This just in from our friend Nik Martin in Mobile, Alabama:
I've been looking for a phở restaurant since the launch of this site, and today while thumbing through the yellow pages for something to eat, came across "Phở 88." BINGO. I call to make sure they are indeed a phở restaurant (they are) and if they are indeed open for my culinary curiosity (they are). I jet over, and after stopping outside to snap pics (which prompted the owner to rush out in a paranoid fashion to determine my reasons for doing so) I went in to make my purchase. The menu was entirely in an English printed Vietnamese dialect, but the descriptions were readable. I got a number 1, which had every type of beef available in it; flank steak, tripe, round steak, meatballs, and brisket. While waiting for my food, I ask what the "88" in their name means. Nothing, says the owner, he just liked the way it sounded. Good enough for me. After a few minutes, the owner returned with a very large sack of food and rang up $5.75. WOW, what a deal.
I get back to my office and snap a few more pics of the rather large lunch. A nice sack of sprouts and basil (the sprouts weren't the freshest, but good all the same), a quart of soup with green onions and meatballs, and a Styrofoam sandwich box full of meat, noodles, lemons and onions. I put everything except the tripe (sorry, maybe next time, but it's just too freaky looking) into the soup, stirred it around a bit, and took my first taste. Very nice. Not too hot, so I warm it up a bit in the microwave. Much better.
There's a slight taste of ginger, or it may just be the basil mixed with beef; but it's nice, if not a little strong for my taste. I don't know what Pho is supposed to taste like, but this is good so far. I eat about half, put the other half in the fridge for a late afternoon snack.
Overall, a good experience. I'll let you know if I become a Phở-King convert.