Restaurant review: Miss Saigon in Kennedy Town – go for the pho

Vietnamese restaurants have been popping up all around the city. The latestis Miss Saigon in Kennedy Town, in a convenient location just opposite the MTR station. The décor of the restaurant is in soothing blue and there’s spacious seating.

The pho is of top quality. We like the Miss Saigon signature house pho (HK$108) with raw beef, beef brisket, beef ball, beef tripe and beef tendon. The broth is made of fresh beef bones, boiled for 24 hours together with beef meat and 12 kinds of herbs and spices, including coriander seeds and cloves. The sweet, beefy broth is ladled over smooth noodlesserved in a large bowl. The beef balls, which are house-made, have a bouncy texture.

The ham in the Vietnamese ham pho (HK$68) is also house-made. Fresh pork and pork belly are marinated with herbs for two days before being mincedthen wrapped in banana leaf and steamed over low heat. The pork has a firm texture and strong meat flavour. In addition to being served with noodles, the Vietnamese ham is also served on its own (HK$58) with tomato and pineapple cubes, which make the dish light and appetising.

While the pho dishes are a delight (we also liked the one with barbecue pork neck, HK$68), snacks are a letdown.

The butter chicken wings (HK$58 for four) are too salty.

The sugar cane shrimp cake (HK$78 for two) is dry, and the roast pigeon with apricot sauce (HK$88 for one pigeon) tastes like frozen meat.