Pho Tau Bay

Friendly staff, amazing food. Support this place and go every chance you get!!! Their grilled pork is possibly the best food I've ever had in my mouth! more

I have been eating several times each week at the restaurants on Eat Street for 23 years, because I work a few blocks away. I can't imagine why a couple reviewers gave bad reviews to this excellent restaurant. If you want good, fast, mass-produced Asian, you can get that a few doors away. If you want to eat the real stuff, well-made, among real Asians, this is the best place on Nic. There are very few gringos in this place; the decor is old-fashioned and whatever the opposite of fancy is. But there's a very good reason that the Vietnamese flock here. The pho is excellent, and the spring rolls are about the best on on the street. If you want to have atmosphere, go somewhere else. If you want real Vietnamese food, served by delightfully friendly people, this IS the place. more

After being devoted for years to Quangs up the street, we decided to try out Pho Tau Bay. There was nothing at PTB that worked for us. The flavors were all muted and one dish - a soup - had to be sent back due to a strong smell of some sort of cleaning agent in the bowl. Even though I didn't ask for a replacement - my appetite was gone - they didn't think to remove the soup from the bill. Didn't argue - just paid and left. This might have been a great place years ago, but if they didn't own the building, they would not be in business. Pros: Plenty of Seating Cons: The Food more

They have one of the best weekend specialties menu, if you would like some authentic vietnamese rice vermicelli soup then try the: Pros: ample parking, great weekend dishes Cons: outdated decoration more

Smell--This restaurant stinks like fecal matter! The second you walk in, it hits you. We asked our server about it (assuming it was a freak occurrence), but he wasn't aware of any smell. Seriously, it was like an outhouse. Quantity--I went to the restaurant because of the glowing reviews I had read about the portion size. I was surprised that the portions were very small. Quality--My table ordered a broken rice pork dish, a pho, and a pineapple beef dish. They were all substandard. The pho and pork had no flavor, and the pineapple beef was seriously a can of pineapple with about 2 ounces of beef slices. Prices--This restaurant has no business charging so much for awful food when their restaurant is not in a high rent area and the interior is a dump. I have been to many vietnamese restaurants during my 10 years in the cities, and this experience was definitely the worst. This place isn't even in the same ballpark as Quang, Hoa Bien, Saigon, Nhan, and so forth. Pros: Bread (standard Vietnamese) Cons: Restaurant smell/quantity/quality of food/price more

PTB is my favorite restaurant at which to eat. This was firmly solidified today(they are closed on Mondays) and I took my ph? at Ph? 79, which can't hold a candle to the light, flavorful broth at PTB. I work from home, and I go to PTB to read the paper, enjoy a glass of iced tea, and the best ph? in town. Pros: Huge portions, friendly service, authentic food Cons: It is easy to miss if you don't know where it is more

Located at the end of eat street, Pho Tau Bay is a asian eating experience sure to leave you satisfied. The... more

Located at the end of eat street, Pho Tau Bay is a asian eating experience sure to leave you satisfied. The restaurant atmosphere is very casual a... more

I have lived in the Twin Cities all of my life after arriving from Vietnam over 29+ years ago and it took me over 20+ years of eating at average to above average Asian restaurants to find the Golden Nugget of Authentic Vietnamese Cuisines on Eat Street! The first time my cousin Marc brought me there after work, I was impressed with their pho AND desserts! Alot of Viet's places have almost as good pho, but PTB (All of my White friends fond moniker for this place) has delightful delicious desserts as well! I love the Cha Thai, the bean desserts, and unlike some cheap Asian places, PTB gives ample portions because after all I may be Vietnamese by heritage, I eat like a large American!...PTB = Best Place for Viet's cuisines!...Oh, and plenty of free parking! No need to be an expert parallel parker, which I am not one, not with my half ton truck! Love this place Alot!..Every White, Black, Asian friends I've brought here LOVE THIS PLACE! I go every Saturday when I'm not working...Like right now, my girlfriend and I are heading there for an early lunch! Pros: Best Pho and Desserts Cons: Some Wait Staff don't speak enough English more

I've been up and down Eat Street (Nicollet Ave. between 15th St. thru Lake St.) Looking for a good bowl of pho and a couple of years ago, I settled on this place. I grew up in Hawaii where there are a plethora of awesome Vietnamese places and the pho here is as close as what I've had in Hawaii --- a rich beefy oxtail stock, fresh sliced beef (raw thin slices which cooks in the heat of the soup), tender brisket, savory firm meatballs, and for the adventurous --- fresh tripe and fresh tendons. This particular pho combination is menu item #1, the Pho Tau Bay Dac Biet, or the Pho Tau Bay Special pho and it is my favorite item on their menu. You can get many different combinations of meat on the menu, the fresh beef, brisket, meatballs, chicken (pho ga), seafoods and yes --- raw tendon and/or tripe. No matter how you get it, the pho is always accompanied by a platter of fresh bean sprouts, sprigs of Thai basil, sliced jalepenos and wedges of lime. Just grab a handful of sprouts and toss them in, tear your basil into little pieces over the pho, and if you like, drop a slice or 2 of jalepeno in and give a little squeeze a lime. These guys know how to juxtapose the richness of the stock with the vibrant freshness the sprouts and sweet herb of the basil. I've had pho at other places that was too clear, like a consomme, rather than the hearty silky stock Pho Tau Bay makes. Pros: Best pho MPLS, Fast friendly service, Inexpensive Lots of free parking Cons: Most wait staff not used to serving at an American restaurant, Not a cute place more

Every person I've brought to Pho Tau Bay has liked it. My personal favorites are the vermicelli rice noodle salads (bun, on the menu). I also recommend the broken rice platters and pho. Try the wontons and spring rolls too. The portion sizes and prices make this restaurant a great value. If you've only been to Quang's you're missing out! Pros: food arrives quickly, inexpensive, authentic more

This is a very homey-type place. Not a fancy place but very comfortable and easy to be there. Teh Bun bo Hue was excellent. My mother had it as well and we lapped it up. The Spring rolls are the best I've had and the Pennywort was a real treat. 4 of us dined with tea, spring rolls and entree for $36.50. We'll be back! Pros: quality of food, quantity, welcomed Cons: a little noisy more

They have a huge variety of Pho. Their food is great, the place is wonderful. Pros: Great Parking, Inexpensive more

Authentic - that's the best word to describe Pho Tau Bay. Don't go for the decor or a quick stroll down Nicollet Ave after dinner. But if you're looking for the freshest spring rolls ever, tasty soups containing tripe/brisket/shrimp, and not too spicy entrees then this place is a must. English is definitely a second language here so be patient with the very friendly and helpful wait staff. Ask for their suggestions - they won't steer you wrong. The value is phenominal - dinner for two with appetizers, large soup, large entree and multiple sodas was under $30. I wish there were authentic, ethnic places like Pho Tau Bay in the suburbs!!!! Pros: Authentic Food, Best Spring Rolls!!!, Helpful Staff / VALUE Cons: Decor/Location, BOTH NOT BAD ENOUGH, TO NOT COME BACK!! more