Twelve-Hour Beef Broth Pho Above Somerset MRT: Mrs Pho

Anyone typing pho near me while shopping on Orchard Road usually wants the same thing: a proper bowl of beef noodle soup, fast, without leaving the shopping belt. Mrs Pho, at 313 Orchard Road, #01-16 313@somerset, Singapore 238895, answers that on the ground floor of the mall that sits on top of Somerset MRT station. The kitchen simmers its beef broth for 12 hours, every classic bowl costs the same S$14.80, and the doors stay open from 11am until 10pm every day.

Mrs Pho did not start in a mall. When Eatbook reviewed it in August 2016, the restaurant was a dimly lit, metal-tabled room on Beach Road in the Bugis area, and its pho cost S$7.90. The manager told the reviewer then that the business was owned by a Singaporean and Vietnamese couple, and that the house broth blended northern and southern styles. That Beach Road address later moved to Bussorah Street in Kampong Glam, and those early shops have since closed. Today the brand's own website lists two restaurants: this one at 313@somerset and a second at Jewel Changi Airport.

The name is a dedication. On its website, Mrs Pho describes itself as a tribute to the Vietnamese mothers, grandmothers and aunties who are crowned the best cook in every family, and says its aim is to feed everyone like family. The menu carries the same line, "Feeds you like family", across the top. The brand is also firm that it does not do fusion. Its website says there is no bastardisation on the menu and that the food is traditional Vietnamese cooking, "just like how mamma used to cook". In practice that means no truffle oil, no cheese and no ramen crossovers. The menu sticks to soup, rice paper rolls, bánh mì and rice plates you would find in Saigon or Hanoi.

The classic pho section is short and easy to read. The menu says every beef bowl is built on a "secret recipe beef broth boiled for 12 hours", and four of the five soups cost S$14.80. Phở Bò Tái Nạm, the sliced beef and brisket pho, is the one to try first. The thin raw slices cook in the hot stock while the brisket brings a softer, beefier chew. Phở Bò is the plain sliced beef version. Phở Bò Thập Cẩm, the beef combination, adds beef meatballs to the beef and brisket. The one step up is Phở Bò Wagyu at S$16.80, with sliced wagyu beef in the same broth.

Not every bowl is beef. Phở Gà is shredded chicken in a clear chicken broth with spring onion and coriander, also S$14.80, and it suits anyone who finds beef stock too heavy at lunch. For heat, Bún Bò Huế, the spicy beef noodle soup from central Vietnam, comes with sliced beef, brisket and beef balls for S$14.80.

Taste the broth on its own before you add anything. A twelve-hour stock should carry the sweetness of roasted bones and onion, and it is easy to drown that under hoisin and chilli sauce. Once you have tasted it, add a squeeze of lime, a few torn herb leaves and bean sprouts in small handfuls so they stay crunchy. Push the raw beef under the surface early if you want it cooked through. If you like it pink, eat those slices first. Sauces are best kept in a side dish for dipping meat rather than stirred into the bowl.

The rest of the menu is built for sharing or for a second visit. The Mrs Pho Dry Noodle, a bún thịt nướng of dry vermicelli with grilled pork chop, grilled meatball, a fried spring roll, lettuce and herbs with homemade fish sauce, costs S$14.80. It makes a good partner to a bowl of pho if two people split both. The Mixed Rolls Platter is S$13.80 for two sugarcane prawns, two pork spring rolls and two seafood spring rolls. Four bánh mì are listed at S$12.80 each: grilled pork, grilled chicken with spicy mayo, egg and chicken floss, and a braised mushroom version for non-meat eaters. Grilled chicken rice and grilled pork rice, both with a fried egg and chicken floss, are S$14.80.

For two people on a shopping break, one Phở Bò Tái Nạm and one Bún Bò Huế gives you the gentle and the fiery side of Vietnamese noodle soup. Add the Mixed Rolls Platter in the middle of the table and the menu prices come to S$43.40 before taxes. The menu states that all prices are subject to GST and prevailing government taxes, so expect the bill to be higher than the printed total.

Somerset is one of the busiest stretches of Orchard Road, and the mall's ground floor fills with students and office workers at lunch. Arriving at 11am, when the doors open, is the easiest way to get a table straight away. Between 2:30pm and 5pm the room is usually quieter, which makes it a good stop between shops. Weekend evenings are the busiest, as the street gets its strongest foot traffic after dark. The restaurant is fast-casual, so the meal moves quickly once you are seated, and a solo bowl at the counter rarely takes more than half an hour.

313@somerset is built directly above Somerset MRT station on the North-South Line, so you can reach the restaurant without stepping into the rain. The mall is also linked at street level to Orchard Central and Orchard Gateway next door. If you are coming from Dhoby Ghaut or Orchard station, the walk along the covered Orchard Road pavement takes about 10 minutes either way.

Cross Orchard Road from the mall and walk up to Emerald Hill, a short residential street of restored Peranakan terrace houses. The carved timber doors, painted tiles and pintu pagar half-doors are some of the best preserved on the island, and the street is quiet even when Orchard Road is packed. At the foot of the hill, Peranakan Place has a cluster of bars in old shophouses if you want a drink later. Walk back along Orchard Road towards Dhoby Ghaut and you pass the leafy grounds of the Istana gates, with Plaza Singapura opposite.

Mrs Pho, 313 Orchard Road, #01-16 313@somerset, Singapore 238895. Hours: 11am to 10pm, Monday to Sunday. Classic beef pho S$14.80, wagyu beef pho S$16.80, chicken pho S$14.80, bánh mì S$12.80. Prices are subject to GST and government taxes. Second branch at Jewel Changi Airport, #03-216. Nearest MRT: Somerset on the North-South Line. Website: mrspho.com.