Pho King at the 5th Street Market is not reminiscent of traditional Pho restaurants. A casino-style TV behind the bar and spacious dining room offers a modern environment for traditional Vietnamese cuisine.
Owner Ha Nguyen’s family has been in the restaurant business for decades. The Nguyen family owned the now-closed Vietnamese restaurant, Saigon, from 2001 to 2013.
Inside, old photos of three generations of the Nguyen family bring the restaurant authenticity. So while there is a modern feel inside, Pho King’s menu is rooted in family tradition.
“We have a lot of family history in the food industry,” Ha said. “It touches my heart to know that I came from that.”
While she said working with family can be difficult, her family history in restaurants drives Ha to continue creating authentic Vietnamese dining.
“My dad was a really good cook. I moved back from Seattle to help him run [Saigon],” Ha said.
Ha drew inspiration from her dad’s cooking for the menu at Pho King. “I learned a lot through my dad,” Ha said. “A lot of his recipes are in the recipes that we have. I’ve modified them a little bit for the Eugene palate.”
Ha believes that the longer pho is cooked, the better it tastes. Pho is bone broth usually cooked for at least a day, but Ha prefers it after a full forty-eight hours.
“You actually let all the ingredients that we use marry in and it becomes a very rich flavored broth,” Ha said.
But what’s just as important as the herbs and ingredients used in the Pho, is what Ha casually refers to as “TLC” (tender love and care).
For Ha, plating reflects the care for Pho. Most of the staff are family or close friends. Ha’s husband cooks in the back, her mother prepares vegetables and her son bartends, so family is a big part of Ha’s craft.
When coming up with a name, Ha thought Pho King applied and was funny.
What Ha had seen in Vietnamese restaurants around town led her to open up an aesthetically pleasing space. “Most of the Vietnamese restaurants are kinda dark in this town,” Ha said.
Inside Pho King, the lights are often turned brighter, and EDM music fills the large dining room. Noodle houses rarely play music in the first place, but Pho King’s choice to play “Faded” by Zhu certainly stands out.
At the front of the house is the bar, captained by Ha’s son Kahlil. Pho King offers a cultural spin on classic cocktails. Kahlil fuses Asian ingredients with classic drinks. After serving in the Air Force for six years, Kahlil loves learning as a new bartender.
“I kinda just sat down and looked at what we had, and thought of how we can make it ours,” Kahlil said. “Little ingredients like cinnamon sticks make it different from the classics.”
One unique cocktail is Pho King’s Jade Cooler. Kahlil’s favorite drink is his spin on an Irish Maid cocktail. The whiskey cocktail contains lemon juice, cucumber and Irish Whiskey. Kahlil’s version adds muddled mint, giving the cocktail a smoother sensation.
The minty twist to a whiskey drink offers a cool pairing with a warm bowl of Vietnamese comfort food.
Whether you’re craving comfort food or trying something new, the Nguyen family will provide lots of tender love and care to their ingredients and recipes. Good food and a close family staff are strengths that hopefully lead Pho King to years of success.
