Keith Lee Awards Toronto Pho Restaurant a 9.4, Calls It Best Ever

Around 9:30 p.m. on a Sunday night, Keith Lee was walking the streets of Toronto's Entertainment District with one thing on his mind: noodles. Only in town for 24 hours, Lee had announced he would just start walking until he found somewhere that served pho. He found Pho Ngoc Yen at 350 Adelaide St. W., sat down, and ordered the beef short rib pho.

What came next landed a nine-year-old family restaurant on the map for millions of people overnight.

Lee, who has more than 17 million followers on TikTok, dropped by Pho Ngoc Yen, located on Adelaide Street West near Peter Street, around 9:30 p.m. on Sunday night. The Las Vegas-based food reviewer said he was visiting the city for just 24 hours for a "life changing" shoot, details of which he did not disclose. He described the detour as a "pre-celebratory walk around the city" in search of noodles.

"This might be the best pho I've ever had in my life. It's spicy, it's fresh, the amount of lemongrass in here is incredible. It's super rich," he said, before rating the pho a 9.4 out of 10, a very high rating for the food critic. "I've always said that Toronto has some of the best restaurants and some of the nicest people and the greatest atmospheres, and this is exactly that," Lee added, panning the camera toward a heaping, steaming bowl.

The bowl that earned that score was prepared by Chef Tri Tran, the brother-in-law of co-owner Tan Trinh. Trinh shared that the chef braises the beef for hours until it's so tender it falls off the bone, the broth is savoury, and the dish arrives in a "humongous bowl of soup" with high-quality meat inside.

The video went viral, with Lee's impromptu visit to the family-owned restaurant racking up traction fast. Within 24 hours of posting, it had cleared 400,000 views and nearly 70,000 likes. Co-owner Tan Trinh described the review as "life changing," especially for their staff. Trinh said Lee's visit could be a "big life-changing event" for his staff, pointing to how fewer people are dining out due to the general higher costs of living. The restaurant has already increased staffing this week to prepare for an expected uptick in business.

"We're anticipating that there's going to be a lot of response to his video. We're imagining that the traffic is going to be pretty busy," Trinh said.

The concern is well-founded. What's known as the "Keith Lee Effect" has hit Toronto restaurants before. Last time Lee visited the city, wait times at Scarborough shawarma spot Sumaq doubled, while Ajax bakery Biscuits to Baskets was forced to temporarily shut its doors to prepare for the weekend rush. It had been nearly two years since Lee broke the Toronto internet with his last tour of the city.

Pho Ngoc Yen is no stranger to celebrity attention. Lee isn't the only big name to give the restaurant a public shout-out. In fall 2025, Kehlani also visited the chain's downtown Toronto location and proclaimed it the "best Vietnamese" food she had "ever had." Trinh said he is now considering renaming the signature dish in honour of both Kehlani and Lee, pending their permission.

The restaurant operates three locations: the original, which opened in June 2017 in Mississauga at 1090 Kamato Rd.; an Etobicoke location at 1596 The Queensway, which opened in August 2023; and the newest downtown Toronto location at 350 Adelaide St. W., which opened July 1, 2025. It was that newest location, less than a year old, that Lee wandered into on a Sunday night and walked out having called it the best pho of his life.

"I would like to thank Keith for visiting Toronto and for coming into our establishment and making such a wonderful difference for everybody in the community and for my staff," Trinh said.