Xu Hue

We were introduced to this restaurant from our friends and we have been going there almost every week. So far we have tried their Roti chicken, duck salad noodle soup, chicken curry noodle soup, beef la lop vermicelli noodles, fish sausage noodle soup and tapioca dumplings and all of them, delicious! The owner is very friendly and he is very passionate about his food! His wife is an excellent cook! Love it!

Overall a decent meal. The bun was tasty and the serving was ample. The only issue I had was with the salad roll… the ingredients were fine but it tasted kind of… Funny? Not like «food poisoning» funny… More «we did something a little different that we like but you’re really not sure if you like it» funny. I’ll definitely be back but I’ll likely pass on the salad rolls.

great food. good service. i love it. i from Toronto so the price a bit higher here. but u live in alberta u will expect it

Update 7÷29÷15: Have been here a few more times but it seems like I’m always craving bun bo hue, so I have yet to try anything else from the extensive menu. I really like the meats in the bun bo hue — some peppercorn-​spiked meatloaf slices, brisket-​style beef, and also some cartilage-​y pieces which I think might be pork hock. Also note that if the bun bo hue isn’t spicy enough for you, they keep a jar of that spicy oil on each table. It is, in fact, the same stuff that the bowl comes out with (unlike at Trang Tien).
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I wanted to try out this place after finding out that they have a duck and bamboo noodle soup (two things that I love), and also reading that they have a great bun bo hue. The husband and I went for a late lunch (probably 2pm) on a recent Saturday. The owner greeted us and attended to us promptly, though strangely, the service dropped after that — our orders took a while to come out, and one of them was wrong. Not a big deal since we weren’t in a rush, but there was only one other couple there, so not sure why things were taking so long.
Anyway, as a starter we got the deep-​fried quails. Sorry no photo — they were so delicious that I totally forgot to take one. You get two quails, each cut up into quarters and deep fried. They were lightly seasoned with salt and I think that was it — simple, perfect. We were also given two dipping sauces: a sweet fish sauce (yum), and a savoury red spicy ginger sauce (also yum).
I had the bamboo duck noodle soup, which had thin rice vermicelli, many slices of poached duck breast (bone-​in), and slices of bamboo shoots. I think they were fresh bamboo shoots — they were tasty but with a very strong flavour — different from the canned stuff I’ve had. The broth was nice and light though I would have liked more broth and less noodles. Same for my husband’s large bun bo hue — way too many noodles for the amount of broth. I tried a little bit of the broth and I quite liked it — the lemongrass flavour is prominent, which is the way I think it’s supposed to be! I also liked that they had, among many other condiments on the table, a jar of the spicy chili oil that goes in bun bo hue.
They do accept Visa which was nice. Price-​wise, I thought it was a set at a reasonable price point. They have a very extensive menu, with what looked like traditional dishes as well as Vietnamese takes on Chinese classics, so I would definitely come back to try other stuff!

Being such a nice and genuinely awesome guy, I’m starting this review by looking out for you. How so? Well, if you were planning to, for example, go to Xu Hue on a Wednesday, you would be in for major disappointment (like a certain someone that tried to go during supper time). Yep, they are only open from 11am to 4pm so you’ve been warned!
The following week, I went to Xu Hue on a Tuesday evening for dinner with three friends and this time, they were open for business. The place is your typical Asian restaurant — hard seats, white walls, TV (U.S. Open on — win!) and random Asian decorations. I’m pretty sure if the seats are hard and uncomfortable, you know the food will be good. Just a tip I’ve picked up over the years.
A good Viet buddy of mine recommended Xu Hue as they are known for having several local/​regional dishes that are hard to find in other Edmonton Vietnamese restaurants. So, with that, we decided to order a couple appetizers to share:
— Green onion cakes ($ 4.50 for two) — these were surprisingly delicious. Add some of their chili hot sauce to it (which was also awesome — definitely had some good heat to it). We devoured these like they were going out of style.
— Banh xeo ($ 6.95) — apparently these pan fried Vietnamese crepes are super hard to find in town. Comes with a side of lettuce and fresh basil. It was very crunchy and the inside consisted of bean sprouts, shrimp and sliced pork. Also came with a fish sauce to dip with. I was expecting the banh xeo to be delicious but we all concluded it was very average. Not bland but just very ordinary.
— 2x Bun bo hue (spicy) ($ 9.95) — two friends ordered this and it looked/​smelled delicious. They both were big fans.
— Five colour vermicelli ($ 10.95) — spring rolls, pork, shrimp, beef and chicken.
— Fish sauce noodle soup (spicy) ($ 9.95 large) — I ordered this dish. The broth was on the sweeter side compared to other phở places. As well, the broth tasted much more subtle, almost cleaner if that makes sense. I overheard the owner saying that there is no MSG in it, which I like. I also really liked the noodles — they were different from the normal rice noodles you get. Yum.
Solid phở place in Chinatown with a lot of interesting/​different dishes on their menu. To quote Tom Haverford, «Treat yo’ self».

Great phở. Sweet porkchop. Yummy duck soup and salad.
Located in between the hsbc and pagolac. This restaurant has recently undergone renovations. For its location in chinatown its pretty clean and roomy. Tables are basic with all the essentials on the table, so no waiting for forks, spoons, chopsticks or sauces. Quite conveinent.
Wait was long. It took about 1 hour for our food. But thats bc there was only 1 cook and 1 waitress for the 10 tables whuch were all occupied. I only saw vietnamese or chinese people eating here so it must be good.
When we got our food. It was hot and super fresh. The phở had good proportions of meat, noodles and tripe/​tendon. The noodles were perfect and the meat fresh and tender. But the broth was delicous. It was more sweet than most phos. But it was very very good. For downtown this is going to be my go to place for phở from now. It is the best in this area. It ranks higher than tau bay.
Pork chop was really good too. It was tender and came with two large chops. Pretty sweet too but it tasted yummy. After a few bites it grew on you and the sweetness was welcoming.
I had a taste of the duck soup and salad. It tasted different from most other places and seemed quite authentic to me. A definite must try next time. It was light and tasty.
Despite the wait it was really good. Good enough for me not to minus a star. This place has topped the ranks of all vietnamese food in chinatown!!! Ill be back.

Totally should go here for authentic vietnamese soups!
The taste just never failed!
With very friendly owners altho they dont really speak english (but at least they gonna understand u)
They made everything fresh n from scratch

I can tell that the kids come here after school to do there homework as they watch there parents work at the restaurant. There is a corner with a table and a shelf of toys for the kids to hang out and play.
The décor of this place is not the most attractive. It’s tacky pin ups, old school Asian art and worn down fixtures and furniture brings a lazy feel. Which means I can come here and be laid back and feel like I’m eating at home.
I enjoy an environment that feels like family together sharing food and Xu Hue represents just that. I’ve always admired that kind of closeness that the Vietnamese culture brings. Though I don’t speak there language, but I can tell that these people work really hard to provide for there family.
They are readily here to serve you and also to make substitutes if you need, so you would have an enjoyable meal. This is one of the ways they show kindness, even though you may not get the Western culture customer service.
Xu Hue brings more of an authentic approach to Vietnamese food, because they are from Northern Vietnam. They bring out your food fast and it’s cooked properly.
I’ve tried several of there soups and it was very average.
They have a good pork chop and rice plate that is worth trying. On the Menu, they have several rice dishes that is also worth trying.
I do appreciate that the food is fresh when they bring it out to us and I’m glad they are more authentic Vietnamese.

Xu Hue isnt your typical Vietnamese restaurant so if u’re looking for the typical vietnamese food that most westerners know like phở or bun ba mau, u may be disappointed. However, if u’re looking to explore vietnamese food from the Hue region (middle of vietnam), u’d definitely be satisfied here.
My favourite items from Xu Hue include banh bot loc (delightful steamed rice pastry filled w shrimp and pork), bun bo hue (a spicy beef noodle soup signature of hue), goi vit (duck salad), and an arrays of delicious congee. The flavour in the food at xu hue is spot on. The service is always friendly and prompt. As a vietnamese living in edmonton, xu hue is always my choice when i crave a little taste of home.

A new Vietnamese restaurant that just recently opened in 2011, this place joins your list of choices for phở in Chinatown. There’s nothing fancy about it, just your average sit-​and-​chow down kind of place, typical for the neighborhood. The service here is really friendly and the server (who I also believe is the owner) does not keep you waiting for anything.
The phở itself is not bad, although not my favorite in town. Though not salty (which is always a plus when it comes to phở, because you will get extremely thirsty afterwards), the broth lacked flavour. The beef in the Phở Tai was also a little tough, so it didn’t seem all that fresh.
So all in all, great service but weak taste and freshness.

It was a cold, snowy day in Chinatown. I was outside, photographing the Lunar New Year celebrations. My friend Sandra showed up, and we both decided that it was the perfect day to have phở for lunch.
We headed to Xu Hue, the latest Vietnamese restaurant along 97 street. It is housed at the same address as the departed La Family Vietnamese, which occupied the space for a long time, followed by the ill-​fated Phở Anh Dao.
The interior looks pretty much the same as it always has — bright, clean, and spacious. A flat screen television was broadcasting a movie, and there were several tables already occupied.
I ordered my phở (Vietnamese noodle soup) with medium rare steak, while Sandra had hers with medium steak and beef balls. As the large portion was only $ 6.95 (a mere dollar more than the small) and we were both hungry, we opted for that size.
We were not disappointed. Our huge bowls were filled to the brim with noodles, meat, and a very flavourful broth. Sandra, who is quite the phở connoisseur, noted a slight sweetness to the broth in addition to the levels added by the various herbs and seasonings. She noted that it’s the broth that makes or breaks a bowl of phở, as the meat and noodles absorb the flavour.
I completely agree. My bowl was flavourful from start to finish, and the meat just kept popping up amidst the plentiful noodles. We left Xu Hue full, happy, and looking forward to another visit.
There are other items on the menu besides phở, particularly rice noodle bowls, and the prices are very reasonable. I really hope that Xu Hue is able to make a go of it amidst the highly competitive area where it resides.