By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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You Gotta Try This is the Rock River Current’s dining feature focused on signature dishes at your favorite local restaurants. Want to see one of your favorites here? Email news@rockrivercurrent.com to suggest a local staple.
Where: Pho 27 Asian Cuisine
Address: 298 N. Mulford Road
Opened: January 2022
Owners: Ann Boutchannha and Sam Sirimanotham
Related: New restauant Pho 27 Asian Cuisine brings taste of culture, tradition to Rockford
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Monday. Closed on Tuesday
You have to try: Crispy fried eggrolls
What’s in it: The eggrolls are stuffed with ground pork, carrot, cabbage and bean thread noodles and served with a side of sweet and sour sauce.
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Photos: Pho 27 Asian Cuisine in Rockford
Why you should try it: We liked everything put in front of us at Pho 27, from the specialty fried rice with sweet sausage to General Tso’s chicken and Tom Yum Thai style hot soup. But it’s the crispy fried eggrolls that launched the family’s route into the restaurant business. For years Boutchannha and her family would make the eggrolls in their home kitchen to fill multitudes of orders from family and friends. They brought that same homestyle cooking with traditional Laotian recipes to the business.
“Nothing beats coming to a place and just having homemade cooking and authentic Laotian food,” Melinda Soutthivong, Boutchannha’s daughter, told us when we visited earlier this month.
Pro tip: “Chili oil is a staple in the Boutchannha household. You can put this tasty and addictive condiment literally on any dish from Pho 27 Asian Cuisine and it will enhance the flavor. If you like spicy food, this is the perfect amount of kick. Try dipping your egg roll in it. You won’t be disappointed.” — Chelsea Meyer, B103 Rockford
Phone: 779-423-0216
On the web: Find them on Facebook here