The Minneapolis-Saint Paul area has a vibrant food scene, with pho being a favorite for many, so I decided to try the classic pho tai, a mix of broth, rice noodles, herbs and meats, at three popular restaurants: Pho 400, iPho by Saigon and Phoever. I rated the restaurants based on their atmosphere, service and taste.

Pho 400 (4/5): At this restaurant, the food took around 15 minutes to arrive, which was not bad as I went with three other people. The noodles themselves were quite bland, so I added sriracha, which amplified their taste and the broth in terms of spice. The dish contained beef that was cut into lean pieces, which enhanced the flavor of the broth. I ordered the soy milk to pair with the pho because the sweetness balanced the spiciness of the pho, since it was a bit too spicy for my liking. The restaurant was close to full capacity, but it was also fairly quiet. I rate Pho 400 a 4/5.

iPho by Saigon (5/5): This has got to be the place with the best pho in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. The beef and the broth felt lighter compared to the other restaurants, which I preferred since the other restaurants had massive serving sizes, and I had no difficulty in finishing this. I could immediately taste all the vegetables in the broth, as it was much stronger here than at the other restaurants. There were also more beef pieces compared to Pho 400, which added more flavor to the noodles. I tried the chili oil for the broth instead of sriracha, which wasn’t as spicy but did have a little kick to it. The service was really quick even with the restaurant full. Just make sure to keep your menu at the end of the table when you are ready to order so you don’t waste 10 minutes like I did. They had an open sandwich bar which I didn’t try, but it was aesthetically pleasing. Overall, I would rate iPho by Saigon a 5/5.

Phoever (2/5): In terms of atmosphere and how it looked, this restaurant was the best. It had great lighting with quite a few paintings hung up on the wall. The server was quick with my order, but the food did take an extended period of time to arrive. This was the longest wait compared to the other restaurants — around 20-30 minutes. The restaurant ran out of beef so they replaced it with brisket, which I did not enjoy because the flavor of the brisket was stronger in the broth than the beef at the other restaurants. My dish had a similar serving size to iPho and was a bit bigger than the dish at Pho 400. Perhaps I would have enjoyed this dish better if they did not run out of beef. Overall, because of the meat choice and poor service, I rate this restaurant 2/5.

After trying these restaurants, the best place to get pho tai is iPho by Saigon. It comes down to the quick service and flavorful broth. In terms of price, the pho was similar among the restaurants at $15. Each restaurant was good in their own way, but if you are looking to have the best pho experience, iPho by Saigon is the place to go.