Cyclo

Summary

Even though there had been a large number of Asian restaurants in the Long Island City and Astoria vicinity, vietnamese restaurants are still fairly limited. I was kind of craving for some pho since it’s been a few years, and this one was within walkable distance. The city recently allowed 25% dine in, and the reviews for this restaurant seemed fairly decent. The interior was decorated pretty homely, and the tables were spaced decently apart with screen separators. Let’s move on to the food.

The taro milk tea was not overly sweet and was requested without tapioca (boba) balls.

The fried pork spring roll came with 3 pieces and assorted condiments including fish sauce, lettuce, and pickled carrots and radish. The rolls came piping hot and had a nice crisp to them. I thought portion size was a little small, but of course I am comparing it to previous Los Angeles Vietnamese restaurants which isn’t fair. Flavor wise, this was pretty on point in comparison.

The super bowl was pho with beef, chicken, shrimp, and tofu in oxtail broth. Be prepared because this bowl is actually legitimately large in size. The pho wasn’t out of your world, but it was about what I was expecting. The oxtail broth was fairly decent albeit slightly watered down. It’s definitely lacking a little in the salt and flavor depth categories. The beef was pretty decent although it was pretty much well done. The chicken seemed like it was precooked from a batch and just thrown in. The shrimp was alright with that typical aftertaste that I’ve come to expect at Vietnamese restaurants. The tofu was interesting in that it was sweet. It was not quite what I was expecting. All in all if I went to this restaurant again, I’d probably stick to the beef pho.

The Bo Luc Lac came with marinated cubed sirloin beef and was wok tossed with oyster sauce and black pepper. The beef was actually very tender and delicious. However, the sauce did come out a little on the salty side.

The service was pretty fast, and the price was reasonable.

Final Verdict

For a Vietnamese place within walking distance of where we live, this place is actually decent. We definitely will be back when we need to satisfy our cravings.

Yelp Jabs

Unfortunately the broth was too salty and was difficult to eat.

I find this really hard to believe unless salt is not this person’s diet at all.

I kind of wish the proportion of veggies and meat was a little more balanced. I’m a meat and potatoes person, so it’s rare that I think something has too much meat, but this was definitely the case here

If there was a club of hypocritical elitists, this person would fit nicely in. No legitimate meat and potatoes person will complain about having too much meat.