Pho Winner Vietnamese - Norman

I love this place!  Great vegetarian options.  Always fresh, healthy, tasty.  No problem with service, cleanliness, or quality of food/drinks.  It's fantastic.

This place is an inexpensive place if you are looking for a quick bite to eat between classes. The service is really fast and it doesn't get super packed. The pho is pretty good and the banh mi's are delicious.

Critical local's favorite restaurant.. I eat here four times a week. Here's why:<br/ <br/ Pho is one of the world's great foods, and Pho Winner does it perfectly. The pho here is in the top three dishes in Norman (right along with the Pan-seared duck breast at Legend's, and the Ceviche de Mixto at Mamavecas). Of course, that's just my opinion, but I'm typically critical and objective when it comes to food. Restaurants in Norman survive on reputation alone, and that includes lots of bad ones. <br/ <br/ The ingredients are always fresh, unlike some of the pho restaurants in the city, where it's not unusual to get browning basil or sprouts which are no longer sweet or crisp. <br/ <br/ The pho is spicy, rich, and complex. You can find pho at other restaurants in Norman, but it's vegan (that's right, their beef soup is vegan), and vegan pho is none of those things. In the menu at Pho Winner, they have a list of all the ingredients that go into the broth. The flavors I notice most are the wood ear, scallions, and magic. <br/ <br/ They have all of the specialty cuts of meat. I always get the tripe and tendon, and they are always cooked perfectly. Other pho places often don't have these cuts, and what beef they do have is dried-out and just plain sad (okay I'll admit it, I'm talking about hometown hero Coriander Café, whose pho is overpriced and embarrassing, with none of the expected accoutrements). <br/ <br/ Pho Winner has more options and accoutrements than you could possibly want. You want quail eggs in your pho? They've got it. Hoisin, chili paste, thai basil, sri racha, fish sauce, glass noodles, shrimp, jalepeños, everything. I sometimes order the raw beef sliced on the side, so that I can eat it with lime juice and basil carpaccio-style. They're happy to do that too. <br/ <br/ The drink selection is also excellent. I typically go for the green tea, or sometimes a smoothie. If you've ever wanted to try durian, they've got a durian smoothie which is awesome. Contrary to what you may have heard about durian fruit, the smoothies don't taste anything like feet, more like a mix between cantaloupe and sweet vidalia onions. Pho Winner has plenty of opportunities to be adventurous. Take advantage. <br/ <br/ The price-point can't be beat. I don't think you can get a decent meal for less (you can find comparable prices at a taco truck in Norman, but street-food is a different story). Even if you go across the street to the Greek House for some fair food, you're going to pay more. <br/ <br/ So in addition to being the ultimate cure for a hangover, and being by far the best pho in town, the service is amazing, and the kitchen is really really fast. I'm still surprised by how fast my lunch comes out, and I've eaten there at least one hundred times over the last couple of years. The bathrooms are clean. The ambiance is comfortable. The location is unbeatable. I've poked my head in the kitchen before, and it's spotless and organized (I've worked in a lot of kitchens, this one is impressive). <br/ <br/ This is one of the best restaurants in town, hands down. I can't find a single bad thing to say about this restaurant or its food, and as you can probably tell, I'm pretty critical.

Good Pho Option in Norman. If you're looking for pho in Norman, this may just be your best bet for it. Service is fast, but note that the restaurant can get crowded during the lunch rush. While the pho is good, it's not wow enough for me to wait 10 minutes for a table. I'd rather just go somewhere else on my allotted time for lunch. There are many other dining establishments in the area. That being said, I believe I always end up ordering the P7. The first time I ordered it, I got the large. I was so full as I do enjoy the broth. The second time I went, I ordered medium and I can tell the difference in the portion size but it was just right. Each table gets a generous helping of bean sprouts, sliced jalapenos and some greens for their pho. I haven't tried anything else from their menu but I will make sure to do that next time.

My buddy brought me here for a light lunch and it was great. Now to find a really good Pho in the Asian District in OKC.