Pho Show
4349 Sepulveda Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90230
310-398-5200
[read this in the latest edition of Breaks magazine]
Although the Westside has plenty of Japanese, Persian, Indian and Thai restaurants, there is scant representation of Vietnamese cuisine. And we won’t get into the dearth of good Chinese food in this article.
Now Pho Show, continuing the grand pho pun tradition, is bringing a bit of the eastside to us. Culver City has been cultivating a restaurant row downtown for the past few years. But Pho (rhymes with “duh”) Show is located where Lindblade runs into Sepulveda Boulevard near shops where you can get a Thai massage or tropical fish, not by wine bars and gastropubs.
It’s a small minimalist place with mango-colored walls and hard white chairs. There are six tables for two on the sidewalk surrounded by new flowering vines and bamboo plants. On a late Monday afternoon, there were about three other tables occupied. I chose a spot outside. It was cool for a July day and the building created shade so the temperature was pleasant. The sight and sound of traffic was not relaxing, but drivers singing to their radio and babies in strollers pushed by their nannies provided atmoshere.
There are several starters and drinks, including beer, wine, and soju cocktails. I started with a glass of iced Vietnamese coffee and shrimp spring rolls. The coffee was strong and sweetened by condensed milk, but I was disappointed that it didn’t come in a Vietnamese coffee press. I like having to wait for the coffee to drip slowly from the metal contraption into a cup and then stirring it into a glass of ice. You have a choice of fish sauce or peanut sauce with the rolls. I chose fish sauce, which, for the uninitiated, is not as strong as it sounds, but is more vinegary. The “salad rolls” come in a fresh rice wrapper filled with rice noodles, shrimp, basil, mint and cilantro. They are a refreshing choice for warm weather. There are also versions with meat or tofu or you can get the fried cha gio.
There are other rice and noodle dishes with endless combinations of meat and vegetables, nothing more than $11, however pho is the main attraction. Pho is a thin rice noodle soup with a clear beef broth, various meat options and garnishes that each diner uses as desired. I ordered a basic small bowl with rare steak, but I have friends that can’t eat pho without tripe and brisket. When your server asks, request the steak on the side or it won’t be rare for long. The small bowl was a good size though at $6.75 not the deal you can get at other pho joints. The broth had a delicate beef flavor with the aroma of what I believe was cardamom and cloves. Perhaps not as hearty as some would like, but it was perfect for the summer. White and green onions floated on the top. The noodles below the surface were a bit clumped together, but fine once stirred around. The steak came on a separate dish with more onions. You also get Thai basil, sprouts and lime wedges to add at your discretion—I put in everything along with some red chili sauce, of which there are three kinds on the table.
Pho Show doesn’t have the funky “authenticity” of a place downtown or further east, but who says all pho should be eaten at a hole in the wall? Why should we have to endure the 10 freeway for Vietnamese food? There is one significant problem. Pho, like its Mexican counterpart menudo, is known as hangover food. Unfortunately, Pho Show doesn’t open until 5:30 on the weekends. But nearby you can always get a Cubano sandwich or a massage nearby while you wait.
