In Vietnam, pho is mostly a restaurant food. Though some people prepare it at home, most prefer going to noisy soup shops. The dish is associated with the city of Hanoi, where the first pho restaurant opened in the 1920s.

Here are a few tips:

-- Pho is best tasted when it is still hot . If you wait for it to cool, the noodles will expand and get soggy. The sweet taste of broth, savory smell of meat and the softness of noodles mixing with each other create the unique perfect flavor for the special food that can be only best enjoyed in the capital of Vietnam.

-- Sprinkle some black pepper, then add bean sprouts, fresh chiles and a little squeeze of lime to your bowl. Using your fingers, pluck the Asian basil leaves from their sprigs and, if they're available, shred the saw-leaf herbs and add to the soup. Add little by little, eating as you go. If you put the greens in all at once, the broth will cool too fast and the herbs will overcook and lose their bright flavors. Chile sauce and hoisin sauce are also traditional condiments but I avoid them because, to my taste, they mask the flavor of pho. You, however, may like them.

-- With spoon in one hand and chopsticks in the other, pull the noodles out of the broth and eat, alternatively slurping on the broth. It's totally acceptable and normal to be seen with clumps of noodles dangling from your mouth, eyes squinting from the steam and glasses all fogged up.

-- The broth is served in large amounts to keep the noodles warm and to help season the dish. It's not necessarily meant to be totally consumed. But if you do happen to be in the mood, it is perfectly OK to tip the bowl and scoop out every single drop.