Review: Pho Van and WFH Oriental Food Market

My husband and I recently decided to take a second trip to Pho Van, a small Vietnamese restaurant in Pittsburgh's ever-wonderful Strip District, which is packed with grocery stores, restaurants and the public market - that's a post for another day.  We had been to Pho Van before and loved it, especially the apple chicken salad, which I failed to photograph AGAIN this time, because it was just too delicious to stop and take pictures.  Once again, we had a fabulous meal.  The apple chicken salad alone is worth the trip, but the crispy rolls are also a great appetizer.  As for main courses, I got the pho, with rare eye round, and it was fantastic.  My husband had the grilled pork and totally loved it.

On the way back to our car, we passed by WFH Oriental Food Market, also on Penn Ave.  It's got lots of great things at great prices, but unfortunately does not live up to the awesome Lotus Foods down the street.  Having been to Lotus even more recently, I can tell you that Lotus has a much wider range of products, better selection, and a much more pleasant store - Lotus has a larger store, enabling them to space the aisles better.  WFH Oriental Food Market, though very claustrophobic, is still worth a visit.  We picked up a lot of produce on that visit, including some that's pictured here.  Best of all was the GIANT cabbage that we couldn't resist - seriously, how is a cabbage that huge?  And, last but not least, the green tea ice cream we picked up did not last long in our house - yum!  I would say that, when I plan ahead, I just head straight to Lotus and skip WFH - Lotus has the same things and more, plus the better overall experience.