[alex_c]

>How, the novice may ask, does one discover which version is the correct one for oneself?

>There is nothing else to it – you must eat a few hundred bowls of phở and find out. If this requires moving to Hanoi, so be it.

Not the worst life plan, to be honest!

A little bit sad that my own "death bed pho" - chicken pho from that one stall near the market in old quarter - gets just a passing mention as the only acceptable variation to traditional beef pho.

This also brings back memories of our "mystery pho man" - who had three tiny stools and one large pot outside his house every morning, looked like a character straight out of an 80's movie, and was usually sold out by 8am.

Vietnamese food has got significantly better in Toronto in the past 5-10 years - but still haven't found anything that comes even close to Hanoi chicken pho.

[__mharrison__]

My wife, who doesn't eat beef, once asked for chicken pho, and got an extreme talking to. She was sad because she had good chicken pho in the past.

[ksaj]

My partner is Vietnamese, and also a chef. I've had every variation of pho one can think of. There is a group of snobs who think they authoritatively own the opinion and can only think of a single acceptable recipe (or chef, for that matter).

But let them be so limited on their own. This isn't a religion. It's a big world out there, and there are a gazillion awesome phos in it.

[nielsbot]

> There is a group of snobs who think they authoritatively own the opinion and can only think of a single acceptable recipe

Let's talk about Chicago hot dogs

[mc32]

I like mustard AND catsup on mine. I guess that's a big false step to them.

[ksaj]

Toronto has awesome hotdog vendors. They serve different types of sausages, and of course weiners ready for the flame grill. They are all large size, and there are a gazillion toppings for you to put on yourself. I've never seen better in the US, or anywhere else for that matter.

[Cpoll]

What's the best pho you've had in Toronto?