an apt nickname. This Negative Nelly hates everything he/she comments on. Maybe her service was bad because he/she is a bad customer? This is small family restaurant serves very good, very inexpensive food, and serves it well, even to people with unrealistic expectations such as yourself. Do us all a favor and stay home.

  6. The place is small (bordering on tiny), popular, and quite busy, but I’ve been about a dozen times in the last year and the service was never poor. Pho Hong’s food is among the best Pho I’ve had anywhere in the Northeast.

    Have never been charged extra for bringing in some beverages from outside. Something about having a couple cans of Burlington Beer Co or Citizen Cider with your Pho just seems right.

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