Review | At Spring Field in Wan Chai, Vietnamese pho with Angus beef and wagyu broth for under US$10
- Vietnamese-Chinese fusion with high-quality beef is the trademark of this Wan Chai restaurant. Stick to the pho bowls – the snacks were a letdown
- It’s a popular haunt, so be sure to get there early
Tucked down Swatow Street in Wan Chai, Spring Field specialises in Vietnamese pho with wagyu broth. A small and charming spot, it has wood furnishings and an open kitchen, with friendly and helpful staff.
We arrived at noon, barely avoiding the lunch rush. Customers can choose between two types of noodles – pho and Thai noodles – and also have the option to add coriander, purple onion and chopped spring onion as garnishes.
At each table, there is a cute cartoon of a duck who teaches customers how to add condiments in their pho.
The restaurant’s signature pho (HK$73) was served with rare Angus beef, slow-cooked beef stick and diced radish, while the beef balls with rare beef pho (HK$75) came with two Australian-grade beef balls instead of the beef stick.
The pho was served with a small dish of mint leaves, chilli and a slice of lime, which we added to the broth.
The shop’s in-house marinated spicy bean sprouts were tasty but did not go well with the pho – it seemed like a side dish you would find in a Japanese or Korean restaurant. We especially liked the raw beef slices, which were tender and fresh. The beef balls were a bit stiff and chewy, however, although they had a deeper flavour compared to others we’ve tasted.
The noodles were perfectly cooked and had a bite to them, but the broth tasted more like Cantonese beef brisket soup than a Vietnamese pho soup.
Only one non-noodle main dish is on the menu – roast wagyu rice with onsen egg (HK$98). The restaurant also serves a pork noodle dish in cold soybean soup.
While the pho dishes were fine as Vietnamese-Cantonese fusion fare, the snacks (both HK$36) were a letdown.
The spring rolls were bland. They were not as crisp as they looked, and we had to soak them in the home-made lime and fish sauce to get more flavour.
Chicken wings, while moist, were oily and bland. They were paired with a sweet chilli sauce, which had a touch of orange zest to add sweetness. But it did not go well with the herb, butter and raw garlic on each wing.
We recommend you arrive early to avoid waiting. The restaurant also does takeaways for diners who prefer not to wait.
Spring Field, 25 Swatow Street, Wan Chai, tel: 2512 9622. Open: 11.30am-3pm, 6pm-9.30pm
If pho is your fancy ...
