The other night we didn't want to stay in, but we did want to stay in town, so we headed down to Pho Vi (pardon the lack of diacritical marks) for supper, followed up by a tipple at dba256.
I'm a big pho phan; K, less so -- he's more of a ramenthusiast. In general, I'd say that Pho Vi is good but not great. The atmosphere is quite pleasant, and the service is friendly (if not very Anglophonic). The broth is good, although it's nowhere near as good as Pho Century, my favorite. They got my order wrong (giving me brisket instead of flank), but it was no big deal. Interestingly, the platter of add-ins (bean sprouts, lime, etc.) didn't include basil, although friends report that they were restocked with basil the next night.
In short, it's not the most stunning pho in the West Inland Empire, but it's good and we'll be back. Probably often, because they're open till 10pm every night (due to K's work schedule, we are late diners).
As for dba256, it's rapidly turning into our local, in the British sense. They now know us there and remember what we like to drink, and it's comfortable to chill at the bar for a drink and a chat (before we head home to geek out at our separate computers). The clientele is a fabulous mix of old fuddy-duddies like us and, ahem, urban youth, which makes us both feel way hipper than we are. The current art show is pretty darn fine, too. My only complaint is that after about 9pm, the cops like to park a car right outside, which makes me paranoid about getting busted for DUI as I'm leaving the bar.
6 comments:
The exhibition looks interesting. How about throwing us little more than "pretty darn fine" in a comment?
So you didn't walk down to the restaurant. Afraid of crime? :)
Yeah, the new pho place is obviously struggling to get organized. Our order took awhile to get, none of the tables appeared to be particularly clean, and the bill took forever to get and even longer to pay. But it's a new place -- I'm sure it'll get better. The space is definitely nice.
dba256 seems like a real gem, with three kinds of Dale Brothers beer (brewed locally) on tap; interesting, understated decor; and friendly staff. It's a great place to kick back and relax. I love the crowd in there; I think that Meg's "urban youth" translates mostly into folks with more than two piercings or more than one tattoo. :-)
[Ed -- we woulda walked, but we were afraid of the cyclists... :-)]
Ed writes:
"The exhibition looks interesting. How about throwing us little more than "pretty darn fine" in a comment?"
Jeez, dude! I give you a restaurant review and a pub review and all you can do is complain about not getting a gallery review? It was contemporary art, by about a dozen artists, and I liked almost all of it. There was red, there was green, there was puce. Size varied, as did price.
"So you didn't walk down to the restaurant. Afraid of crime? :)"
Only in front of your house. And wherever you're parking your "If this van's a-rockin'" RV these days.
Ouch! Ouch! Tag-teamed in Pomona.
The cops rock downtown
Natalie and I have eaten there a half dozen times and find this new establishment just what Downtown Pomona needs: an eatery with good food, great hours (9AM to 10PM, 7 days a week!), and prices beyond reasonable. The folks working at PHO VI are VERY friendly, and, if there is ANYTHING you find other than perfect, tell them!...they are very eager to please, and will make adjustments accordingly.
This morning we stopped in for breakfast (my usual choice at any breakfast restaurant is pork chops and eggs. I noticed the PHO's "a la carte" menu had exactly what I wanted. It's a different way of ordering my traditional fare, but I got what I wanted (a porkchop and two eggs) and under four bucks!
Can't beat that within walking distance from where I live!
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