I am a HUGE fan of Vietnamese eats and I’m always on the look-out for good, down-home eateries. So I was really excited to find Pho 9n9 near my office and it immediately went into my lunch rotation. Lo and behold but I find another Vietnamese spot right down the street on Yelp, Bowl of Pho. It was time to spread my wings a bit and check out this newer Vietnamese eatery in RTP.
Located a bit further north on S. Miami Boulevard, Bowl of Pho sits in a stand-alone pea green building right up the street from Pho 9n9. Inside the space is large and cleanly but humbly decorated in VN cafe-style. Small 2 and 4-tops, bamboo decor and a chalkboard with food and drink specials. It’s clean and bright with natural lighting but very simple. I’ve stopped by a couple of times and there’s always an older Vietnamese couple working the floor, I’m assuming the owners. The menu is pretty basic with a smattering of pho, rice, bun and banh mi offerings. Prices is about the same as Pho 9n9 in the $8 to $12 range with appetizers at $4 to $5.
For my two visits to Bowl of Pho, I managed to try out their summer rolls, bun bo hue and a combo pho. The summer rolls here are solid and stuffed with both pork and shrimp, a nice touch. The bun bo hue, was my first taste of this dish but it’s a spicier beef broth with lemongrass. It was served with bean sprouts and cabbage and was loaded up with slightly different proteins. A tasty bowl but I have nothing to compare it to! Just think pho a more spicy, tangy base.
And finally the combo pho. At $11.50 it wasn’t cheap but Bowl of Pho offers up a sizable bowl with plenty of noodles, lightly spiced broth and decent cuts of meat, balls and other beef parts. I liked it but may still give the nod to Pho 9n9 for their broth.
Service at Bowl of Pho is super quick, the owners that run the place are on the ball and get you in and out quickly. You pay at the counter and I’m back off to work in under 45 minutes including the drive over, not bad! Overall I think Bowl of Pho is a VERY solid choice for Vietnamese but I need a bit more time to see how different they are from Pho 9n9. But all I can say is that I am happy to have two solid and authentic Vietnamese eateries so close to me at work. Vietnamese eats just makes me happy and I’m pretty sure Bowl of Pho will too.
2806 S Miami Boulevard
Durham, NC 27703
919.734.8664
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