I've walked past Pho Thai on Phillips Avenue dozens of times — that storefront tucked between the coffee shops and boutiques that have turned downtown into something unrecognizable from ten years ago. The first time I actually went inside was February, one of those weeks where the wind off the Big Sioux makes you question every life choice that led you to South Dakota.
The menu throws you immediately. Pho *and* Thai, which feels like two restaurants got into a very friendly argument and decided to just do both. I ordered pad see ew because I'm predictable, and my coworker got tom yum because she's not. Both arrived fast — maybe too fast, that kitchen-moves-quick speed that makes you wonder about corners — but the noodles had that sticky-sweet char I've been chasing since a trip to Minneapolis three years ago.
Here's what I think about every time I'm there: the space is small. Not cozy-small, just small-small. If you're meeting someone for lunch on a weekday, you're probably sitting elbow-to-elbow with the guys from the law office next door. The acoustics don't help — hard surfaces, lots of voices, that echo that makes you lean in close to hear anything.
But the larb was bright and sharp, the spring rolls came with actual mint in the wrapper, and the curry had a coconut sweetness that lasted the whole drive back to the office on 10th Street. I've been back four times since — once with my mom, twice alone at the bar with my laptop, once with a friend who grew up in Thailand and said it was "pretty good," which I'm counting as a win.
Downtown Sioux Falls doesn't have a ton of Thai options. Pho Thai fills that gap the way most things here do — imperfectly, but earnestly.
— Grace
I ordered pad see ew because I'm predictable, and my coworker got tom yum because she's not.