Zen Pho & Noodles
This adorable restaurant with its many orchids and modern feel was a delightful dining experience overall. I haven't fully converted to being a pho fan, but I am a fan of my husband, and it was his turn to pick the place.
- Zen Pho & Noodles by Durbin 5835 Normandy Blvd, Jacksonville, FL 32205
Follow @reviewjax on instagram to see photos of our visit!
Family Feeding Fusion
My husband loved the pho he ordered. It came in a large silver bowl and included a side dish of fixings to add in. He seasoned it with a bit of hoisin sauce and sriracha to give it a double kick. It was certainly spicy tasting then.
My daughter had fun with the flatware, opting back and forth between the deep dish spoon and the chopsticks. She also enjoyed the noodles in the soup, but had her reservations about the broth itself. It wasn’t too hot for her, just an unusual flavor.
The Cheesecake Test
Pho is a bit like cheesecake. Not the taste, but the theoretical enjoyment. In order for me to get excited about cheesecake, it needs to taste like chocolate, peanut butter, and cookies. It needs to taste like a chocolate lava cake. Basically, it needs to NOT taste like cheesecake. The reality is, I don’t like cheesecake. If I have pho, it has to taste like sriracha or have overwhelming hints of thai curry broth. It has to NOT taste like pho.
Bucket Size Servings
What also gets me is the giant bowls that serve it in. There’s all this pressure to gulp down 4 cups of hot weird flavored broth and call it a meal. There’s the side plate of bean sprouts, basil and a few other plants that you can use to adorn the soup and, again, pretend it’s maybe another dish.
I want to like it. I do. It’s trendy. It has bells and whistles. It’s an exploration of Vietnamese flavors to explore. It has all the potential to be a culinary conquest into uncharted territory. More than that, my husband likes it. I should get on board! But maybe it’s the time I ordered it with tripe. Maybe it’s the half of a hard-boilled egg that stares at me like a very demanding cyclops ordering me to provide some eye drops of soy sauce.
Beneath the Broth
Generally, the noodles in the soup are good. I might eat most of the noodles as long as the broth hasn’t seeped in too strange of a flavor. Mushrooms can be a gamble because there are so many kinds. Don't get me started on the button ones (that's more of a hot pot situation). Pho with chicken or pork can be a pretty safe bet. But there are other unfamiliar dishes I will explore. And if the same restaurant does Asian fusion with some Thai cuisine, it's going to be a great meal.
We also tried the crab rangoon, but there was no cream cheese in them which was a bit unexpected. We should've gone with samosas, summer rolls, or gyoza.
Noodle Happiness
I ordered the drunken noodles. These thick savory noodles are a comfort food I discovered some time ago. The dish is more savory than spicy hot and it’s a little sweet. I think pad thai is equally delicious. The peanuts, the kick, those rice noodles.
Give me drunken noodles or pad thai and I’m a happy camper. I ordered chicken this time. I think it's equally delicious with or without spices, which means it passes the cheesecake test.
We both left with leftovers, which we thoroughly enjoyed the next day.