Pho Tam

1/7-9 Leeds St, Footscray (map)
Phone 03 9687 2680

Despite all the bad press of late, I still have a soft spot for Footscray.  Mel and I would often take day trips out west to check out the markets for exotic and strange ingredients, then forage for a bargain at Forges.  But what I love most about this inner west enclave are the myriad of cheap eateries where, for a pittance, one can enjoy delicious Chinese, Indian, African and of course, awesome Vietnamese food.

On this particular day, I had a craving for authentic Vietnamese noodle soup, not the MSG-laden kind that you find in the city.  We decided to check out Pho Tam after reading about it on the noodleoodle blog.  This tiny restaurant is located away from Footscray’s main thoroughfare, which allows some respite from the din of the markets and shops.

The cafe-style interior was a very pleasant space, with outside tables occupied by chain smoking men with their iced coffees.  Our caucasian waitress took our orders in English but conversed with others in perfect Vietnamese.  That’s the other thing I love about Footscray: it’s so far removed from mainstream Australian suburbs that you feel like you’re in another country, with surprises around every corner.

Mel ordered a chicken noodle soup (whose name escapes me) that came brimming with nicely poached chicken pieces, shallots, spring onions and a crispy fried prawn “cake” reminiscent of a prawn cracker.  Weird!  The soup tasted great, very tasty and without the MSG “sweetness”.  Mel really enjoyed it.

I couldn’t resist the fiery Bun Bo Hue. This came chock full of animal parts that you wouldn’t find in the tame versions in the city, including different cuts of pork, part of a pork knuckle, thin sliced beef, processed luncheon meats and (gulp) pig blood jelly.  The soup was very flavoursome, spicy and lightly sour as a good Hue broth should be.  The thin straight noodles (which I actually prefer to the normal ones served with pho) were tasty and had good bite.  I devoured all the meaty accompaniments, but had to build my resolve to tackle the blood jelly.  Being Singaporean, I’ve had blood jelly before but it’s not really my thing, however I was determined to finish everything in the bowl and quickly polished off the three cubes of “goodness”.  The taste was not too bad; slightly metallic with a lilting hint of iron.  It was more a textural thing, which one learned blogger had described as being similar to chocolate ganache.  If you don’t have vampiric tendencies I’m sure they could exclude the blood if you request it.

Next time you’re in Footscary, be sure to check out this little eatery!