Vietnamese pho from Las Vegas, featuring an entire Boston lobster lying on the plate

▲ Lobster pho using a whole Boston lobster.

Reported and photographed by Huang Shiyuan / Taipei

The most famous "lobster pho" in Las Vegas, USA, is about to make its debut in Taiwan！Vietnamese pho isn’t hard to find in Taiwan, but a dish where the entire body of a Boston lobster is shelled and then the lobster head is placed atop the pho? That’s an ultra-impressive presentation you’d only find at District One Tpe in Taiwan. District One Tpe will officially open on September 2.


▲ The lobsters used at District One Tpe are all live, not frozen.

Lobster pho is the signature dish of District One, which helped establish its reputation in Las Vegas, USA. Now, they’re opening a branch in Taiwan. Like their U.S. restaurant, District One in Taiwan uses only live Boston lobsters, supplied fresh daily. Because the lobsters are alive, the sweet lobster meat can be enjoyed simply by briefly blanching them in hot water.


▲ The lobster heads are lightly fried after being ordered, releasing their rich aroma.

The founder of District One, KHAI VU, is a Vietnamese-American. He explained that the broth for the lobster pho is made the same way as traditional Vietnamese pho—by simmering beef bones and oxtails for eight hours. However, after an order is placed, the lobster head is first deep-fried to bring out its natural aroma. Then, without draining the oil, it’s added to the bone broth along with the other lobster meat and simmered briefly. This process infuses the broth with the umami and fragrance from the lobster head, while also allowing the lobster meat to absorb the broth’s savory sweetness, creating a more layered flavor.

As with Vietnamese pho, KHAI also uses a variety of spices, including star anise, ginger, and cloves added during the long simmer of the bone broth, as well as fresh garnishes like cilantro, onion, and scallion greens sprinkled over the finished dish.


▲ Stir-fried rice with oxtail.

For the noodles, KHAI VU sampled over ten suppliers before finding one that met his standards—noodles with a springy texture, not too soft, just like those used in the U.S. restaurants. After soaking, the noodles only need a quick 3–5 second dip in hot water before serving.

In addition to lobster pho, main dishes include seafood and beef pho, slow-cooked brisket pho, stir-fried rice with oxtail, and dried pork pho. Among these, the stir-fried rice with oxtail is also popular in the U.S. The oxtail meat comes from the same oxtails used in the broth, and the rice is stir-fried with Maggi seasoning.


▲ Truffle beef tartare.

For appetizers, there are options such as tuna taco tower, truffle beef tartare, five-spice pork roll, garlic-spicy fried chicken wings, crispy spring rolls, lettuce salad, and Vietnamese chicken salad. The restaurant recommends the truffle beef tartare, which KHAI says is made with thinly sliced filet mignon, topped with fried shallots, peanuts, truffle oil, sesame oil, and Japanese yuzu soy sauce.

In terms of pricing, because live Boston lobsters are imported and market prices fluctuate, the lobster pho does not have a fixed price—it’s labeled as “market price” on the menu. The same applies to the seafood and beef pho. Currently, the lobster pho is priced at NT$1,388, while the seafood and beef pho is NT$888 (with half a lobster’s worth of meat).

Address: No. 21, Lane 7, Alley 181, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-2731-0506