Best PHO and any asian food courts? (Miami, Orlando: appointed, HOA)

[Louisville Asian]

I'm very impressed with the amount of highly rated Asian restaurants of all different countries I researched in the Orlando area.

Now, while this is a good thing, when I searched "best pho Orlando". About 10 different people said the best pho in Orlando is at 10 different Vietnamese restaurants. I'm a Vietnamese man and its terrific people enjoy pho all over Orlando and while it would be totally great if the one I randomly chose happened to have great pho by my standards, unfortunately I'm pretty picky.

I think if there is other pho aficionados here, I'll try to describe the type of taste I like.

- A bit on the peppery and salty but definitely not too much of either
- On the fat oily side
- A good amount of that sweet flavor that's kind of plummy or sweet fish sauce-like for sure
- Thick broth over thin
- If the flavor of the broth and meats sink into the noodles more than other places, thats usually a good sign

So, the 2nd question is while there's obviously plenty of Asian restaurants that are highly rated, are there any food courts like those abundant on Buford Highway in Atlanta or 88 food connection in Boston?

For example 88 Connection has Japanese, Indian, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese all in the same room (at least when I went there 5 years ago it did). Any food courts like that in or around Orlando?

Thanks for your help

[bmw335xi]

Authentic Asian food is limited in Orlando, but it is growing quite fast, still it’s one of my main gripes about Orlando though having moved from California where half the population is Asian. With that being said, Vietnamese is the largest cuisine among Asian food in Orlando.

East Colonial Drive has the highest concentration of Asian food, you can google “Royaltea” it’s pretty much at the center of it all and has very high quality boba and fruit tea as well. For Pho, I would go with “Saigon Noodle and Grill”, owners are very nice and their pho is good for Orlando. Lotte Plaza Market has a food court, but the food is so-so, once again, not bad for Orlando, but would be considered bad in San Francisco or Los Angeles. What other foods or dishes are you looking for if any?

[Louisville Asian]

Really mainly Pho is the entree I really want to try wherever I go. There's one average place in Louisville so when I leave, I like to try better places. Thanks for your recommendation

[Arcenal813]

Yeah there isn’t much of a ONE great spot that I know of, but there are quite a few DECENT ones, mainly as BMW stated above, in the Mills/50 district. You probably won’t be blown away, but likely won’t be disappointed either. I think it’s the best spot for Asian offerings that Florida has.

[waltchan]

California is still the best, of course...

[Louisville Asian]

So, you say Saigon Noodle and Grill is good for Orlando. It does have good ratings and I might go with that one. I decided to look up the phrase "best pho ever" "orlando" and see what comes up. 2 places that had a few reviews with that phrase is Pho Vinh and Pho Hoa Noodle Soup. Anybody tried those? I know taste is subjective and you don't know where the people reviewing have tried Pho at, but I did look at the broths and they do seem to have that kinda fatty look. But, its hard to tell by looking, you just gotta taste it.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by Louisville Asian

So, you say Saigon Noodle and Grill is good for Orlando. It does have good ratings and I might go with that one. I decided to look up the phrase "best pho ever" "orlando" and see what comes up. 2 places that had a few reviews with that phrase is Pho Vinh and Pho Hoa Noodle Soup. Anybody tried those? I know taste is subjective and you don't know where the people reviewing have tried Pho at, but I did look at the broths and they do seem to have that kinda fatty look. But, its hard to tell by looking, you just gotta taste it.

I haven’t been to Pho Vinh, but I’ve been to Pho Hoa a few times. I still prefer Saigon the most, but there isn’t a huge difference between the two. I travel to Vietnam and am half Asian myself. It’s pretty good, but not great, but keep in mind I’m from the Bay Area where you can probably find the best Vietnamese food in the US.

[Louisville Asian]

Ya know, what's the best Dim sum place where the Dim Sum is typically between 2.50 to 4.50? And also best curry place at a thai restaurant? I like penang and massaman most and looking for the rich, thick, creamy flavor

And I ask for budget cuz I'm spending 5 days with my wife here paying for all meals, fun, and souvenirs.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by Louisville Asian

Ya know, what's the best Dim sum place where the Dim Sum is typically between 2.50 to 4.50? And also best curry place at a thai restaurant? I like penang and massaman most and looking for the rich, thick, creamy flavor

And I ask for budget cuz I'm spending 5 days with my wife here paying for all meals, fun, and souvenirs.

Don't even bother with dim sum, range from disgusting to very mediocre and I've tried every place I've been recommended. My GF is from Hong Kong and she spoke to the owner of one of these places and she said it's extremely hard to get a good dim sum chef to come to Orlando. It's one of the few types of Chinese food that most Chinese families don't cook at home because it is so challenging.



Thai is so-so here. It's much better than the various Chinese cuisines here, but still just so-so. I think I'd say Coco Thai is my favorite here.



We have Jinya Ramen, which is good and pretty cheap. The tonkotsu black ramen is fire.



Anything else let me know.

[Louisville Asian]

Besides Miami and Atlanta, what cities east of Texas and south of Virginia have more of an asian influence? I haven't been to Orlando yet but my choices seem pretty slim besides those 2