The best pho restaurants in NYC

Mắm is absolutely delicious with unapologetically bold and hard to find Vietnamese dishes like Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm (rice vermicelli with fermented shrimp paste sauce) and stuffed snails with lemongrass and pork. With its nostalgic decor and authentic food, Mắm makes me feel like I’m in Vietnam. Mắm showcases northern style Vietnamese food in a quintessential Vietnamese setting with red and blue plastic stools and metal tables. If you’re lucky, you might find phở on the rotating menu. I ordered the phở with brisket, flank and sirloin and got a side of crispy bánh quẩy (deep fried breadstick) to dip into the phở. The phở broth is light and flavorful on its own, but when you add a dash of garlic vinegar, your taste buds will be transported to another dimension. Slurp the slippery wide flat rice noodles with the broth and various cuts of beef for a very memorable culinary experience. 

Time Out Tip: Perfect for adventurous foodies who want a taste of authentic Vietnam in a fun setting.

Address: 70 Forsyth Street
Opening hours: Monday: 5pm-8:30pm; Thursday-Friday: 5pm-8:30pm; Saturday-Sunday: 5-9pm. Closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Price of phở: $24. Add bánh quẩy (deep fried breadstick) for $3.50

Hello Saigon in Greenwich Village has been a long time favorite of mine for Vietnamese comfort food. Hello Saigon serves a delicious bowl of southern style phở. The best seller is the Phở Hello Saigon which has eye of round beef, brisket and beef ball. 

The broth is clean and well balanced, the meat is tender and the staff treat you like family in a spacious, comfortable and charming setting with fairy lights.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for a sudden and unexpected phở craving. One time during a group run, my friend Sam dined here without a shirt and the staff were totally unfazed. It’s that kind of relaxed and delicious neighborhood place.

Address: 180 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10012
Opening hours: 10:30am-9.30pm
Price of phở: $18

Đi Ăn Đi is a beautiful calming oasis in Greenpoint specializing in modern Vietnamese food. It’s a trendy restaurant that opens up to a sun drenched room full of hanging plants, green and white walls and wooden tables. Everything here is warm and beautifully presented. I got the Phở Thìn Hà Nội (Beef Phở Ha Noi) which is a northern style phở with wok seared brisket, scallions, pickled garlic and chilli. The broth was rich and flavorful and the noodles were flat, wide and scrumptiously slippery. 

Time Out Tip: Perfect for those looking for great phở in a calm rejuvenating setting.

Address: 68 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn
Opening hours: Monday-Thursday: 5-10pm; Friday/Saturday: Noon-10:30pm; Sunday: Noon-10pm
Price of phở: $22 

This longstanding, casual, no-frills Mott Street institution offers delicious and affordable southern style phở that will satisfy all your phở cravings. With a recipe dating back to 1985, it’s a reliable phở with a light and flavorful broth. Phở Bằng is spacious, affordable and authentic with mom-and-pop shop vibes and an extensive menu. Phở Bằng serves 78 different dishes, including 18 varieties of phở. If that’s too overwhelming, order the #1 (Tái Nạm Gầu Gân Sách) which has fresh eye of round, brisket, tendon and omosa. 

Time Out Tip: It's perfect for large groups of disorganized friends who desperately need their phở fix.

Address: 157 Mott Street
Opening hours: Monday-Sunday: 11am-8:45pm
Price of phở: $14.50

As a longstanding authentic phở restaurant nestled in the Baxter Street strip of Vietnamese restaurants in Chinatown, Pasteur Grill & Noodles stands out with its deep and fragrant broth, bouncy thin noodles and flavorful beef balls. It’s a cute casual place with mirrored walls, hanging tasseled lanterns and Vietnamese straw hats. With rays of sunlight coming through the front windows, complimentary mugs of tea and soothing jazz music, there’s a welcoming sense of calm that complements the belly warming bowl of phở. I got the phở xe lửa (special combination) which comes with medium rare beef, brisket, beef balls, tendon and tripe.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for phở lovers who want to eat authentic phở and look cute while doing it.

Address: 85 Baxter Street
Opening hours: 11am-8:30pm. Closed on Tuesdays
Price of phở: $15.50

Nha Trang One is another longstanding phở restaurant in the Baxter Street strip of Vietnamese restaurants in Chinatown. A family run restaurant since 1992, Nha Trang One serves authentic homestyle Vietnamese dishes. I ordered the Phở Dặc Biệt with beef brisket, eye round and tendon. If you prefer a lighter well balanced broth in a casual no-frills setting, Nha Trang One is for you. It’s also great if you’re on a budget because the phở at Nha Trang One is one of the cheapest in the city. With so many items on the menu to choose from and very affordable prices, Nha Trang One is a solid everyday choice.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for anyone looking for a good deal.

Address: 87 Baxter St, New York, NY 10013
Opening hours: Tuesday/Thursday: 11am-9pm; Wednesday/Sunday: 11am-8:30pm; Friday-Saturday: 11am-9:30pm. Closed on Mondays
Price of phở: $13.50

Phở Gà Vàng specializes in homestyle chicken phở. I got the signature dish, which is the traditional chopped chicken phở that is served with skin and bone. Dip the tender chicken meat into a lime and pepper dipping sauce and enjoy it with the balanced broth, rice noodles, onions, scallion and cilantro. The restaurant also serves a shredded boneless white meat chicken option, which is delightful and easy to eat. The decor is simple, casual and sprinkled with a collection of chicken jokes and puns along the walls. Phở Gà Vàng first opened at the Eden Center, which is a Vietnamese food paradise in Virginia. Luckily, Phở Gà Vang came to NYC in 2024 and immediately became the best place for chicken phở in the city.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for anyone who likes chicken and soup.

Address: 30 Market Street
Opening hours: 11am-9pm
Price of phở: $14.99

This bustling modern East Village restaurant serves Vietnamese homestyle dishes inspired by the family recipes of husband-wife duo Jimmy Ly and Yen Vo. I got The Madame Phở, which is a southern style phở simmered for 24 hours with eye of round, brisket, meatball and topped with cilantro, onions and scallion. Everything from the broth, the meat and the noodles is flavorful and balanced. For the meat lovers, a large bone-in short rib can be added. Madame Vo manages to do it all: classic, modern, trendy, casual and suitable for group dining, dates, solo dining and take out. 

Time Out Tip: Perfect for introducing homestyle Vietnamese cuisine to friends, dates and family in a buzzing and modern environment. I also love the nem nướng cuốn (grilled pork rice paper rolls) and sườn kho (braised caramelized spare pork ribs in coconut juice and pineapple).

Address: 212 East 10th Street
Opening hours: Noon-3:40pm; 5:30pm-9:40pm
Price of phở: $20. Add short rib for $10

Bánh is a popular Upper West Side Vietnamese restaurant with an exciting wide range of Vietnamese dishes not often seen in the city. On weekends, you can get bánh cuốn (steamed rice crepes), pâté chaud (savory pastry) and phở cuốn (housemade phở rolls), 

I got the Phở Dặc Biệt and enjoyed it with a side of bánh quẩy (deep fried breadstick) to dip into the aromatic broth. The crispy chewy texture of the fried breadstick perfectly soaked up the light and flavorful phở broth. The decor is fun and bright, the staff are friendly and the phở here is fantastic and well balanced. I’m very excited to try their sister restaurant Bánh Anh Em when it opens because it will serve freshly made phở noodles using specially made equipment from Vietnam. In the phở world, this is a very big deal.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for nights out in the Upper West Side with the kind of friends who are willing to share a little bit of everything.

Address: 942 Amsterdam Avenue
Opening hours: Tuesday-Thursday: 6pm-10pm; Friday-Saturday: Noon-4pm; 6pm-10pm; Sunday: Noon-4pm; 6-9pm. Closed on Mondays
Price of phở: $18.95. Add bánh quẩy (deep fried breadstick) for $3.49

Saigon Social caught my attention during its pre-pandemic pop-up days with its modern and delicious take on Vietnamese dishes and I’ve been rooting for the restaurant ever since. With a number of interruptions delaying its brick-and-mortar restaurant opening including gas outages and a global pandemic, Saigon Social and its owner Helen Nguyen has proved to be resilient and much loved by the community. I love the bánh bèo (steamed rice cake with shrimp and mung bean), garlic noodles, bánh mì burger and crispy fried fish with pickled vegetables. If you’re lucky, you’ll find phở on the menu. On the day I visited, the beef phở with ribeye and brisket was the soup of the day and had a deep flavorful broth with wide flat noodles and high quality tender meat. Saigon Social is not just a restaurant, it’s a community with warm and friendly staff.

Time Out Tip: Perfect for fun loving people who love food and community. It’s the type of place that will get your mom and aunties dancing in the restaurant to Vietnamese pop songs. Well, mine did anyway.

Address: 172 Orchard Street
Opening hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday: 5pm-10pm; Saturday-Sunday: Noon-4pm; 5pm-10pm. Closed on Tuesdays
Price of phở: $23