Mo Pho Noodles

[Jason Perlow]

K.T. Tranh, of Saigon R in Englewood (Formerly Saigon Republic) has now opened a streamlined, larger version of Saigon R in Fort Lee, called Mo' Pho Noodles. The restaurant used to be a Japanese sushi bar and features a Japanese garden and seating for up to 65 people.

Storefront, 212 Main Street in Fort Lee. Ample parking is around the corner and in back, and across the street in a large municipal lot.

Japanese Garden

Happy Diners

The restaurant still retains its sushi bar, which will be used for people who want to slurp their soup and watch a game on TV. There are plans to use this in the future for innovative summer rolls.

Main dining room which includes regular tables as well as bench stalls.

Spicy Chili Chicken Wings, a new menu item.

K.T's famous Pho. This is a combo with beef balls, rare beef, shrimp, chicken and tofu.

Chicken Curry Stew with Sweet Potatoes. Also a new menu item.

Vietnamese Coffee

Saigon R in Englewood is usually packed to the gills every night of the week, so Mo' Pho' is well equipped to handle hungry diners.

[Rachel Perlow]

Those wings were great. Reminded me of the grilled chicken KT used to make at Saigon Gourmet. The chicken curry was amazing, and I generally don't like curry. It was chicken stewed with coconut milk, batatas and lots of other seasonings, but wasn't overwhelmingly "curry" if you know what I mean. Felt like it was grandma's cooking (if your grandma is Vietnamese). I tried it because I like stewed chicken and it was one of the few dishes that isn't a duplicate of Saigon R's menu (where I've tried everything, more than twice), and I was glad I did.

[Jason Perlow]

Hi-res menu scans:

Lunch

Dinner (Page 1)

Dinner (Page 2)

[GoodEater]

Wow- This restaurant looks and sounds great. Have to get there soon! Only one problem - saying the name of the place could get you into trouble in the wrong circles!

[jpr54_]

i stopped by the restaurant on my way back to teaneck from shopping at han ah rheum(ridgefield) and whole foods in edgewater-

i was disappointed in the way the restaurant looked-dark, and dismal-

i took a menu but did not stay to eat

[Jason Perlow]

i stopped by the restaurant on my way back to teaneck from shopping at han ah rheum(ridgefield) and whole foods in edgewater-

i was  disappointed in the way the restaurant looked-dark, and dismal-

i took a menu but did not stay to eat

Your loss. The food is fantastic.

So far, the prime hours for that restaurant are lunch until about 2 and dinner starting at around 7 -- they plan to be open until 11PM or so at night to service the late night Korean and Japanese crowd. After the end of lunchtime rush -- which so far has been very busy according to the management, I would not expect the place to start up again until around 7PM.

I can assure you, it won't be empty and dismal for very long. So far they have been taking a considerable amount of overflow from Saigon Republic in Englewood.

[menton1]

i stopped by the restaurant on my way back to teaneck from shopping at han ah rheum(ridgefield) and whole foods in edgewater-

i was disappointed in the way the restaurant looked-dark, and dismal-

i took a menu but did not stay to eat

This is a place for GREAT food, not great comfort; We have been to Saigon over 15 times in the last year, and while it is noisy and cramped, we love it!! Food is unusually good by an unusually good chef. Looks like Mo Pho could be a late night or after-movie choice since Saigon closes much earlier...

You don't always have to dine at a place with terrific "ambience".

[Jason Perlow]

Rachel, Jhlurie and I went back to Mo' Pho' tonight. The place was pretty busy, and the kitchen was putting out great food, despite some gas feed problems this evening with the wok burner.

Evening crowd at around 9:30PM on Saturday

Summer Roll Shrimp

Spicy Seafood Noodle Soup with Shrimp and Crab (Vietnamese Bouillabase)

Cellophane Noodles with Lemongrass Fish

[Hank]

To JPR54. Do not choose a book by its cover. Yes, the decor is colorless and a bit depressing but then again we do not eat decor. Wait till you see what is on your plate and what goes into your stomach. KT is an amazing chef who has put all her marbles into building her kitchen and very little into the front but give her time. She will eventually fix that too for those clients that need pretty surroundings.

[Rachel Perlow]

If you think it is dark now, you should have seen it before. The walls were a darker color, there were these weird room dividers. KT has painted the walls a light yellow, but mixed the colors of the lights, white and red. That and the red neon sign in the window casts a red glow on the inside. Don't think of it as depressing, but as moody or romantic.

[Rachel Perlow]

If you look at the pictures above, you will notice a difference between Saigon R and Mo' Pho with the summer rolls. At Saigon R, you get two rolls for $6.50, at Mo' Pho you get one for $3.50. On the face of it, it is more expensive for the one roll, however, not everyone wants to get two rolls, or you may want to order a variety of flavors.

My fish dish, pictured above, was salmon (but that can vary depending if there is a fish of the day). On the dinner menu (page 2, linked above), it is listed under Noodles, as "Cellophane Noodles, steamed with fish and bok choy in an oyster, ginger, scallion, and sesame oil sauce." It is one of my favorite ways KT prepares fish.

[Jason Perlow]

Beef on a Stick

Spicy "Pad Thai" noodles (not really Pad Thai, they are K.T.'s creation, but excellent just the same)

Grilled Pork with Steamed Angel Hair Rice Noodles

Vietnamese Salad with Shrimp

[jpr54_]

i am upset at the response to my post about not liking the atmosphere of this restaurant--

i am almost shamed into trying the food which i will this weekend--the tactic worked-

i hope the food is as good as jason and rachel say it is-

this past weekend i ate at wondees in hackensack and enjoyed my lunch there.

joanne

[menton1]

i am upset at the response to my post about not liking the atmosphere of this restaurant--

i am almost shamed into trying the food which i will this weekend--the tactic worked-

i hope the food is as good as jason and rachel say it is-

this past weekend i ate at wondees in hackensack and enjoyed my lunch there.

joanne

Don't worry, the food is a can't miss!!

[Jason Perlow]

i am upset at the response to my post about not liking the atmosphere of this restaurant--

i am almost shamed into trying the food which i will this weekend--the tactic worked-

i hope the food is as good as jason and rachel say it is-

this past weekend i ate at wondees in hackensack and enjoyed my lunch there.

joanne

If you liked Wondees, you will love Mo Pho/Saigon. Both of these restaurants, along with China 46 are our favorite asian places in Northern NJ.

[menton1]

Tried Mo Pho for a change of pace last weekend... Menu is smaller than Saigon, the atmosphere is not as nice, the parking meters go 24/7 in the municipal lot, and lastly, Joe is not there.

4 Reasons that the future lies in the original Saigon, in Englewood!

[Rachel Perlow]

Ah, but they have a Joe, just not the Joe. KT's son is also Joe. I disagree with you about the atmosphere, Mo'Pho is larger, so there is more room. You're not on top of your neighbors the way it can happen in Englewood. But I agree with you that the meters are a PITA. Each have their advantages and disadvantages.

[Jason Perlow]

Mo Pho may not have Joe Insinga, but it has powerful Air Conditioning.

While I agree that the 24 hour meters sound aggravating, the parking is quite ample. You cant say the same necessarily for Saigon, its currently a pain in the ass to park near there. Frequently we end up parking in the supermarket lot behind the burned down Mcdonalds -- and we have been going for lunch, because its a bitch to get into Saigon in the evenings. Mo Pho has plenty of seating.

So I would say Mo Pho is an excellent alternative.

[Hank]

Menton, aside from your 4 reasons about going to Englewood (would like to debate those with you as I believe that you are wrong on all counts) why was there no comment from you about how you liked or did not like the food. After all, is that not the reason why we go to restaurants.

[menton1]

Menton, aside from your 4 reasons about going to Englewood (would like to debate those with you as I believe that you are wrong on all counts)

OK, here's the debate.

1- Menu is smaller at Mo Pho-- Saigon has about 20 more item choices on the menu. Jason has posted both on Egullet.

2- Atmosphere-- I suppose this might be a debatable point, although neither place is a supremely comfortable environment.

3- Parking meters go 24/7 in the municipal lot-not debatable.

4- THE GREAT JOE I. Unreplaceable, no substitutes, makes the dining experience at Saigon very, very pleasant. A tremendous asset of Saigon in Englewood. NOT DEBATABLE.

Your turn.

[Jason Perlow]

Actually, Joe has been begging KT (Who is now cooking full time at Mo Pho -- Benang and Eng are running the kitchen at Saigon -- Benang was trained by KT's mom, so thats why nobody has noticed) to work at Mo Pho for some time now, its a much more comfortable restaurant to work in. His presence may be needed to smooth things out in the new place for a while.

The menu is smaller at Mo Pho - and actually, I've pleaded with her to make it even smaller, because 90 percent of the orders at Fort Lee are Pho. In fact, there is so much call for Pho at that location, that she has to get 4 more burners up front with a steam kettle to accomodate the demand now. She's going to have to simplify even more to make things more manageable there.

[menton1]

My only beef (ho ho) with Mo Pho was that the Pho is not offered with the Rare Beef as it is at Saigon. As per Joe's original recommendation on our first visit, the rare beef is the way to go. We always get it that way. I was surprised to see that it wasn't one of the choices at Mo Pho.

P.S. We've never had a problem parking in Englewood, and without McDonald's, it's now easier than ever.

[Jason Perlow]

My only beef (ho ho) with Mo Pho was that the Pho is not offered with the Rare Beef as it is at Saigon. As per Joe's original recommendation on our first visit, the rare beef is the way to go. We always get it that way. I was surprised to see that it wasn't one of the choices at Mo Pho.

P.S. We've never had a problem parking in Englewood, and without McDonald's, it's now easier than ever.

You can get the rare beef at Mo Pho. You just have to request the beef on the side.

[Hank]

A) When I mentioned the size and contents of the menu to KT her response was

that she needed time to get used to the new equipment in the kitchen and she

also did not have the kitchen help necessary for more than was now on the

menu, whcih, by the way, has plenty of wonderful choices on it. Just look at

Jason's photos. They are fabulous and plentiful.

B) There is free on street parking after 6:00pm or you can park in a city pkg lot

directly behind the restaurant for a measly 50 cents an hour. Let me also

remind you of all the posts about pkg availability in Montclair. Those rest.

owners would give their right arms for the size of the Ft. Lee lot behind the

post office. Come to mind, so would Englewood and a few other cities.

C) If there is one huge downer about the Englewood location it is their cramped

size and lousy air conditioning. They could not even on a bet squeeze in one

more chair. To boot, the noise level can get way out of hand. Fort Lee has

excellent space and air conditioning and no one bumps your chair.

D) YES. There is no debate that Joe is a terrific guy but please, let's not cut short

the wait staff in Fort Lee. Joe, the son of KT, Laura, her daughter and Pete who

has been working along side Joe for the past 6 months at Saigon (and a terrific

personality himself) are now waiting tables in Fort Lee. Again, there is no

debate about Joe but I would hope that he is not the reason that Saigon is so

successful but rather that KT is a wonderful chef with Joe only the icing

on the cake. After all we go to Saigon to eat.

With all that said and done "A Votre Sante" to you all!!!

[menton1]

KT failed miserably after a few months in a previous incarnation in Cresskill; large, comfortable quarters in the old firehouse building. She knew how to cook, but was clueless as to how to run a restaurant. Joe I. is definitely a major factor in the success of Saigon in Englewood.