Part of the fun of eating in an Asian restaurant is not knowing what the hell you are eating. And let’s be honest, sometimes, it is best you DON’T know what that mysterious cube of jiggly purple-ness is. All you need to know is it tastes delicious and is cheaper than a date at McDonald’s. Welcome to Tank Noodle! This restaurant is in an area of Chicago most called Uptown but I like to call Little Vietnam. There are more pho restaurants than you can shake a stick at, along with your friendly neighborhood bahn mi sandwich shop and bbq shacks. Tank has a 50 page menu (you think I’m kidding), but they are known for their beef pho, or beef noodle soup, which is AMAZING, so stick with that and you’ll be safe. If you have never had pho, read about my first pho experience in Australia here. And warning: pho may change your life. Don’t blame me. On this trip to Tank Noodle, I decided to venture outside my typical order of pho. I went with what Tank calls the Breakfast of Champions because I am sucker for anything with a fried egg. My dish contained rice, a pork cutlet, a Vietnamese sausage, fried shrimp, and of course, a bit fat fried egg. It was delicious…and impossible to finish! Seriously, if you know a champion that regularly eats this stuff and can MOVE afterward, I really want to shake their hand and give ‘em a GasX pill. Also? Most expensive item on the menu, but at $15, it really isn’t a bad deal. We had two vegetarians at the table (hey, we can’t all be perfect), so here were their choices: Vegetarian Pho
Since I didn’t grab a menu and can’t remember the name, let’s just call this one crispy noodles with veggies and tofu.
Both vegetarians were happy with their selections. The crispy noodles with tofu had almost a peanut sauce on them, and they were really good. Finally, my husband decided to be adventurous and order a noodle soup that had beef with other stuff in it.
What sort of other stuff? Stuff like this,
which I am pretty sure was congealed beef blood that was turned into gelatin. Yum. Remember what I said in the beginning about half the fun being not knowing what you are eating? Not always 
This was the only flop of the evening, and I will go so far as to say it wasn’t a bad dish, just a dish that your average American isn’t quite ready for. Other things Americans (or I) may not be ready for:
A little extra cow penis for your pho. Whoa. Tank is delicious. Tank is cheap. Tank is pho (and hopefully without cow penis). Go eat now. ~LTG **************************************************** Tank Noodle 4953 N Broadway St Chicago, IL 60640 (773) 878-2253
