Pho Than Brothers

Went here at 8:30pm 30 mins before closing and they didn’t want to seat us. They said they were closed and if we could order to go. Now, as we all know phở comes out 5 mins after you order. We probably would have eaten and left before 9pm. I was so pissed and turned off. I will NEVER eat here again! Mind you, there were five tables of people still there eating. They are rude and have no sense of customer service. The phở here isn’t even that great!

Extremely speedy, I think they brought me a large bowl of veggie phở about 3 minutes after I ordered. I came here at about 2 on a Saturday afternoon and there were plenty of empty tables. Very nice daylight in here from the huge wrap around windows.
The soup is CHEAP, and fine, nothing really special about it but nothing deficient either. It has a budget atmosphere. But they run a very efficient operation. And they include a little tiny custard dessert with your order, which I thought was a classy touch.

I am updating my past reviews based on my experience from yesterday. I’m doing the happy dance. As usual the phở is really good but this time the restaurant had been given a seriously deep cleaning. Clean tables with no more table cloths. Huge improvement. The best part was that the owners and employees were rather friendly. Please keep it up!

If your sign says you’re open until 9, then you should serve food until 9. Twice now I’ve been turned away, told they were closed, at 8:30. Despite the sign OPEN sign flashing away in the window. I wanted to give you money, and you wouldn’t take it. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Phở Than Brothers are all over town. For years there wasn’t a lot of competition now it seems like there are only slightly fewer phở places in Seattle than there are Starbucks. There are a handful of Than Brothers restaurants but I have only been to the ones in North Seattle. The food is pretty consistent at each of the stores, they all have the same menus. The age of the stores, the crowds and parking vary, that is why we like the Ballard and Green lake stores.
The basic soup and noodles are pretty bland, the vegetarian stock has the best base flavors, followed by the beef and then the chicken. My wife likes to order a medium vegetarian with chicken added for a small fee. I like a medium beef phở with tendon, flank and round steak, I add jalapenos, chili oil and veggies to mine. I always leave warm, full and happy.

I had never had Phở before, so my friends took me here to try it. I had the large meatball phở which was very tasty & came out almost immediately after ordering. Also came with cream puffs for dessert.

There was a LADYBUG in my phở. I showed it to the hostess and she got me a new bowl, but ever since then I’ve been kind of put off from this place.
I’ve been here a handful of times. Decent phở (though I don’t have much to compare it to), and cheap. For that reason, I keep coming back. But if you’re a freak about cleanliness (and have higher standards than me), definitely not the place for you. Also, the service is sub-​par (one time the waiter was vacuuming the dining area while my boyfriend and I were eating, which made it a less than pleasant dining experience). They don’t go out of their way to be amazing hosts, but I will say that they are very prompt.

I have been eating there off and on for years but today was the first time that I used the lavatory to wash up first. Never, ever will I eat there again. Appalling hygiene

Best phở in Seattle. Incredibly fast. No BS. Some people in other reviews say the staff isn’t friendly. It’s more that they’re just very efficient and are more concerned with incredible phở for very cheap and don’t really have time to impress you. You should eat here.

Phở-​ktd up. Left before eating because there was some vegetation floating in the water. Skeevy.

Friendly, fast, delicious, affordable, dependable.
Really glad they have this location near my office. I’ve been a happy and loyal customer for several years at their location near Green Lake on Aurora.
Yummmmmm…

Phở is good but my phở had more personality and liveliness than the people that work here. I’m not saying to put a show on but at least some warmth and hospitality will help.

The good: good phở, quick delivery of food, and yummy free dessert.
The horrible: service was obsolete. Obviously he didn’t want to be there and unfortunately made me give this place a low review

You know what you’re going to get. This is good phở in Ballard. I find it a nice treat that they offer you a cream puff with your order. They offer 14 types of beef phở as well as chicken, meatball, and vegetarian.

I’ve only had Phở a handful of times — once at Than, and two other times at Phở Big Bowl down the road. I am not even sure what constitutes a great Phở.
That said, even though prices are slightly higher at Than, their soup is better that PBB. Broth is flavorful, not salty. Plenty of chicken. It’s pretty dry chicken, but with a bowl full of broth it’s good. I had a Vietnamese iced coffee — stingy at $ 2.50, but good. Not $ 2.50 good, mind you. The other thing that is better than PBB is that Than actually gives you the cream puff they advertise with every meal. I have NEVER received said cream puff/​pudding at PBB — I would ask at PBB, but honestly it’s not a deal breaker. But I do like getting what I paid for. So, bravo to Than.
Service is fast as all get out — in and out in under 30 minutes giving me plenty of time to squander the rest of my one-​hour lunch break from work. Nice to be able to go out for lunch and not have to worry about the clock.
I’d give a higher score, but I didn’t find the soup outstanding… but really, the lower score is because of the incredibly hot restaurant! It was a nice fall day outside, and as soon as I opened the door to Than, I was hit with a wall of sticky heat. I was even dressed lightly, and still had to peel off a layer.
Overall, a nice quick lunch — no major complaints, aside from the uncomfortably warm & muggy restaurant.

This is the best Phở I’ve had so far in Seattle. Though my Phở experience in Seattle is limited. it is expansive if you include Chicago, Philadelphia, and DC. Plus I’m part Vietnamese. This ranks up there fairly well, I am so glad I have a nearby spot!
The inside is as you’d expect and as it should be. The difference between this place and most Phở places I am used to back East is that there are no mess hall communal tables. This is probably a relief to some people, but I think a bit of the charm of Phở places is lost when they still only have Phở on the menu but each person gets their own table. I guess it’s hard to explain if you haven’t had the mess hall experience.
The Phở comes out super quick and hot! The staff leaves you the hell alone. which I like. Nothing worse than constant checking up. If there is a problem or you need something, I am sure you will say something. I don’t need my «I’m the customer bow down to me» ego stroked.
Pay by cash or CC via Square, though they prefer cash because of the small fee imposed by Square. Loving this place, I’ll be back for sure!

Great phuckin phở! This place gives you so much bang for your buck. Fresh flavorful rice noodles and veggies. Broth is excellent!

This is my second favorite location of Than Brothers. From my experience, it’s not a busy location and finding a table is easy.
The phở has always been good. The broth is warm and comforting. The noodles are always cooked perfectly.
Staff members are friendly and efficient.
As others have mentioned, they serve phở only so there’s only one reason people would go there. I take that back. I sometimes go there for the cream puffs. The cream puffs are brought to you before your meal, along with your plate of phở veggies. I’ve bought trays of cream puffs before to take to a last minute potluck and other events. They’re always a hit. Who doesn’t like a cream puff?
Ballard is a difficult place to find parking. However, at this location, there is a small lot located behind the restaurant. Score!

Go here for the phở since there’s literally nothing else on the menu.
I’ve been to the Ballard Than Bros several times and have always enjoyed my bowl of phở. I’m no phở-​spert but I think it’s delicious. I usually get the medium chicken with extra noodles. I brought my midwestern friend and phở — virgin here and was hoping he would like it. After making sure he didn’t accidentally order something with intestines or tendon, he selected a large bowl of some kinda beef. He loved it and was adding sriracha and plum sauce like a pro. He’s a big guy and could barely finish the large, FYI.
Tips:
– Small parking lot in the back
– Do not come to Than Bros for ambiance or exemplary customer service. Eat your free cream puff and be happy.
– Pay at the register after you eat (or whenever you want, I suppose). A «waiter» will take your order and bring out your food, but will not ask how it is or bring you the bill.
– Cash is not required, but preferred
– The bathroom is down the hall and a fright. Avoid.
Than Bros does the phở trick, no frills.

This place is pretty straight forward. Cheap phở, small menu with very few options, relatively quick service, and ok food. I had the veggie phở and my meal looked a lot better than it tasted… but still it was fine. However, I did have tummy upsets and spent the rest of the day/​evening running to the bathroom every 30 minutes or so.
You get a free cream puff with your lunch, which is a nice perk. Nice tablecloths & the place looked very clean. You need a key to use the bathroom. And if you wait for your bill, you’ll be waiting all day long. You need to go up to the cashier and pay there. Once they bring out your meal, the servers basically forget about you.