Artichoke pho, baby back ribs, and pipa duck are dishes that arouse curiosity among diners at the Hanoi Pho Festival 2025 taking place at Thang Long Imperial Citadel.
The 2025 Pho Festival takes place from April 18 to 20 at the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, gathering stalls from many restaurants. Visitors can experience typical pho dishes from different regions. Photo: Minh Duy
At the Festival, all stalls apply a common price of 40,000 VND per bowl. In addition to famous pho brands, mainly in the North, such as Pho Tu Lun, Thin Bo Ho, Ganh, Nam Dinh, and Tay Bac sour, there are many pho dishes that attract the attention of diners because of their novelty.
Artichoke Pho from Da Lat is one of the curious stalls. Most visitors are impressed by the pho noodles with the characteristic pink color from artichoke flowers.
Ms. Hoai Khanh, who runs the artichoke pho chain with headquarters in Da Lat and two stores in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the founder of this dish is Truong Minh, born in 2002. Inspired by the stewed artichoke soup he often ate as a child, Minh combined it with traditional Vietnamese pho to create artichoke pho.
"Tourists often know about the artichoke flower, but few people know about the stem of this flower. Da Lat people often use the stem to make soup and this is the idea to create the broth of artichoke pho", Khanh said.
Traditional pho noodles, with added extract from red artichoke flowers. In addition, the indispensable ingredients that make up the flavor of pho include cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, ginseng, onion, ginger.
Beef is the main ingredient including rare meat, flank, tendon and ribs. The bowl of pho is filled with very hot broth, adding herbs, lemon, chili and enjoying immediately.
Ms. Thuy Hanh, Hanoi, came to the Festival with her friend and commented: "The most special part of artichoke pho is the broth, which is spicy and clear, very attractive to eat, but a bit strong in flavor. The pho noodles are crispy and have a light aroma".
The unique name of Pho vit boa also attracts many diners to line up to enjoy. This dish was created by members of the Vietnam Royal Chefs Association.
Chef Duong Van Hung said the pho is called "Pipa Duck" because it uses boneless duck meat, shaped like a pipa, marinated with herbs and spices, then dried and grilled.
The broth of pho is made from bones, served with basil and suitable for cool weather.
Pho suon nhu was sold out early at noon on April 19. Many diners who came to the counter to order were asked to wait an hour because "the counter was preparing new ingredients and broth".
Ms. Thanh Hang, marketing manager of Pho Inn, which owns pho suon nhu, said that her team created this dish with the desire to develop traditional beef pho and diversify Vietnamese pho.
Beef rib pho uses beef ribs, stewed for a long time to release the sweetness. "The broth served to diners has a moderate sweetness from the bone marrow," said Ms. Hang. Thanks to her own recipe, the broth still has the aroma of cinnamon and star anise but is not harsh, nor does it have a strong fish sauce smell.
The ribs served with pho include bones and deboned ribs. With deboned ribs, "diners just need to gently pull the bone, and the meat will separate easily." In addition to ribs, diners can also choose rare beef or beef balls. Photo: Thanh Hang
Some diners who came to the Festival on the morning of April 19 expressed their interest in learning about and trying many regional pho dishes. However, some also said that they could not fully enjoy it because it was too hot and there were no fans at the booths. Diner Trung Anh, Hanoi, said that "eating pho in paper bowls also makes the dish less delicious".
The Pho Festival opens from 9am to 10pm. In addition to pho booths, there are also many local foods and drinks. The highlight of the event is the application of AI - Chatbot technology to enhance the experience of attendees. Chatbot is arranged at the information desk, helping guests look up booths and find suitable pho dishes.