Phở at Donut King & Coffee - Kamloops, BC
Tue, 01/03/2012 - 05:00 | 
Lvoers 
Did you know there is phở available in Kamloops?
How much do I love the fact that the establishment, which brings phở to Kamloops, is the local doughnut shop?
That’s right my friends, the Donut King is now serving Vietnamese beef noodle soup.
The Tranquille Road Donut King location has been offering phở for the past month or so, but lucky for me, today is the first day the Summit Drive location has it available.
Kamloops first foray into phở is an agreeable one. The sprightly lady making the phở today reveals that she may end up tweaking her phở according to the feedback with her regular customers. From what I observe today, the Donut King phở is already popular as both the customers in front of me and behind me are all ordering beef noodle soup today.
Beef Phở ($7.99)
I can smell the aromatics of the broth before the server brings the bowls near. It's not huge portion-wise, but it will suffice. The broth is pretty tasty. It's not deep and complex in flavour, but still totally acceptable for a quick beef noodle fix.
The Donut King phở is straight forward with rare beef slices and beef balls. The rare beef is cut on the thicker side, but it is still tender enough to bite through without frustration.
The broth temperature is soup-hot, but not screaming-hot. I love screaming hot phở. The loose pile of rice noodle slurp-up perfectly tender with a bit of chew. Who says doughnut folks can't do phở? It’s the perfect lunch for today’s chilly weather.
The last time I blogged about Donut King I came in for a breakfast sandwich and coffee. I don’t want to come away doughnut-less again, so I choose a lucky six to come home with me.
Half Dozen Doughnuts ($4.50)
I went with a selection of yeast doughnuts. Honey Dipped and What-Am-I? vanished down our gullets for dessert. Raspberry Jelly, Maple Glaze, Bavarian Cream, and Maple Bavarian Cream survived the drive home...but they all met their fate before dinner.
(Wait, I just thought of something...do you think the good folks at Donut King may expand their menu to include bánh mì?? I know you were thinking that too.)
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Tags: Doughnut, Kamloops, Pho, Restaurant, Slashy, Vietnamese 
I've been eyeing this place
I've been eyeing this place since I moved to town a month ago...thanks for the review!
Re: I've been eyeing this...- Donut King Phở
Welcome Anon,
Check it out, and let me know if what you think.
Donut King has another location on the north shore that serves phở too. When you're in a pinch for Vietnamese style beef noodle soup, there's not much choice in Kamloops. The only other phở I've had in Kamloops is at the Fratelli Foods.
If the phở doesn't work out for you there is always the doughnuts!
Welcome to Kamloops Anon, and thanks for stopping by Love of Eating.
L.
P.S. If you are just looking for hot soupy noodles, have you tried Tiger Ramen yet? It's near the Donut King.
Sparse Menu
Went there specifically to try the pho. Besides the usual Timmie's style garbage, there was only 1 thing on the menu, it wasn't pho, but the guy next to me ordered and said it was delicious. Like I said, nothing like the pho you can get in the lower mainland and Van. Who knows, it might be good. The chilli wasn't.
Re: Sparse Menu - Donut King / Pho Viet
Hi Anon,
I guess one person’s garbage is another person’s...snack? ‘Cause I do like to dabble in a Honey Crueller or two every now n'again. I wish Donut King had a Honey Crueller counterpart. Does anyone know if they do? I’ve never seen anything like it during the times I’ve gone to Donut King.
Yes, the beef noodle soup menu is sparse (just beef noodle!) afterall it is a primarily a doughnut shop. Can you imagine if they busted out congealed pork blood for Bún bò Huế right away? Baby steps, Kamloops, baby steps.
For me, pho is all in the broth. Recently, I revisited and had another bowl of pho at Donut King/Pho Viet. The broth is still pretty decent.
(I notice there is new separate signage for “Pho Viet.” I wonder if they are eventually going to have a separate diner for Vietnamese fare...or become a slashy restaurant where Pho Viet and Donut King occupy the same space.)
I like my broth on the peppery side and they do a peppery broth. However, as mentioned in my above post they are listening to what their customer comments regarding the soup and are tweaking the broth to this area’s tastebuds. So I'm sure the pho will go through some adjustments to fit Kamloops.
In my experience, Vancouver has a lot of pho joints that range from terrible to good. So I’ve had both worse and better pho in Vancouver. That’s why I think Kamloops’ first foray into pho is respectable. I mean they could’ve gone “safe” with a non-threatening chicken broth (ahem, Phở Sóc Trăng in Kelowna...), but they didn’t. And dang it, I’m glad I don’t have to drive hours and hours for a bowl of anise laden broth. I wish Donut King served the broth hotter temperature wise though.
Thanks for reading Love of Eating,
Happing Noodling,
L.
Mo Pho
Hi came across your site this week, its awesome. I travel the Thompson Okanagan for work and have eaten at some of the same places. I frequent Pho Fusion I go #24 Seafood Sate soup but with beef stock instead of chicken. I love noodle soup, I usually go for a spicy seafood bowl. Do you know about Pho in Summerland? It's in the old Tim Hortons just off Hwy 97, might be worth the trip next time you're in the Westbank area. Interesting place, I enjoy it there, would love to see your opinion of it.
Re: Mo Pho - Donut King / Pho Viet
Hi Anon,
I did notice a pho place in Summerland the last time I had a meeting in Penticton. Going southbound, it's on the right handside of the highway. Is this the place?
I haven't hade the chance to go down that far in some time as my meetings in the Okanagan seem to have all moved further north to Kelowna, but I will have to make an effort to head down that way next time. Thanks for the heads up.
I went to Pho Fusion pretty early in their existence, I think. Maybe I should stop by again.
Lately in West Kelowna, I am frequenting Bamboo Chopsticks for pho. Much nicer broth than some of the other places downtown. I was just there recently and had their chicken wings, bun bo hue, and pho again. I like their pho more than their bun bo hue (it was missing the pork hock and the cubes of blood, but I can understand why those specific ingredients are AWOL...;)
I really enjoyed their chicken wings. Crunchy, gingery and garlicky.
Tell me what you think of Bamboo Chopsticks in Westbank if you get around to it.
L.
PS: I love that you are a fan of paronomasia!
Pho in Kamloops
Well as glad as I was to hear we had Pho and salad rolls now in Kamloops I must say I was also a tad let down..After trying it 2 times in both locations I found the soup to be a very 'thin'broth, lacking in the wonderful rich flavors I am used to. There was no fresh basil or cilantro or peppers to add either.
Second, the salad rolls, made beautifully were also slightly lacking.. no cilantro, no pork and a peanut sauce with no kick!, just missing some essential flavors here.
Re: Pho in Kamloops - Donut King
Hi Anon,
Thanks for sharing your pho adventures!
Yes, I see what you're sayin'
Maybe they will continue to tweak their broth until the complexities meet a happy medium.
Baby steps, right? Baby steps.
Happy noodling,
L.
Excellent
Glad to see that there's a place for this dish in Kamloops. And this adds more weight to the theory that this place is being haunted by the ghost of the old Duffin's.
Re: Excellent - Pho at Donut King
Oh Mike, now you're making me nostalgic about Duffin's.
It will be interesting see how pho goes for Donut King. The lady at the helm stated that she just makes it the way she does at home, but may tweak it according to the comments she receives.
Will you be trying?
If my schedule allows, I may try the Tranquille Road Donut King pho just for comparison between the two.
Happy Noodling,
L.
Re: Excellent - Pho at Donut King
I've actually never tried pho in a restaurant...I've only ever had home made. Probably not the best place to try it out for the first time? Actually, I would likely not have it in a doughnut shop that had a lot of nuts around, as cross-contamination could make for a rather unpleasant experience.
pho in kamloops
Lucky Yeung Chinese Restaurant has had pho for awhile, they only make it on certain days and you have to ask for it as it is not on the "menu". very delicious i will have to try...donut king pho...
Re: Pho in Kamloops
ANON! (Yes, I shouted that..)
How long have you been keeping this little tid bit of info all to yourself??
Do they serve Vietnamese style Beef Noodle soup or Taiwanese style Beef Noodle Soup?
Lucky Yeung's location has always clashed with my travels when I'm out and about. I'm usually whizzing up or down Columbia Street and by the time I see Lucky Yeung, it's all in my rearview.
I may have to make an effort check this out.
Thank you for sharing your hot piece of info!
L.
cats out of the bag
ummm longer than i care to admit. I will keep what type as a surprise and a motivator for you to drop by.Either way it is delicious!.
Lucky Yeungs appeals to me as the interior of the place is a train wreck, but the food is amazing.
I often find it is these little places hidden in hotels where the gems are found. there was restaurant in a roadside dive in Red Deer AB that to this day that set the bar for what a good veal cutlet should be.
Gary