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Egg noodles are a specialty at Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia. The egg noodle house special (pictured above) features seafood and pork and can be served "dry" or as a soup. (Photo courtesy Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia)
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Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia is located at 1601 Willow Lawn Drive, Unit 130. (Photo by Eileen Mellon)
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Pho house special at Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia (Photo courtesy Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia)
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Pan-fried rice noodles with seafood crisp (Photo courtesy Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia)
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Pho 95 features a 1,479-square-foot dining room and will also offer takeout and delivery service. (Photo by Eileen Mellon)
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Inside Pho 95 (Photo by Eileen Mellon)
“We moved down here to open a restaurant,” says Christine Phan, co-owner with husband Steven of Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia, the new Vietnamese eatery expected to debut in the Willow Lawn shopping center the first week of March.
“When we open, they will come,” the native of Vietnam continues, smiling.
History backs up her statement: Since 2014, the couple have opened two successful Vietnamese restaurants in California — the original Hai Ky Mi Gia in Santa Ana and Mi Day Ky in Garden Grove. The Willow Lawn outpost marks their first East Coast location, but Christine says her husband is well known on the regional pho circuit.
Steven first came to the U.S. at 19, working in kitchens at Hyatt and Marriott hotels in Washington, D.C. The now 54-year-old eventually began cooking at a restaurant inside the Eden Center, a bustling mecca for Vietnamese cuisine and culture with over 100 eateries and businesses — the strip mall has been touted as the No. 1 tourist destination in Fairfax County. On a recent visit, Christine says Steven was mobbed by people who remembered him and his noodles.
“When they saw him they said, ‘Where have you been? Why don’t you come open a restaurant here? We miss your noodle,’ ” Christine says, noting that people have traveled from all across the D.C. metro area seeking out her husband’s creations.
“They said they would come [when we opened a restaurant] because they miss the taste of his noodle, and nobody has the same taste,” she continues.
Christine can relate to the many fans of Steven's noodles. When the now 43-year-old immigrated to California years ago, she was seeking the food from her homeland and found herself in the restaurant where Steven cooked at the time. Although the two eventually struck up a friendship, initially it was his egg noodles that kept her coming back. The Phans expect the food at their new restaurant at Willow Lawn to have the same effect on diners.
“Everything is very fresh, very simple, and the customers [will be] very happy,” Christine says.
The menu at Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia is a double-sided listing of authentic Vietnamese fare, with pho and other noodle dishes at the forefront, along with rice dishes and porridge. The house specialty is Mi Day Biet, an egg noodle entree brimming with pork and seafood that can be ordered “dry,” with the broth and sauces on the side, or as soup, with everything already combined. Other specialties include Banh Khot, savory bite-sized pancakes, and pillowy wontons that are made fresh daily and stuffed with pork, shrimp and onions.
Sriracha, hoisin, fish sauce, and jars of pickled peppers and garlic will adorn the tables, but the Phans say their special house-made chile sauce is the “most important” and a must for any egg noodle dish.
The Phans also bring their knowledge of boba tea to the restaurant — though Steven says his wife is the real expert — with a separate menu dedicated to the Taiwanese tea-based beverage. The couple learned how to make traditional brown sugar boba tea at a family friend’s shop in Saigon, the source of the organic teas they will use.
Christine says their brown sugar boba series, a tea-less variety made with fresh milk, brown sugar syrup and tapioca pearls, sets Pho 95 apart. Flavors include the signature brown sugar with fresh milk, as well as creme brulee and matcha and cocoa-brown sugar.
The “95” in the restaurant’s name is an ode to the interstate and the people they hope will travel the highway to come try their Vietnamese cuisine. “It’s not just a number but also appreciating what we come from and our journey to Richmond," Christine says. "We think that we should make something special of Vietnamese food so people know about it.”
Steven echoes his wife’s feelings. “We’re looking forward to bringing and sharing our Vietnamese food with the Richmond community.”
Pho 95 Hai Ky Mi Gia will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with delivery and takeout available as well.
