New restaurant has Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese at bargain prices. Go for lunch

You want Chinese. Hubby has a hankering for Thai noodles. The kids are yammering for teriyaki. Your picky sister-in-law only will eat pho.

Family dinners are so much fun.

Lucky you, here’s a solution for your next “What’s for dinner?” dilemma.

It’s called Souper Pho, and it opened Aug. 10 in the Westgate neighborhood.

The restaurant replaces an unrelated Vietnamese restaurant called Pho Linh.

Souper Pho is not fancy or high-end. It’s an all-purpose everyday restaurant with the greatest hits of Asian cuisine covering Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese and Chinese.

The menu is quite broad, but so is the cooking repertoire of the restaurant’s chef, Toan Tran, who operates the restaurant with wife, Jade Tran.

“We’re a little bit of everything,” said Tran, with a laugh.

“I did some research in this area. The older people, they know and love the traditional Chinese-American food, with traditional dishes like General Tso’s chicken, but also teriyaki, and pho is so popular. I know I’m capable of doing all of that that,” said Tran, who has spent 30 years cooking a wide range of Asian cuisine, including at a Chinese restaurant he co-owned with family in Renton.

The commute to Renton was too much for the Puyallup residents, so they sold their share in that restaurant and settled on Westgate for their next place.

While designing the Souper Pho menu, Tran decided to go broad and incorporate recipes from his brother, who has cooked in Thai restaurants, as well as teriyaki recipes Tran picked up while cooking part-time in a teriyaki restaurants. The Vietnamese items represent his own family recipes.

“I want to make sure that I have everybody’s favorite. If a family or a group of friends come out, if they like Thai or Vietnamese food, this is a single restaurant they can go to,” he said. “I also try to make it family friendly and include a kids menu.”

Here’s a first-bite look.

Dining room: Comfortable, high-back chairs at tables with seating for four to six. Have a crowd? Not a problem. Tables easily push together.

Menu: Crowd pleasing, affordable assortment of Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese and Chinese. So big, I can’t list it all, but here’s a snapshot of the dinner menu. (Lunch prices are lower and exceptional bargains).

Vietnamese: 10 styles of pho, including vegetarian ($7.95 to $9.95), Vietnamese rice plates ($8.95 to $11.95), Vietnamese banh mi pork, lemongrass beef, tofu or chicken sandwiches ($5.95 to $6.95), Vietnamese vermicelli noodle (bun) with tofu, pork, chicken, lemongrass beef, seafood ($8.95 to $10.95), spring rolls ($4.95).

Thai menu: Tom yum or tom kha soup ($6.95 to $7.95). Thai basil salad ($8.95), yellow, red or green curry ($9.95), basil stir fry ($9.95), lemongrass stir fry ($9.95), green bean stir fry ($9.95), swimming angel ($9.95) — all of the above served with a choice of steamed or brown rice and choice of chicken, pork, beef or tofu. Noodle dishes pad Thai, pad see ew and pad kee mao served with choice of chicken, pork, beef or tofu ($9.95). Spicing 1-5 stars.

Chinese: Egg flower, hot-and-sour or wonton soup ($6.95 to $7.95), egg rolls ($3.95), fried rice in several styles ($9.95 to $10.95), chow mein or chow foon with choice of meat or seafood ($9.95 to $10.95). Wok items include Mongolian beef, Kung Pao chicken, eggplant stir fry, egg foo young, sweet-and-sour chicken or pork, broccoli beef and more ($9.95 to $10.95), plus honey walnut prawns ($11.95).

Japanese: Chicken teriyaki, beef short rib, teriyaki combo plate, basa fish, shrimp ($8.95 to $11.95).

On the side: Nearly every entree sampled was accompanied by an extra thing or two, whether a cup of tom yum soup, crab rangoon, coconut shrimp, steamed veggies or salad.

Kids: Pho or sweet-and-sour chicken with rice, includes soda ($6.95).

Beverages: Beer, wine, sake, bubble tea, Vietnamese coffee, Thai milk tea.

On a first visit: Visit at lunch for bargains.

Lunchtime phad kee mao was an outstanding bargain at $7.95 for a big tangle of rice noodles in a sticky salty-sweet sauce with cubed tofu, broccoli, red and yellow bell peppers and a small bowl of tom yum soup with rice noodles.

Lunchtime chicken teriyaki was kissed with five spice, Vietnamese barbecue style, and coated in a rich, sweetened soy sauce more complicated than typical teriyaki, with a side of steamed cabbage and rice ($8.95).

General Tso’s chicken, made with dark meat dunked in a crunchy batter, carried a tastier, stickier sauce than I’m used to on that dish, with an egg roll and side of tom yum soup ($8.95).

A Vietnamese spring roll was an incredible deal at lunch with springy rice noodles, shrimp and fresh herbs tucked into a rice wrapper and served with a big side of peanut sauce, all for $2.50.

Souper Pho

Where: 2725 N. Pearl St., Tacoma

Info: 253-503-3328 or souperphorestaurant.com

Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily

This story was originally published September 4, 2018 at 12:30 PM.