Homebush West is our usual haunt for egg tarts and lamb rolls, but we took the opportunity to try one of their restaurants serving phở on a recent visit.

D visited the restaurant at the location regularly during his adolescence, but it’s since changed owners and names (formerly Gia Hoi) and with it, a change in the quality of the food offered.

This is the Phở Tai ($14.00, no onions) with sides of bean sprouts, Vietnamese mint and lemon.

Put simply, the phở here was very passable. While the soup had colour, it lacked both flavour and depth with barely a hint of beef or seasoning. The noodles were soft and lacked bite, and the beef was a decent portion but was tough after sitting just briefly in the soup. Overall, the phở tasted so bland that it screamed of healthiness, yet there was nothing to convince us to return. Our usual place for phở is Phở Pasteur, which serves a flavourful soup with good depth, albeit with it may be bolstered by sugar and MSG.

Phở Gia Long is located at 2/98 (in laneway), The Crescent, Homebush West NSW 2140