Pho Nhu Vu restaurant in Bear

Stuffed grape leaves and chicken pho from Pho Nhu Vu. (Credit: Jessica Bratton)

The warmer weather we've seen as of late certainly doesn't make everyone want to run out and grab a scorching crock of soup for lunch. Yet, as we sat in a dining room in Bear last week, we saw a busy lunch scene with the clientele hovering over hot bowls of broth.

It was our first time visiting Pho Nhu Vu, a Vietnamese eatery located across from Governor's Square Shopping Center on Pulaski Highway. The restaurant's namesake, a Vietnamese thinly sliced meat and rice-noodle soup dish, was being served at pretty much every table.

The scents of simmering beef and chicken, along with garlic, soy and boiling noodles, hit us immediately as we walked in the front door. We decided on a table to the right, near the front window on a sunny day.

As expected, we didn't find the average condiment caddy of sugar, ketchup, salt and pepper, but rather an abundance of hard plastic chop sticks, a tube of soy sauce and hoisin sauce, and a stack of plastic spoons with deep pockets, all for serving the pho.

Our server approached with a pleasant smile and a mini-kettle, and poured us each some steaming hot tea, which we would later find out was complimentary. The ceramic vessels resembled that of ochoko, sake cups.

At first glance, the small menu featured only two pages, but after a second or two, I flipped to the back page, where an assortment of "iced drinks" were listed. Everything from lychee ($2.95) to soy bean ($2.25) and an interesting concoction of strawberry, taro, mango and coffee ($3.50).

Feeling adventurous, I chose the blended durian juice ($3.50), which our server informed us was a sweet Asian fruit indigenous to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. Apparently, it's very popular there.

Let's just say that was my first and last durian juice. While the initial flavor was sweet and creamy, with a fruity forefront, the aftertaste was pungent, very earthy and, at times, a bit offensive. I'm thinking it's an acquired taste.

Moving along, our appetizers came out a few minutes later, including tofu summer rolls ($4.95), which were thankfully served with a thick and sweet peanut sauce, and the grilled beef in grape leaves ($5.95).

We could take or leave the summer rolls, but the beef, seasoned with onion powder, sugar and garlic, were extra tasty wrapped in the grape leaves and dipped in fish sauce.

The chicken pho ($6.95 for a small) came out piping out, with huge chunks of tender chicken and soft noodles. A plate of greens, limes, jalapenos and mung sprouts were placed on the table to mix in with the pho.

Across the table sat the sweet smelling grilled chicken, eggroll and rice dish ($7.95). The chicken, though a bit fatty, had been basted in soy, garlic and sugar, and tasted as such. The egg roll was prime for hoisin sauce, which the three of us wound up using.

Although many dishes contained some sort of vegetable, the vegetarian selections on the menu were slim. But our waiter informed us that most dishes could be made without meat, after which our vegan decided on the veggie pho ($5.45).

Filled with broccoli, carrots and celery, the bowl (like my dish) was absolutely huge, but again the food delicious. A word to the wise: Always go with the small, unless you're splitting the meal with at least one other person.

Before we asked for the check, our server mentioned that Pho had only been open for a little over a year. But judging by the bevy of locals slurping their soups, we're afraid the word is out.

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Their iced drinks also include a couple of recipes that contain two native Asian fruits, such as the longan, which is subtly sweet and like the lychee, and the jack fruit, which possesses a taste like that of pineapple, only milder. The beverages are $2.95 and $3.50, respectively.

Have you been to Pho Nhu Vu? Let us know what you think below!

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