Pho Lily

Haven't stopped in yet but there's a new place "Pho Lily" on broadway at carmen. It's been packed every time I've been by...

aaronpaul27 wrote:Haven't stopped in yet but there's a new place "Pho Lily" on broadway at carmen. It's been packed every time I've been by...

I could be wrong, but I thought they said it just opened today. Yes, it was jam packed. Had pho for lunch there today and it was fine but nothing remarkable. I look forward to trying some of their other dishes.

Pho Lily
5100 N. Broadway
Chicago, IL
773.754.8057

Open every day 8am-11pm - dine-in and carry out

I've been meaning to post on this thread for quite some time. Since we were there again last night, it's fresh in my mind. In a word: excellent. They have a number of things on their menu (which, while large, is not ginormous) that I have not seen (or at least noticed) elsewhere, such as the preserved plum juice I had. To start, we had a rice flake fish cake appetizer (four very large pieces) and a grilled pork patty spring roll (which I now see that Mike Sula singled out in a brief notice in the Reader). For entrees, we had grilled chicken with lemongrass and a grilled (?) pork noodle dish. Didn't take notes or pics but everything we've had has always been distinguished by the quality and freshness of the ingredients and the relative speed of the prep. Generous portions, very reasonable prices. I believe it is family run with Dad out front with various kids and Mom in back. Minimalist decor (such as it is) but spotless. And almost always busy, especially on weekends. Last night, we got there about 6:30 or 6:45 and by the time we left (circa 7:30), the place was just about completely full. Definitely two thumbs up!

P.S. For those having trouble locating it in your mind's eye: across the street from Sun Wah and north by less than a block.

Agreed. Very nice alternative to Tank that has clearly developed a large, mostly Vietnamese following of its own. NB: their information claims delivery is available, but it's not. I hate that every good Thai place in the city delivers, but no good Viet places do. Sounds like a thread: why do some ethnic food categories (almost) never deliver? Vienamese and Indian spring to mind.

As another aside: I have really been liking 777 lately as well. Their mi quang is a very delicate, "clean" alternative (and perfect soft boiled quail eggs) to the much more rustic but enjoyable version at Dong Ky nearby.

JeffB wrote:Agreed. Very nice alternative to Tank that has clearly developed a large, mostly Vietnamese following of its own. NB: their information claims delivery is available, but it's not. I hate that every good Thai place in the city delivers, but no good Viet places do. Sounds like a thread: why do some ethnic food categories (almost) never deliver? Vienamese and Indian spring to mind.

Tank does deliver. Or at least I'm pretty sure it does. I remember being lazy one night and had delivery instead of heading the few blocks south to pick up or eat in. FWIW, Little India on Bryn Mawr delivers as well, but that may not fit your need for "good" ethic food. One more data point: Shan also delivers.

Back to the topic, I've driven past Pho Lily a number of times and it is always busy. I'm looking forward to trying it soon. Thanks for the nudge.

Pho Xe Tang does not say it delivers on its menu, nor do the usual sources (MenuPages, TOC, Yelp, etc.) suggest it does. I've called and asked, and was refused delivery to my place about a mile away. That said, if they were slow and you live close, why not. It's certainly not known for delivery. Wish it were.

Huh. I swore we had Tank delivered. Maybe Mr. X was my delivery person that night and I just blocked it.

JeffB wrote:Pho Xe Tang does not say it delivers on its menu, nor do the usual sources (MenuPages, TOC, Yelp, etc.) suggest it does. I've called and asked, and was refused delivery to my place about a mile away. That said, if they were slow and you live close, why not. It's certainly not known for delivery. Wish it were.

Tank definitely used to deliver, with a really large range, down to River North and parts of the Loop. The delivery area used to be listed on Yelp, but is no longer. They must have stopped their delivery service. We last ordered delivery last summer, I think.

Well, crap. I've been going to Tank since it was a smoke-filled tiny storefront east on Argyle, before the day it was touched by ErikM for its apotheosis, and I completely missed its delivery phase. I feel a sense of loss for something I never had because Tank would have been heavily in my delivery rotation, had I known.

Pho Lily is still putting out a high quality product; in fact when we visited last night it was even better than I remembered. I overheard one of the servers mention to another table that they recently hired a new (and improved) chef. We had some of our favorite staples: Bo La Lot (grilled beef wrapped in betel leaf), Bun Tom Thit Nuong Cha Gio (rice noodle with grilled pork, shrimp and egg roll), and Ca Kho To (catfish in a clay pot). All were excellent, but I especially need to mention the grilled pork in the noodle dish. I'm a huge fan of pork with a decidedly strong marinated flavor grilled with charred edges. This pork equaled or surpassed any version I've ever had.

Also, they confirmed that they do deliver within a three mile radius.