For the past two years or so, even on days as hot and unsoupworthy as yesterday, my belly cries out for Pho: a big bowl of beef broth, Vietnamese rice noodles, bean sprouts, basil and lean, rare beef. I drown it with hot chili sauce and spend an hour slurping it up like it’s the last meal I’ll ever eat.

My new favorite Pho spot is Pho 99 on Harbor Blvd., near Adams. It’s in a tiny, nondescript strip mall that also houses the Moscow Deli, a chirrpractor and a little flower shack (across Harbor from Target). Pho 99 is always crowded at lunchtime. The prices are good (although they charge $1.25 for a little shotglass of Diet Coke and refills aren’t free) and the food is just phonomenal.

Another great Pho spot is Tang Hoang Huong (I know I’ve masacred that name) on Chapman, near Prospect in Orange. It’s tucked away in the back of a little shopping center (also includes a Papa John’s, a dry cleaner and a dance studio).