Pho #1 Lives Up to its Name

I arrived hungry and left with a satisfied belly. Not bloated or churning, just warm and mellow with leftovers in hand. Pho #1 – a Vietnamese restaurant on Sunrise Boulevard – hit my sweet spot during a recent lunch and seems to be a favorite among locals. Understandably so.

In the Quail Pointe shopping center – at 5323 Sunrise Blvd. – the modestly sized restaurant has been open about nine months. It's clean, well decorated and has a soothing ambiance – each table displayed fresh flowers. Vietnamese music played lightly beneath the chatter of servers, patrons and the sizzling in the kitchen. The servers were diligent and smiling; they seemed to have a regular lunch-time crowd which included people ordering to-go.

And the food was tasty, mostly fresh and affordable. I ordered the Pho #1 appetizer, which paired with a peanut sauce, was sweet and pleasing. The seafood noodle soup – I chose rice noodles, but you can get it with egg noodles or mungbean noodles – would be great if you had a cold, as it's made with chicken broth. The vegetables were cooked just right – not mushy or undercooked – but it could have used more seafood. I just love seafood, what can I say.

The menu includes an entire page for vegetarians, seven types of Pho, 13 appetizers, soup, 11 vermicelli noodle dishes, 10 rice plates, nine stir frys, sandwiches and specialty drinks. I ordered the Thai iced tea, which is always a sweet treat and almost like dessert before the meal.

A regular who spent many years enjoying the authenticity of Bay Area Vietnamese restaurants before moving to Sacramento, said Pho #1 is on par with her favorites. The food isn't greasy, is fresh tasting and the service is dependably pleasant. And it's affordable. With the drink, appetizer and entree, I got out of there for less than $20, tip included.

I also got out of there with nearly half of my food in to-go containers. However, those didn't last long. After working up an appetite, then sitting down to write this article, I began daydreaming about the texture of the special rolls (and then proceeded to eat them). And after being told not to let the soup noodles sit too long, lest they get soggy, I finished them off.

And once again my belly is satisfied, but not stuffed.