Arguably the best bowl of Pho anywhere in the 570…
I recently stopped in to have dinner at Saigon Corner (Scranton), located upstairs in the Steamtown Marketplace. This was not my first visit to this wonderful Vietnamese restaurant. I eat here or order from Saigon Corner at least once a month, usually more.
By now, I’ve tried nearly everything on the menu and I haven’t yet come across anything that I regretted ordering. Regardless of what you get, you can tell in the first bite that the food is made with care, skill, and utilizes crisp, fresh ingredients. The whole menu is delicious.
But, for me, there’s one item that stands above all else. A bowl of Sunny Side of the Wok Pho.
At Saigon Corner, the Pho beef broth is “simmered for 16 hours”, according to the menu description. Added to that is a hearty serving of rice noodles, sliced jalapeno, diced green and red onion, small lime wedges, and chopped cilantro and basil. Protein comes in the form of thinly sliced beef or tofu.
For my money, Pho sits alone atop the soup hierarchy. The combination of flavors – meaty, spicy, sweet, sour, bright – surpasses anything that can be offered by even the best bowls of chicken noodle or ramen. The Sunny Side of Wok Pho takes things to an even higher level. How?
The addition of a single egg yolk.
This is the not-so-secret ingredient that turns a spectacular bowl of Pho into a weaponized umami bomb. As the Sunny Side of the Wok Pho is set down in front of you, along with a small plate of additional herbs and jalapenos, your eyes are drawn to the bright yellow orb floating in that deeply flavorful broth.
Breaking the yolk with your chopsticks or spoon results in the gooey, softboiled yolk seeping into the soup. With a quick swirl, the broth is transformed into something that’s impossibly even more amazing than it was already. There is nothing on this Earth more comforting than this bowl of soup.
I’m certainly not the only one to have discovered this truth. On the night I was there, I witnessed at least three others place their order of Sunny Side of the Wok Pho. The couple sitting behind me ordered two bowls. Then a woman arrived, still sweating from her workout at the Crunch Fitness located on the opposite side of the second floor, and ordered the soup to go.
What do you think?
Obviously, I’m a Saigon Corner superfan and am actively addicted to its Sunny Side of the Wok Pho. Have you tried this soup yet? Tell us all about it in the comments section below because, unlike your family and friends, I actually care what you think.
