Greatest Pho In Oslo?

Having read various articles in the Norwegian media exhorting the cities Ramen offerings, even going so far as to claim you couldn't find a better bowl in EUROPE, well, I had to take a step back and seriously ponder if these journalists had ever had a good bowl in their lives. Honestly? Who do they hire to do these insulting articles, fanning the pride of mediocre cooks to stop pushing because they've reached their pinnacle? Probably the type who fly all the way to Japan and eat at Ichiran or Ippudo. Anyway.

Oslo used to have a consistently great Pho place in the shape of Hai Cafe. The large, gloomy interior with it's rather cold service, but warming bowls of soup were a highlight of any hangover. With rent prices hiking they gave up their location promising to open a new shop. The years have rolled by without any hint of a new place opening yet, so we were forced to return to the mediocre haunts or try new ones in the hope that something, somewhere could come close. Could Oslo muster TWO good Pho places? The answer is not a simple Yes/No.

With the main problem being consistency, we are drawn into the murkey waters of recommending places based on them at their best, and fully aware that if someone visited on a bad day, they would wonder what the hell the fuss was about. Understanding this, the three bowls crushed were Pho Mai, Da Lat Cafe and Mama Pho. In the spirit of top ten lists, we'll stick to a three bowl review with the worst, first.

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The Kids Aren't Alright

MAMA PHO

Ultimately there will always be pretenders. I could almost smell the falsehoods arriving to this "trendy" restaurant that you find in every downtown in every city. Suspiciously vacant of any spine of authenticity, playing more on the "hip casual" curse that pervades with its deep reach, where care in the kitchen is traded in for money spent on interior decorators and social media accounts. You can bet your bottom dollar the food will be mediocre, the prices just a hair below choking range, and the service friendly but not warm. 

To cut to the chase. The broth was overly sweet, and unduly aggressive on the black pepper. The meatball had a very firm, tough texture. The noodles were not great. The actual beef slice was fairly prepared, and the tiny smattering of accompaniments took the entire joy out of having a heaped plate full of culantro, cilantro, basil, lime, chilis, etc with which to conjure magic. 

At 189 kr for a bowl that wasn't even half-filled up, i'd say the price point was also disappointing. 

I really hope they get their act together and start taking more care with the details, otherwise I think the people seeking out Oslo's best pho will be forced to look elsewhere.

​5/10

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da lat cafe

Dalat was visited once almost a decade ago, and I remember not being overly impressed, and honestly quite put off by the over-riding smell of wet dog and marinated arse. Times have changed, and without Hai to tempt my hardly earned Kroners, and others more recently tested, I made it a point to give them a second chance and see if things had improved.

In short, they had.

The smell was rather more pleasant. The service was friendlier than I remembered (tho i'd take a grumpy asshole and retching odours if the soup was up to par). I ordered their Beef Pho and sat watching the ice cubes in my water glass melt quicker than was reasonable. It was a scorching day.

Bowl came a'balancing, and I sipped the broth clean before pouring and tearing in condiments and improvements. It was better than I remembered, but also had that over-sweet taste that I wasn't the biggest fan of. Too much cinnamon or star anise tilting the balance. The beef was rather dry and chewy, the meatball standard and the noodles were as expected. Garnishes aside, since they generally are raw ingredients bought in, the chili garlic paste had a pleasant kick, and added much needed tempering of the sweetness. 

Ultimately, the bowl was a good substitution for the vacuum left by Hai, and ranked as the second best bowl of Pho i've tried so far in Oslo.

7/10

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Pho Mai

This was the second time I ate at Pho Mai, the first visit being a good one. Having heard numerous reports from friends that the quality varied drastically from almost sublime, to bath-water, the knot in my stomach tightened with every labored step. I arrived to find the lights off and doors locked, 2.10pm, said they opened at 2 online. I decided to call my sister for a few minutes and lo and behold, during my call the owner came out and opened the door. 

Inside I just ordered the Beef Pho, forgetting to even look at the menu. I chose a vantage point that offered my back to the counter, and a view through a window. My bowl arrived after 5 minutes, placed down by the cheery older owner. He mentioned he was from Saigon, and beamed at the bowl before me quietly adding "This one is better than in Vietnam". Tho I won't call him a liar, he was stretching the truth. The Pho in Oslo doesn't hold a candle to most places in Ho Chi Minh, but far be it from me to go down memory lane now.

Soup was almost perfect. Deeply flavoured, nice hints (but not overpowering) spices, tender beef, solid noodles and a plate of accompaniments that you'd hope for. The addition of the small ginger slices was a treat, and after a few splodges of garlic-chilli paste the bowl sung wonderful melodies. 

If you manage to catch them on a good day, you won't find a better bowl of Pho in Oslo.

8/10

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All these recommendations are just personal opinions based on my palate, things change, chefs get fired or replaced, places open-close, relocate, so take it all with a pinch of MSG and discover your own gems too. But please do try a few of these, they have been researched exhaustively.