May 19, 2008
By David Liscio/ The Daily Item

Four years ago, Vietnamese immigrant Thuy Diem Le and her parents took a giant leap of faith, investing their life savings to open a small, authentic cuisine restaurant in downtown Lynn.

Earlier this week, they paused briefly to acknowledge the success of the Pho Lynn restaurant at 22 Munroe St., which since its grand opening in May of 2004 has attracted a loyal following of patrons hungry for freshly-prepared native dishes.

“We are so excited by all the improvements the city has made down here, with a new road, sidewalks, and the beautiful new street lamps,” said Le, who lives above the restaurant with her husband, Thai Nguyen, and their two sons. “Now we hope other businesses will come down here, too.”

Le owns and operates Pho Lynn with her parents, Tam Le and Kim Lai Nguyen, who arrived in America in 1992, settling in Melrose until they found a three-family house in Lynn in 1998. The entire family now lives in the city.

“Sometimes you hear bad things happening in Lynn, but it’s really a safe and friendly city. We never feel threatened, even walking down here at night,” said Le, a Salem State College graduate who set aside her corporate bookkeeping career to open Pho Lynn. “There are many new people who live downtown in the condos. During the week, they come in for take-out and on the weekend they come in for dinner, to sit down and eat without rush. We also have lots of customers from Marblehead.”

The secret of their success isn’t guarded. In fact, the restaurateurs are eager to explain that service can seem slow, mostly because all the food is cooked from scratch.
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“We are slower than some restaurants but our customers seem happy with that,” said Le. “Nothing from our kitchen is pre-cooked. When the food goes on the table, it’s hot and fresh. It takes more time to do things that way, not just put frozen dinners in the microwave.”

Nguyen knows many of her customers by name and menu preferences. She’s clearly pleased when patrons praise her cooking skills, as they often do.

“We thank all our customers, especially those from City Hall and from the nearby businesses, for making our success possible,” she said. “We have tried our best to provide them with good and wholesome food and also a nice environment, so that their dining-out experience at our place will always be an enjoyable one.”

Pho Lynn specializes in pho, pronounced “fuh”, the famous Vietnamese beef noodle soup, which is simmered for hours. The broth can also be served with pork, chicken or shrimp to accompany the rice noodles, bean sprouts and fresh greens.

The menu includes appetizers such as pork lemon grass rolls, fried or steamed wontons, stir-fried noodles and an array of vermicelli dishes. The list of chef specialties offers pad Thai, salmon with sweet and sour sauce, curry or ginger chicken, calamari, and thin-sliced barbequed beef. Fresh coconut milk, Vietnamese-style coffee, Mung bean milkshakes and green tea round out a beverage list with a mix of wine and beers, including Vietnam-brewed “33.”

The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday, from 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. For a glimpse of the Pho Lynn menu, go online at www.pholynn.com or call (781) 581-8303.

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