Pho Luca's 2915 West Cary Street, Richmond, VA 23221

"UPDATE: I made my way back to pho Luca and this time they did a much better job with the flavoring of the broth. I understand the owner mentioned that the broth cooking down could cause the saltiness so I came at the same time as my previous review but didn't have any issues. The portion size was okay being I do wish there were 1.5x the noodles. I'm not asking for a big strainer full but definitely more than 10 big bites worth. Overall a big improvement from last time. Again the staff were friendly and responsive. OROGINAL: I have eaten at Pho Lucas 10+ times and it's normally decent but today I had a rather bad experience. The food took around 40 minutes to come out, for an order of a sandwich and a bowl of pho that seems like a ridiculously long wait. Especially since the table sat next to us who arrived and ordered 20 minutes after we did got their food first. The Bahn Mi was good but the pho was not anywhere close. The broth was so salty. I had added nothing to it but you could barely taste the beef through the just salt and umami. My mouth was somehow dry eating soup from all the salt. To me there were no aromatics detectable only salt with a hint of beef. It very much tasted like someone had dumped Magi seasoning sauce into the broth to point it was mostly the seasoning sauce. The round steak meat was completely cooked by the broth before it even got to me but the brisket was good. The servers were very kind even if it felt like they were understaffed."

"Excellent location with awesome staff providing great service. Sets the stage for the food which was excellent and family friendly. The spring rolls were so fresh accompanied by a delicious peanut sauce. The pho was the star, so many rich flavours in the broth and generous amounts of meat and noodles. Our daughter tried the kids pho, which was her first pho, and she loved it. Easy to recommend this place to anyone and everyone"

"What a cute spot! The food was amazing, some of the best pho and bahn mi I have had in awhile. And the fried tofu! Wow. The service wasn’t the greatest, but the ambience was nice for a quick bite and hang out. They have a great drink menu, with something for everyone including mocktails."

"Everything about this place is great! The food is always incredible, staff friendly, and atmosphere wholesome. What you should try... anything! From the wings, spring rolls and tofu nuggets, to the Pho itself and the Banh Mi sandwiches, it's all terrific and fresh. My personal favorite is the LUCA Banh Mi, which is served with crisp fries and a side of the Pho broth which is perfect for sipping. For the wings I always go with sweet chili and green onion. This place stays busy! So if you plan on going on a Friday or Saturday night it would be smart to call ahead of time."

"I have never had a noodle soup that impressed me this much. I have never been a fan of noodle soups, but what I had here just made me realize I just never had it in the right place. Pho broth brisket, is just amazing. If you like spicy, definitely order the $1 spice addition thats called X. This place does an above and beyond job with their noodle soups. My friend tried to take me here for 1 year and I regret not trusting her earlier."