Restaurant Review: Pho Ha Tien, San Francisco CA

Pho Ha Tien
1900 Ocean Avenue
San Francisco, CA
415-337-7682

* Eat-in or take-out
* Some parking on street
* Cash only

I hardly qualify as a pho expert. In fact, Pho Ha Tien was my very first pho. So I can't say how it is on a relative scale, but I can report on the experience objectively.
I bopped into this little restaurant on Ocean (next door to a 24 Hour Fitness) resolved to finally check out some pho and see what all the fuss is about. Entering, I found that nearly all of the tables were occupied by Vietnamese families, so I decided to just get my pho to go and picnic out by the college campus since I was headed that way anyway. I ordered the Pho Tai Ga, which I apparently pronounced incorrectly in some way as after I sat down to wait for my order to cook I heard a chorus of Vietnamese coming from the kitchen punctuated by mocking cries of "Pho Tai Ga! Pho Tai Gaaaaa!".

I dunno man, it seemed like a pretty straightforward thing to pronounce, and when the guy repeated it it sounded a whole lot like the way I said it, but who knows. Anyway, I know I used to make fun of the Chinese language by saying things like "Ching Ching Chong" and stuff, but that was when I was six or seven years old. Grown men and women generally put these sort of things down and move away from them, but not the people at the Pho Ha Tien I guess. Well anyway. My skin is thick and I was looking forward to finally exploring the mysteries of pho. Less than ten minutes or so and my order was ready.