Pho on the Eastside

 We just got home from a nice bowl of Pho (Vietnamese beef noodle soup) at
 a new, family owned restaurant called "Simply Saigon".  It's at 10705
 Main Street on the eastern edge of "old" Bellevue.  We also had a plate
 of egg rolls and some Cafe Sua Da -- the delightful, rich and sweet iced
 coffee that a person could become addicted to.

 Our Pho was in a big bowl (only one size) for $5.75 from the lunch menu.
  It arrived promptly and the little dish with the basil and bean sprouts
 also had fresh lime (one of my acid tests of a Pho place--some "cheat"
 with lemon--I hate that) and a number of those little depth charge pepper
 slices.  The table was equipped with the hoisin and chili garlic sauce in
 squirt bottles but they had soy sauce instead of nuoc mam (?).

 I liked this Pho very much as the broth was rich and deep brown instead
 of the watery stuff I've had so far since we moved here.  I longed for
 the stuff I used to get in Vancouver, BC but was beginning to think I
 wasn't going to get it w/o going to the I district and parts south.  Now,
 I'm happy.  They also used a generous amount of star anise when seasoning
 their broth although they could drop in some more for my tastes.  That's
 all a judgement call for the individual palate.

 We both look forward to exploring their other offerings. The server we
 had said that they've only been open for 6 weeks and while lunch was a
 busy time, dinners are still a little too quiet.  The place is a bit
 difficult to see from the street and Bellevue Esthetics Police have told
 them to remove the sandwich board they had by the street, but look for it
 and give it a try!

 BTW, it's soft pink walls and tinkly Vietnamese night club pop music
 creates a comfortable atmosphere that satisfies my latent homesickness
 for living in Vancouver.

 Lisa