Pleiku

Pleiku

264 Main Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84101

TL;DR 

- Price: $10 - $15

- Flavor: Vietnamese/Asian

- Filling?: Yes

- Parking: Downtown, would probably have to park and walk a bit

Very cool location downtown with a dark, romantic atmosphere. Sleek and trendy menus, utensils, and plates.

The list of drinks is pretty good. The sapporo Boba tea sounds excellent.

XO noodles!!! A lot of places either don't have it or list it on the menu but cannot produce it when asked.

XO noodles are exactly what I expected. Piping hot noodles, bold flavors. Wonderful option to share. I'm not a huge fan of the cup of sauce. It tasted good, but you don't get the XO noodle flavor. It covers instead of complements the XO noodles. 

Words of warning to the uninitiated but adventurous: its texture is akin to a chow fun, and make sure you're comfortable with sharing with your dining compatriots as the noodles don't have clear lines of demarcation (germophobes probably should get their own or separate the portions early).

Combination pho was recommended. I always put bean sprouts in my pho for that crisp snap in each bite. The broth is a bit lighter than I'm accustomed to. I am tempted to add Sriracha. The meatball has a tremendous flavor to it. I usually like the rare and well done beef most in a bowl of pho but the meatball annihilated them both.

I love XO noodles so there's a clear and present bias here. Their pho is reasonably priced (around $8 or $9), especially for a dinner downtown. The flavor is lighter than I'd like, so I would likely choose a different main entree. Good nighttime option downtown!