Don't want to read the long post?
Quick summary:
Food: A bit on the bland side but overall an above average experiencePricing: Definitely on the high end for Pho, not exactly worth the value in my opinion
Environment: Store is small and has maybe 20 seats but did not feel cramped at all.
A bit of background, I work nearby and have wanted to try this restaurant for the longest time. I've tried to go at least 10 times over the last half year and at least 5 times in 2017 alone; however it's been a flurry of letdowns with "Closed" messages plastered on the door, "Sold Out" showed at 12;05 or just obscenely long waits. It's quite a turn off everytime i round the corner and see no one in line but this weirdly made me want to come here and try it even more.
I finally got the opportunity to today (12:05 pm) and while it was a good meal, it was definitely not worth the hype. Let's break down the meal.
Food:The menu is quite straight forward with essentially Beef Pho and Spring rolls as the only 2 offerings. There are multiple toppings that you can add which include Beef Balls, Raw/cooked Beef, Tripe etc at a charge but there's no chicken, pork or fish for anyone who doesn't eat Beef. The menu resembles that of a typical Ramen shop with lots of customization with (Hold/Less/More/Standard) being offered for Beef Oil, Scallions, Onions and Coriander. I went with a pretty straight forward bowl with everything being standard except for more on the onions. There are 4 "base" options for Beef Pho which are your typical, Premium, Raw, Cooked and Raw + Cooked beef Pho.
My colleague and I ordered a bowl each, with multiple additional toppings and a spring roll and the portions were a bit small. The broth was clear, aromatic and tasted relatively clear of MSG (Not 100% sure on this) but ultimately i thought it came off as bland after a few spoon fulls. I was disappointed with the amount of toppings even after adding about 50-60 dollars worth to my bowl. I can't remember exactly but I got 2 beef balls for 12 dollars, a couple very thinly sliced pieces of Vietnamese sausage for 10 and you get the point. While I'm not one to complain about value when it comes to great tasting food, I thought it should be made clear when conducting a thorough review! The noodles were another area of disappointment for me. There was no option for 金邊粉 and as I've stressed before in my search for the best bowl, i believe these are the best noodles to go with when having Pho. I understand that it may not be everyone's preference of noodles but the lack of the option did not add points in my book.
Environment:
The restaurant was in a small quaint shop and while there were seats at every available spot within, i didn't feel cramped. The store was clean and well managed, probably due to the large amount of offtime they have, and i definitely felt comfortable eating here.
Price:The pricing is obviously on the higher end. I don't feel like it was worth the price that was set but i can see the need for a premium price range. At 80$ a bowl, with no additional toppings or noodles, I would say that even the smallest of appetites would not be satisfied let alone a regular person. The additional toppings were also priced a bit too high with not much being provided per choice. Lastly, the 55$ spring roll featured 4 tiny spring rolls that while tasted decent, once again were not worth anywhere near that price.
All in all, Brass Spoon was 100% not worth the hype that surrounded it. Be it colleagues, friends or Open Rice reviews, the combination of taste/environment/hype did not reflect the price and prep needed to have such an experience. I will say that it's slightly better then an average bowl of Pho from your neighborhood Vietnamese restaurant but to say that you'd have to pay a 50%+ premium on that same bowl, the choice is clear.
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