Prosper - Celina | July 2025

Dining

BY KAREN CHANEY

Simply Pho blends Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese dishes in Celina Although husband-and-wife Tony Nguyen and Mary Wong’s restaurant is named Simply Pho House, the business owners said their menu encom- passes much more than pho options. “A lot of people think we’re solely a Vietnamese restaurant because of the name, but they see our Thai and Chinese menu [options] and that sets us apart,” Nguyen said. “We’re able to provide other Asian dishes that are more well known. People know Thai and Chinese food, I feel like Vietnamese food is catching up.” On the menu Popular menu items include shrimp spring rolls, beef pho, stir fry noodles and stir fry protein dishes. Another popular item, and one of Nguyen’s personal favorites, is shaken beef—a traditional

Vietnamese dish—which is marinated let mignon cubes prepared by continuously shaking the meat in a wok so the meat is charred on all sides. “A lot of our menu is very aordable where you can bring your whole family out and feel like you got your money’s worth and got a fair portion,” Wong said. In addition to slushes, smoothies, milk tea and fruit tea, Simply Pho House also oers a variety of alcoholic items from their full bar. The backstory Nguyen and Wong opened Simply Pho House in Celina in August 2024 along with Nguyen’s sister Carolyn Nguyen. The rst Simply Pho House was opened in 2014 by the Nguyens’ aunt and uncle, Loan Huynh and Sonny Tran in Beecave. Today, Tran and Huynh have four Simply Pho House locations, including one in McKinney. The Celina location is the only one not owned by the founders. “We saw a lot of growth in the area and bought this land four years ago,” Nguyen said. “We built a commercial building and while everything was coming up, we thought ‘Why not open our own

Pho combination ($15) includes sliced rib eye, brisket, meatballs, rice noodles and beef broth.

Married couple Tony Nguyen and Mary Wong opened Simply Pho House in Celina in 2024.

restaurant?’. We also own OMG Tacos.” The Celina menu features approximately 80% of what the other Simply Pho House locations oer including pho and stir fry dishes. However, the other 20% are Nguyen’s recipes. “We added more traditional Thai and Vietnamese dishes,” Wong said. “We noticed a lot of customers were dousing their soup with chili oil, because they wanted that spice—that kick. That’s when Tony [Nguyen] thought of adding a traditional Vietnam- ese spicy beef noodle soup.”

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605 S. Preston Road, Ste. 130, Celina www.simplyphohousedfw.com

Grilled pork vermicelli ($14.50) features pork, vermicelli noodles, lettuce, bean sprouts, cucumbers, pickled carrots, daikon and scallion oil, served with peanuts and sh sauce.

PHOTOS BY KAREN CHANEYCOMMUNITY IMPACT

PROSPER 950 S Preston Rd (469) 535-5539 LITTLE ELM 27100 Hwy 380 (972) 347-9630