A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to enjoy a day off work to run errands without looking at the clock. As is usual for me on days like that, I also took the opportunity to take mum out to lunch and enjoy some quality time together. That day, we found ourselves at Inala and tried out Pho An Dien, which I had walked past many times but never been to previously.
Despite the fact that it was a weekday, we were still pressed to find a table and managed to only get the last one. The menu was fairly standard fare for Inala and covered all the essentials. Of course, we were really only there for one thing though.
Starting with a serve of spring rolls, these were on the pricey side at $12 for four. Freshly fried and plump, they were satisfying, but I couldn't help but think that it was very expensive for Inala pricing.
My least favourite element of the meal came in the form of my drink. Time and time again, I go to Inala and order a hot Vietnamese coffee, to be served a packet of instant Vietnamese coffee. Every time, I still take the gamble and get another one to be disappointed again. The instant coffee was excessively sweet and could have been creamier, but it provided the requisite caffeine hit.
As with all the restaurants in Inala, our food came out exceptionally quickly.
Mum had the special beef pho whilst I had the rare beef pho. For some reason my soup came out considerably more oily than hers. The soups were deep and umami but also light and herbal. Toppings were well done with my sliced beef being just the right shade of pink, lean and flavoursome. We did find the portion sizes to be on the smaller side though and could probably have gone for a bit of extra noodles. Overall it would definitely rank as an above average offering, even in Inala but not enough to be my top pick.
Perhaps I hadn't noticed prices in the area but I did get a slight bill shock when our lunch came to a grand total of $57, definitely not a figure I was expecting for a light meal for two, but I suppose that's a sign of the times, and given how competitive pricing is in the area, I don't think other stores would have offered me a better deal.
Taste: 8/10
Value: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Environment: 5/10
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