Nam

À la base, nous avions prévu d’aller chez Honest burgers. Pour un burger à 12 £, je vous avouerai que cela m’ennuie un peu qu’on me fasse attendre dehors un 22 novembre, pour s’occuper de personnes arrivées après, puis m’annoncer qu’il y a une liste d’attente et qu’il me faudra continuer à attendre DEHORS. On né fait pas fulminer une Camille affamée, sachez-​le. Nous nous sommes rabattus sur le Nam, et nous n’y avons rien perdu au change, puisque la soupe phở était bonne, la déco moderne, originale et pas kitsch, et que cela né nous a coûté que 5,90 £ par personne.

I’ve been coming here for a few years now and recently noticed that they’ve increased the price to £5.90 and their phở isn’t as good as I remember :(This used to be my go-​to cheap eat in soho because its pretty quiet after standard lunchtime and the staff are happy for you to sit there all day so long as it isn’t busy. I’ll still be coming back, mostly because its familiar and I like their vietnamese coffee – the large tablespoon of condensed milk always reminds me of home, even if it is a little too sweet – but there are definitely better options in the area (though probably not as cheap).

I ordered the deep fried spring rolls, hoping to get some hot, just-​cooked succulent pieces I could wrap in mint and greens, then dip in sauce.
What I got were some small, ice-​cold rolls with no accoutrements and also no real taste or pleasant texture (see photo).
There aren’t many dishes in the world you can deep fry then serve later cold without them being a soggy mess. I was hungry and interested in ordering more, but this was a first round knockout and I lost trust.
To be fair some of the dishes being served to others nearby «looked» solid, so maybe I was simply a victim of bad menu selection. But then again, I asked for a takeout menu or a phone number to order ahead and they didn’t have either… so maybe there’s a certain lazy streak also embedded in the management.

Alright, I’ve been back a few times now (I’m the freaking Duchess, yo!) and though I have still not sampled the phở (next time I promise. maybe.) I feel like an update is in order.
I just had the pork banh mi which was just magical. MAGICAL!!! The baguette was soft and warm and the fillings were all fresh, chilled, crisp and lovely. I was given the option for spicy (with fresh chilies) which I hesitated on because I’m not a huge spicy fan. I asked for a little and didn’t appear to be given any which means I can totally say yes next time and be fine.
I walked around the neighbourhood for a bit before just heading here, looking for another place in the neighbourhood to get banh mi. There isn’t any. At least not that I could find. A bit disappointed by my options but at least the sole joint offering banh mi goodness is a five star, £5.50 option.

Phở for under a fiver!
It’s by no means anywhere near the best phở in London and they serve lemon instead of lime and only mint, no coriander, Thai basil or other herbs. The beansprouts are also never fresh. But at £4.90, it’s such great value I’ll keep coming back.

It’s cheap and quick. If you have time to wait and are willing to pay more, go to Phở just down the street.

That was my first Vietnamese restaurant in London and to be honest I was a little bit disappointed. Maybe I was expected better because I saw almost four stars. It was not expensive (tea and noodle soup £6.50) and it wasn’t bad, taste pretty good though but the bowl was a little bit small I think.
Anyway I had a bad day and I wanted a good food to cheer me up and it didn’t work… I still want to kill myself. Tomorrow is another day I guess…

3.5 stars. Although not fully authentic phở, after being Asian-​deprived for the last couple of days, Nam hit the spot. Smaller bowl with very few pieces of meat, but not bad for £4.90. Might be back if I’m in the Soho area and hankering for something warm and cheap.

Their summer rolls were cold and bland. The phở was fair-​to-​good. The bun was a little soupy. I’m not sure if they over sauced it, or if the lettuce and cucumber in it were too wet. It would have been nicer if it were drier (and served a little warmer). The lemongrass beef in the bun salad was tasty. The lemongrass chicken less so. Overall, I’m guessing it’s the low, low price that keeps this place full (resulting in crowded, squished in seating, which is also a downer). The food isn’t good enough to bring me back.

I don’t like the cramped seating, but the food is good and the price is low. I was surprised by the time it took to get food in front of me. I’ve seen phở served in Vietnam in 30 seconds. Why does it take 5 minutes here?

Looked really nice from the outside at first — cool Vietnamese street food place. After another rejection from the overcrowded barrafina, anything would. There was a cold stare of acknowledgment by the two attendants (I wasn’t wearing my horns).
The summer rolls were at best, cold and dry. There’s got to be a way to serve something fresher! The pork rolls were alright. The shrimp rolls were bad, glad that the shrimp didnt kill me. The chicken was god awful.
After that it just went downhill. Awful service. They missed my order of noodle soup and by the time I realized this, my +1 had already ordered Vietnamese coffee, which they wouldn’t cancel. When we asked for a takeout, they took 15 minutes for a coffee. Ugh, ugh … Nice looking place in Soho, well priced, but with that kind of attitude and service — I wouldn’t go back.

Nam serves Vietnamese food in the style of markets and festivals booths. The beef broth is well done, the summer rolls are nicely put together, the dipping sauce well-​balanced. The portions are small but you know what they say… good things come in small packages.
I have yet to try the lemongrass chicken in vermicelli noodles or summer rolls but seeing other customer’s delight in them, they’re on my to-​try list for next time.
Good lunch spot if you want to pop in for a quick meal with well-​balanced food (not too light, not too heavy).

This was the second time I had phở in London. My first time was pretty gross. I forgot the name of the first one, but its the one near o’neils in chinatown. DONT GO THERE!
I read a few reviews and I gave this place a shot. 4.90 for a bowl of Phở was pretty darn good! The soup was delicious and the flat noodles were soft! I had the original [to bai] rare steak strips with phở. DELICIOUS! I’m a HUGE fan of vietnamese food and I’ve had it PLENTY of times in NYC. It does not compare, but its close enough :)
Tip: The two sauces on the tables make a great sauce to dip the meat in! Squeeze a little of the oyster sauce and a bit more of the chili sauce. Mix it. Then each time you eat the toppings whether it be the beef, chicken, or tofu, dip it in the sauce, eat it, then take a sip of the soup. YUM YYUMM! :)
The people there were really nice as well so that’s a plus!

Lovely. Cheap. Tasty. My Malaysian friend said it tasted authentic as well.
Not bad for £4.90. Will definitely be going back.
Was empty when we went (Sunday @ 19:00), so not sure how busy it gets during the week. But was great for a quick, cheap dinner whilst in town.

I really wanted to love this place, but unfortunately, it is well below par in the phở stakes.
I’ve tried a couple of times, and wouldn’t ask for my money back, but there’s now wow factor here…
It killed my hunger pangs, but didn’t excite the palate.
Sorry Nam.

I’d never had Phở before, and I’m glad I finally tried it! It was delicious. I had the chicken rice noodles and some summer rolls and I was pleasantly surprised. Yeah there’s a lil slurpin action, but I wasn’t put off by it.
It boasts «Healthy Vietnamese Street Food», at a cheap price (£4.90), and I think it’s a great little lunch spot.

Not the best Phở I have ever had for sure, but certainly not the worst. The restaurant has that not so clean feel which all decent phở places seem to have. They have the Sriracha and hoisin on the table which is a step in the right direction and they bring you sprouts, lemon and chili peppers. Check, check, check! The only complaint I really have is that the broth seems to be missing something. It doesn’t have that star anise flavor and had a bit too much cilantro for my taste. However, for the first time since arriving in London I feel like I had phở! So so good to have a fix finally!

Been looking for a decent Phở restaurant for 9 months and this is the best so far.
We had the summer rolls with a peanut dip, very good, a little too much Cilantro (Coriander for my English friends) for my taste. we then had a Steak and a Brisket Phở. The broth was OK, but it was light on the good stuff (Bones, Ginger, Star Anise) and rather bland as a result.
The condiments were good, Cock sauce and Hoi-​Sin on the table and a little packet of bean sprouts, chilli, lemon and a mint sprig (??) What happened to the Basil?
Next time out we will try Viet (This was our first option today but they were closed for the ‘festive’ period)

Nam has opened in what used to be a coffee/​juice bar. Perhaps reflecting the austerity brought on by a recession, it offers a cheap Vietnamese dining experience, especially for the West End.
The menu and seating arrangements are compact. They offer phở and bun vermicelli as main dishes and spring rolls as starter.
The phở has lovely depth of flavour in the soup and I wished more noodles to dip in it. The prawn spring roll was made with Vietnamese rice wrapper and probably looked nicer than it ultimately tasted.
However, with Maoz just round the corner and Nam, this part of Soho is a great place to head for a meal if you’re on a budget.

I love a good phở. A perfectly spiced broth, soft noodles, assorted vegetables, the chili, mint or basil, and lemon. It’s a miniature production that is hard to get wrong.
So after a hard morning’s shopping in Soho, the sight of a phở café beckoned enticingly. Nam has cafeteria-​style communal bench seating with sriracha chili sauce and fish sauce on the tables, or you can get take-​away. I perused the fridge cabinet, which had Vietnamese soft drinks, water, and teas as well as little styrofoam trays with the sprouts, basil, chili and lemon for the soups. I ordered chicken phở, and ignored the rice paper rolls and everything else, because I REALLY wanted a phở by then.
It arrived quickly, and the serving was of moderate size — a bit smaller than the massive bowls you tend to get in Australia. The chicken was pre-​cooked and sliced breast meat, rather than poached, but it wasn’t bad. The broth was quite tasty, not overly salty, but lacked a certain something; the noodles a bit soft from overcooking or soaking; and there was enough fresh red onion and green bits. There didn’t seem to really be enough sprouts/​chili/​basil however, which was a bit disappointing. I had to add a lot of sriracha to get the level of heat I like, phở usually tastes much nicer if it’s from fresh chili rather than sauce.
I slurped it all down, but wasn’t 100% satisfied like you should be after a good phở. This was a 75% phở. It will be interesting to taste the beef soup next time I’m there.

I’d passed this shop yesterday as I single-​mindedly headed to Chinatown to have Dim Sum at the Crispy Duck, but I saw Nam on my right as I powered to the food and was momentarily tempted by the prospect of Vietnamese food which in my last foray as some may recall, was a disaster and atrocity to good Vietnamese food.
Today, I ended up nearby, once again and decided to take this opportunity to go to Nam. It’s a simple shop with very cafeteria styled tables that have hoisin and sriracha at the tables as any half respectable seller of phở ought to have. On the right, there are two open refrigerators with drinks and at the counter are spring rolls — two varieties: pork or «prawn» wrapped with plastic wrap over a Styrofoam tray typical of Vietnamese take away food. I was there for the phở, but as I stood at the counter, I made a bid for the spring rolls as well. I chose the «prawn» rolls and was given the choice of nuc cham or what looked like a peanut sauce — a bit thai for my taste. I took my rolls and sauce and sat down at a table. The spring rolls were pretty unpleasing. The rolls were dry and the nuc cham wasn’t quite right. I tried to dip it with hoisin and sriracha, but both were unpleasant and watered down. They had also added imitation crab meat to it, which I’ve never experienced before, but it neither added nor did it take anything away from the roll. My chicken phở came before I finished my first roll. The noodles were slightly thicker than I liked, but the saving grace and my reason for 3 stars was the broth. I will patron them again, only this time I’ll be better prepared. I’ll make my own hoisin sauce, spring rolls and have sauces at hand with freshly home roasted, ground peanuts. Then I’ll trek to Dean Street and do my phở to take away. I’ll bring it home straight away, heat up the broth again and then feast. There’s nothing like a good bowl of phở, just the way you like it.