Vietnamese restaurant in Toronto?

[caribou]

We will be driving to Toronto this weekend and staying at the Fairmont on Front. We're looking to go out for Vietnamese on Saturday night (we've got a craving) - he likes BBQ pork on rice and I like pho. Any suggestions on where we should go?

[tkshum]

May be in Chinatown? There are lots of Vietnamese resturants.

[DaveGoodmen]

GO to the one near CHinatown center, it the one with green sign in the same street as Chinatown Center.
Best Pho in town and they play Cantonese songs too, call "fall" "chet" "tel"

[JayTee1]

The Kim Bo Restuarant out on 546 Dundas St W. is extremely good. It shouldn't be too far from where you're staying.

546 Dundas St W
Toronto, ON M5T 1H3

Just in case you wanted to google map it.

Or you can check out this website: Click here (http://www.lunchspark.com/?tag=Asian&nearby=toronto%2C+on&clientloc=true)

Whole lotta choice, not alotta info though.

[keanefan]

http://dine.to/page.php?PageID=57&EstablishmentType=0&SearchType=simple&SearchField=vietnamese

http://www.torontolife.com/cityguide/subcategory.cfm?category_id=1&subtitle_id=429

http://toronto.com/restaurants

:-0 :lol: :cheesygri :D

[llAPll]

there are enough Vietnamese restaurants in Toronto no matter where you go. as some ppl mentioned above, there are lots in Chinatown. They ought to name Toronto's Chinatown to Viet-town now anyways.... :|

[wiggy]

Anywhere along Spadina between Queen and Dundas.

[random1]

GO to the one near CHinatown center, it the one with green sign in the same street as Chinatown Center.
Best Pho in town and they play Cantonese songs too, call "fall" "chet" "tel"

In Vietnamese its call Pho Xelua (and is the name you'll find in the yellow pages) and the name basically means "Train" (they have a train on their logo). The rice and drinks are great, I hear mixed reviews about the pho (I like it myself) because they use fresh noodles rather than dried stick ones. If you have a preference, you should ask for it before you order. I'm not so sure about the service, since its been awhile since I've been there (always go to the one on Highway 7 myself).

[gman]

Does Saigon Star still have a restaurant in downtown?

[UrbanPoet]

Does Saigon Star still have a restaurant in downtown?

is that the one closest to College and SPadina?
theres one by this intersection along spadina. its on the west side with a big yellow sign.
theygive alot of meat in their pho dishes.

[obernewtyn]

there are enough Vietnamese restaurants in Toronto no matter where you go. as some ppl mentioned above, there are lots in Chinatown. They ought to name Toronto's Chinatown to Viet-town now anyways.... :|

Yeh I agree, they sure do have more pho restaurants than dim sum restaruants in chinatown plus all the other chinese restaurants. Wow you sure do seem like you go to Chinatown often to give much attention to these kinda things.

Pho Xelua or Train is the most popular in chinatown. They open late and the food is better than there competition pho 88. Pho 88's rice is not as good and the menu is more expensive. Alot of rumors behind Train.

GO to the one near CHinatown center, it the one with green sign in the same street as Chinatown Center.
Best Pho in town and they play Cantonese songs too, call "fall" "chet" "tel"

Yeh They play Mandarin, Cantonese and even Trance.

[llAPll]

Yeh I agree, they sure do have more pho restaurants than dim sum restaruants in chinatown plus all the other chinese restaurants. Wow you sure do seem like you go to Chinatown often to give much attention to these kinda things.
yeah, i'm at UT, so that's where i have lunch almost everyday :| ,but even just by walking through chinatown once or twice, you'll hear more viet than chinese.... In fact, you might not even hear anyone even speak chinese!

[obernewtyn]

yeah, i'm at UT, so that's where i have lunch almost everyday :| ,but even just by walking through chinatown once or twice, you'll hear more viet than chinese.... In fact, you might not even hear anyone even speak chinese!

Are you dissapointed that its called chinatown and not viet town? Seems like you do observe alot in chinatown. Might as well change it to viet town since the majority is viet? Its like a vietnam war where they took over the land and they place a flag here. Wow walking down chinatown and not hear anyone speak chinese? Well theres actually a very diverse community around chinatown. All the houses around I've seen are home to blacks, whites, chinese, vietnamese all apart of chinatown. Its not uncommon to see a mixed crowed here. People from all over come here for the food, groceries, and just to shop around. Seems like you're only paying attention to the viet side of things instead of the whole picture. Everybody gets along regardless which ever the area is called. If you want to break it down between chinese and viet, the majority are chinese living in chinatown, second would be white. I think viet and chinese go hand in hand together. Viets when they come here, they feel more comfortable in chinese area...plus alot of viets are mixed or know how to speak chinese even before coming to canada. Its not surprizing to see viet would settle in a chinese area instead of lets say Little Italy? or even Korean town? Anyways I never acknowlege vietnamese, chinese, irish, jamacan or any other ethicity should ever take over and change any area names...sounds ignorant and disrespectful. I don't even recall anything like that in T.O ever happening. I'm sure alot of people would be irate if it does.

[toalan]

xelua (sp?)is garbage, the meat is so fatty, it used to be a very good place, but about 7 years ago I think management or owners changed and now it is primarily chinese people making the pho.

The best downtown is Pho Du bao (sp?) it mean the cow's head or something like that. Their meat is very fresh and lean. It is on college just north of spadina, across the street from that big haunted resturant.

[Siefer999]

xelua (sp?)is garbage, the meat is so fatty, it used to be a very good place, but about 7 years ago I think management or owners changed and now it is primarily chinese people making the pho.

The best downtown is Pho Du bao (sp?) it mean the cow's head or something like that. Their meat is very fresh and lean. It is on college just north of spadina, across the street from that big haunted resturant.
spadina goes north and south, and college goes east and west

[toalan]

Oh snap, i mean it is on spadina, just north of dundas.

[toycam]

Caribou, I'd recommend Pho Hung at 350 Spadina Ave (just N of Dundas). (http://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2006/02/pho_hung_cheap_and_easy/) You can get a mean bowl of Pho there while the Mister gets his pork chop on rice.

If you're interested in trying some other vietnamese cuisine other than Pho, try Ahn Dao at 383 Spadina Ave (south of College) (http://72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:N0Irr4DtpV8J:www.torontolife.ca/cityguide/listing.cfm%3Fcategory_id%3D1%26listing_id%3D8333+ anh+dao+%2B+spadina&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=1). Order the shrimp wrapped sugar cane and grilled "nem" (pork sausage) platter. It comes with rice paper, asst veggies and rice noodle that you wrap yourself and dunk in hoisin sauce. Warning, do not order Pho here. Everything else is good.

Enjoy your trip and report back :)

[sleepyguy]

I've been to alot of them in Toronto and boy have they all gone downhill BIGTIME! They one at Eglinton and Lawrence is decent... I prefer home Pho 10000000000000000000000x better.

[IceMan77]

Yeh They play Mandarin, Cantonese and even Trance.

Trance??? LOL. I love the pho places that play the old Jacky Cheng and Andy Lau music. Gives sort of a retro feel :D

[charliebrown]

Does Saigon Star still have a restaurant in downtown?

Not anymore...the original was on Collier St right beside Toronto Reference Library

They moved to richmond hill in the early 90s

Saigon Star
330 Hwy 7,
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1A6
Tel. : 905-731-7221

(just east of bayview)

imo, still the best place for curry crab & grilled oysters

[szw]

I was surprised there were so few vietnamese restauraunts in TO actually.

[tinyfist]

Peach Garden in the TD plaza at Pacific Mall is pretty good sometimes... although lately, I've found them to be hit or miss.

The fruit shakes are consistently good though.

[teknoluv]

They moved to richmond hill in the early 90s

imo, still the best place for curry crab & grilled oysters
Yes, Saigon Star is good. But I still prefer to eat crabs at home, esp. with all those finger licking. :D

[Gundam]

Caribou, I'd recommend Pho Hung at 350 Spadina Ave (just N of Dundas). (http://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2006/02/pho_hung_cheap_and_easy/) You can get a mean bowl of Pho there while the Mister gets his pork chop on rice.

yeah, Pho in Pho Hung is good. there is another Gum Bo viet restaurant on the side street of Pho Hung. They are great too.

[kdotc]

train in chinatown is goood

[h2o-]

The Kim Bo Restuarant out on 546 Dundas St W. is extremely good. It shouldn't be too far from where you're staying.

546 Dundas St W
Toronto, ON M5T 1H3

Just in case you wanted to google map it.

Or you can check out this website: Click here (http://www.lunchspark.com/?tag=Asian&nearby=toronto%2C+on&clientloc=true)

Whole lotta choice, not alotta info though.

Hello.... by any chance that this Kim Bo has any relationship with the one up on Times SQ, Richmond Hill? They're both the same name I assume but not sure they have any relationship... I always wanna go to the one in Times SQ though...

[h2o-]

xelua (sp?)is garbage, the meat is so fatty, it used to be a very good place, but about 7 years ago I think management or owners changed and now it is primarily chinese people making the pho.

somewhat I agree... Xe Lua has been around in Toronto for quite long time (at least since late 80's?) and I've been to all of them...

- but I would say the one up on Hwy7/Kenndy (M.K.? I know that's not really called M.K.) gone downhill the most...
- the one in Woodside SQ is the one I haven't been to the longest time...
- I think the one on Spadina is the best one among the 6
- that up on Hwy7 (Golden) is so-so

Anybody else been to the others?

[h2o-]

Not anymore...the original was on Collier St right beside Toronto Reference Library

They moved to richmond hill in the early 90s

Saigon Star
330 Hwy 7,
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1A6
Tel. : 905-731-7221

(just east of bayview)

imo, still the best place for curry crab & grilled oysters

I like Saigon Star too... and Lemon Grass up on Silverstar Blvd. (where Destiny Bubble Tea is) serves some similar dishes. By looking at the menu, I found out they're under the same management (or enterprise) and realized that food quality is similar to each other too.

p.s. there is another Lemon Grass on Bayview - http://www.lemongrass.ca/

[jtamn]

LOL pho xe lua is the worst pho, only chinese people love off that...
i think its chinese owned... the waiters/workers cant even speak vietnamese let alone speak english properly, its so shameful.

the people who eat at xe lua are like all chinese.

[jtamn]

Pho Hung downtown is pretty good.

[kfc]

I'd recommend spring rolls. They make a really good authentic pho.

[TheDarkRage]

I'm always told that Pho Hung has the least/no MSG in their soup base, although sometimes it tastes kinda bland when I go there, even with all the other additional sauces I add. It has a nice view from their new addon on the corner of St. Andrew St. and Spadina. There selection isn't as large as Pho Xelua's (or "train"). Closes very early though, usually 10 pm or earlier on weekdays.

As for Pho Xelua (or Train), I used to go there a lot after work, late in the night. Very good place to get filled up. However, I haven't been there lately, since it seems as if it's been more dirtier than usual. When I mean dirtier, I mean that the greasy film on their floors seems to have become more slippery than usual. Their washrooms are as horrific as ever. Although their bubble tea/mixed drinks are still the largest I've even known though, especially with the vietnamese-style iced coffee (freshly brewed hot coffee w/ sweetened condensed milk on ice). Open very late, till 4 on weekends I believe.

Well, you should try both of these places, they're popular for various reasons, and also have various flaws as well.

[keanefan]

Anyways I never acknowlege vietnamese, chinese, irish, jamacan or any other ethicity should ever take over and change any area names...sounds ignorant and disrespectful. I don't even recall anything like that in T.O ever happening. I'm sure alot of people would be irate if it does.

old Chinatown is too far for me.

http://www.thestar.com (http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1142118641223&call_pageid=968350130169&col=969483202845)

*partial article:
Once a prosperous hive of activity, Toronto's downtown Chinatown, centred on Dundas St. W. and Spadina Ave, is now dismal and bleak. Most of the good restaurants have gone. Businesses are suffering. Only a few fruit stands remain. Litter swirls around the cold and lonely sidewalks.

While downtown Chinatown was once the primary locus of Chinese culture and commerce in Canada, it has been decisively supplanted by what many are calling the New Chinatown, much farther north in Markham, which is very much responsible for its downtown counterpart's decline.

That migration of wealth from downtown Chinatown to the suburbs has happened before with other ethnic groups.

Spadina Ave. has always been one of Toronto's main landing strips for new immigrants. When the Jews began to arrive from Europe in the early 20th century, they ended up on Spadina. They worked in and then owned the many garment factories. But after World War II, and with their growing affluence, they packed up and began to move north.

Until the war, the Chinese community in Toronto was quite small. There were first a few Chinese laundries in what is now the financial district. Then the Chinese moved to the area Nathan Philips Square now occupies, says Shirley Lum, who guides walking tours around Chinatown.

After Canada repealed a federal policy preventing Chinese immigration after World War II, the population increased steadily. Today there are more than 400,000 Chinese in the Greater Toronto Area.

By the 1970s, many immigrants were arriving from Hong Kong, and later as Vietnamese boat people — many them were of Chinese origin — and they moved west along Dundas St., eventually reaching Spadina. A second Chinatown sprouted at Broadview Ave. and Gerard St. E., but it never reached the size or importance of its downtown cousin.

In her 1985 book, Spadina Avenue, Toronto curator Rosemary Donegan wrote that the Chinese newcomers were "rebuilding moribund shops, restaurants and theatres and revitalizing social and economic patterns."

But in the past few years, many of those immigrants, having amassed their own wealth, moved to Mississauga, Scarborough and Markham. A large number also returned to Hong Kong.

Most of the recent immigrants have come from mainland China. More geographically dispersed than earlier waves of Chinese immigrants, this community hasn't succeeded in revitalizing old Chinatown.

"The character of Chinatown has changed," says Stephen Chan, owner of Bright Pearl Seafood restaurant on Spadina. "The elders have retired and their kids became professionals and are doing other things. There is nobody to carry the torch, so Chinatown has been left unattended."

Markham and Richmond Hill, says Chan, who is also the vice-president of the Toronto Central China Town Development Association, are drawing the younger generations. "Look at the houses up there. They're larger, newer. It's urban sprawl."

He sees history repeating itself. "The history of Chinatown is the same, whether European, Irish, Jewish, Chinese. They make money and they're gone."

In the past, downtown Chinatown could always count on both locals and tourists to bring in business. By 1997, however, Pacific Mall and Market Village had set a course entrenching that region as a Chinese stronghold.

Then, the tourists dropped off dramatically. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, as well as Toronto's SARS outbreak in 2003, reduced visits from abroad. Chinatown hasn't recovered.

[DarkReaper]

Pho Linh
1156 College St.
Toronto

They might not have the best pho in town but they sure have the best banh cuon ever.

Their pho is still pretty damn good though.

[Crotchety Old Man]

They're all good.

[misskaren]

The Peach Garden on Steeles/Kennedy, right beside Pacific Mall!!

but the BEST one is called Pho Hung, somewhere in chinatown.. it's rated one of the best vietnamese restaurants in Toronto!!!

[aznspddmn]

Pho Linh
1156 College St.
Toronto

They might not have the best pho in town but they sure have the best banh cuon ever.

Their pho is still pretty damn good though.


I second this place. Best Pho i ever ate is here. Believe me when i say best. I've eaten at almost every pho place. i also vow to never eat pho in scarb, markham and richmond hill cuz they all suck large. fooling all the hk people who think hmm this pho is damn good.

[caribou]

Thanks everybody! I came across this thread again when I was cleaning out my Favourites links. We ended up going to Spring Rolls (http://http://www.springrolls.ca/) on Front and Jarvis, dining with a friend who wasn't big on Vietnamese but did enjoy Thai. We shared the spring roll platter and spicy coconut soup with vegetables and chives for an appetizer. My friend and I had the seafood pad thai and my boyfriend had the pork chop and chicken rice platter. I know I had originially said Vietnamese for pho but I rarely get a chance to have Thai. This way everyone was happy with the restaurant selection, however, my boyfriend's pork chop was a bit fatty and a little too saucy and the beer was a bit pricey. My seafood pad thaiwas delicious! Next time we're in TO we'll definitely check out Pho Hung. Thanks again!

[KorruptioN]

Pho Hung.

[Irb]

Pho Con Bo at Jane and Wilson > *

[Ogata]

you can tell if the broth has msg if you start to feel thirsty or your throat starts to feel dry. Those are usual effects. *Lei Lai* on Spadina and Dundas isn't so bad either. They use fresh noodles instead of the dry variety if you are into that.

Refer to my thread

http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/showthread.php?t=174021&highlight=Msg+Evil

[bigstar*]

Pho Linh (College/Dufferin)
Pho Con Bo (Jane/Wilson)

Are the best locations that I would recommend to anyone.

[langong]

Pho Linh
1156 College St.
Toronto

They might not have the best pho in town but they sure have the best banh cuon ever.

Their pho is still pretty damn good though.

yup I second the Banh Cuon - best in town!!

also there is Kim Restaurant, on the side street from Spadina behind Pho Hung. If you like fish dishes they have like 7 courses all fishes extravaganzza :)

[vinh2212]

the best Pho in downtown toronto is gonna be Pho Linh<<the only one. i've been worked in all the vietnamses Pho restaurant in toronto downtown area. and i think Pho Linh is the best. Since i'm working there right now, i even like it much better, cuz i can eat pho and ba'nh cuon everyday for FREEE, also the boss is really nice and friendly...lolz. :) :)
Pho Con Bo< mean the head's cow is taste better than Pho Linh. but it's too far away from downtown area or it would beat any Pho places ;) .
Honestly, all the Pho restaurants in China town really suckass....for people said Pho Hung is good....they have a really bad taste or never try any restaurants than that before. Just to let people know, if you gonna eat at Pho Hung dun ever Tip them b/c servers dont get tip :mad: