UYE: Pho Addiction @ Pho Bistro 2

I got to the venue just a bit too early, but it gave me time to work on another Unilocal review. In any case, Ed L turned up soon enough & we went in to grab a table. It nearly turned into a lunch date for 2, but Victoria M. & her bf showed up just as we were looking through the menu — the more the merrier!
We had a really simple lunch, everyone ordered their respective phở & [season name] rolls haha. I really enjoyed the light broth, and it wasn’t too salty. I always appreciate UYEs because they take me places I would never have gone to on my own before.
Lunch seemed to end w/​the promise of more Phở UYEs to come. Good luck to Victoria & Ed on the Phở Crawl!

This was a super fun event hosted by Ed L.
I arrived a few minutes late, but no one minded. :-) It was a small event, but made up for its size by its awesomeness and fun conversation.
I hear that people met outside, but when I got there, they were at the back of the restaurant. I’d never been here before, but they were easy to find, and parking was decent (which is a super good thing!).
I was glad that someone was hosting a Phở Event, and made some great plans with Ed to host another Phở event, as we love Phở so Phở-​king much.
Thanks for hosting, and can’t wait for the next one!!!

I’m not supposed to review my own UYE, but I’m going to anyway.
It was interesting to be hosting my 1^st UYE ever and to be able to have Phở as the main dish on display was — to be honest — a bit risky. How many Phở addicts were out there or just people who enjoy Vietnamese cuisine? I know I’m learning how to host a UYE and this experience proves that. I would like to thank those who did come, which was awesome. Thanks to Maka K and Victoria M + husband. It was an intimate UYE that was a success for my 1^st time doing so. First time for everything and I’ll do better with each UYE I do.
This UYE was located at the Phở Bistro 2 at 1694 Kalakaua Avenue, near the Hawaii Convention Center on Kapiolani Blvd. Extensive reviews on this place were great, so I chose this place for the UYE. Having been here myself a few times, it was the perfect place. I got here 15 minutes early and saw Maka K already check in via mobile app. I was like, whoa, she’s here already? I had been to the Baskin Robbins already, taking down a 2 scoop chocolate decadence before sitting down to having Phở for lunch. We both waited for other Unilocalers who signed up to be here, but time ticked by and nobody came. Great expectations fell by the wayside and I was dismayed a little. Life happens and people have last minute things to do. I get it. No need to cry over it.
After waiting outside for 15 minutes, Maka K and I went inside to secure a table, which we have found on the left side wall of the restaurant. I was trying to find the positives at the moment, but we were here to have lunch and that was that. A few minutes after we got our menus, a couple came into the restaurant and they asked a question to the server, with the world « Unilocal» being in the same sentence, it was nice to see others join the party. I get that some would come late — as it was Sunday — I was elated to welcome Unilocal elite Victoria M and her husband to the party. Through the course of the intimate Phở UYE, I have learned that Victoria is a Phở junkie herself and we started make plans to co host a Phở Unilocal event in the future.
Since it was just the 4 of us, it was nice to have that level of intimacy, rather than a bunch of people and noisy conversation. I think it worked out for the best, in hindsight for sure. Majority of us had the regular sized Phở, whereas I had the large size Phở for good measure. Victoria and her husband shared an order of spring rolls, whereas I just took down an order of summer rolls myself. It was nice to have Phở for the first real meal of the day after knocking off 10 miles earlier in the morning. I really was thinking about Phở on my early morning run, so it was a nice treat to have for lunch! The prices were like I remember, not that pricey, but yet, not too expensive.
The summer rolls were nice and perfect. They were not refrigerated like most places do. They were freshly prepared and served. I love that. The broth was dark brown and full of flavor. We ended up sharing our pile of basil and bean spouts, which was cool. All in all, it was a casual lunch meal with Unilocal friends that was good. At times, I wished more people would have came, but its a nice beginning for me as a UYE host. I’ve learned some valuable advice for the next time, which I would put into good use next time around for sure. Phở Bistro 2’s service is tops, as always. They take credit cards, so that’s always a plus in my book. We got water refills more than we care to count, so that’s great that they do come around more than just 2 times. Happy with my pick with this UYE. There will be others for sure.
Support local!
Viva Unilocal.
A+