Family legacy: Father-son restaurant Pho Love opens in Altoona | News, Sports, Jobs

Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski /
Pictured are Pho Love owners Kenneth Van Nguyen (left) and his father, Pae “Kenny” Somphonphakdy.

For some, the American dream is still attainable with perseverance and hard work.

“My father was a post-war immigrant who had a dream of opening a Vietnamese restaurant,” said Kenneth Van Nguyen, who owns the new Pho Love restaurant in the Park Hills Plaza with his father, Pae “Kenny” Somphonphakdy.

“His culture focused on Vietnamese food. He is trying to bring those dishes here to Altoona and share a piece of his culture,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen said his father grew up in Vietnam but moved to Laos in the 1960s to escape the Vietnam War. He came to the United States in the 1980s and lived in the South before coming to the area. He has a flooring business, Top Hardwood Floors, in Huntingdon.

He had been looking to open a restaurant in the area.

Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski /
Waitress Katie Beerer waits on George Day of Altoona and his daughter, Christine Day, of New York.

“He thought this was a good location because of the traffic. One day, he just said I am going to do it. I was looking for a job, he said I was going to run it,” said Nguyen, who was a member of the Sheetz Fellows program and graduated from Penn State Altoona in 2024 with a degree in marketing and management with a minor in entrepreneurship.

“I am creating systems for marketing, accounting, payroll and hiring people, all of this was difficult. I also do some cooking,” Nguyen said.

The menu for Pho Love, which opened Oct. 30, includes pho (pronounced “fuh”), fried rice meals, noodle meals, white rice build your own bowls, bun (Vermicelli noodle) meals and Thai specials.

Pho is a Vietnamese culinary classic. Pho features delicate rice noodles, savory meats and fresh herbs, all immersed in a fragrant, steaming broth.

So far, two pho dishes have been very popular — Pho Tai, rare round sliced beef in a slow-simmered beef broth and Pho Dac Biet (Special Pho) the house special served in an extra large bowl with rare steak, brisket and tendon in rich beef broth, Nguyen said.

Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski /
A bowl of Vietnamese pho.

“I would describe the food as light and fluffy and filling. The broth is very clear and boiled for a long time. It is a clear, aromatic light broth,” Nguyen said.

Pho Love has quickly become popular with area residents.

“When we heard they were going to open a restaurant here, I knew it would be our favorite place to go. The day it opened I was there. We went there three times over their first nine days,” said Stacey Wombacher of Altoona. “The service was wonderful and the food was delicious.”

“I had Pho before in North Carolina. I was really excited about a Pho place opening. We went over Nov. 10 for my birthday,” said Shaylee Martz of Newry. “The quality of the food was really good and the service was great. The waitress was helping others learn how to properly eat the food. I had Pho Tai, it was really good. The bean sprouts are really good, that was my favorite part.”

The restaurant, which has seating for about 75 and employs 10 full- and part-time workers, is doing well, Nguyen said.

“The first few days were hectic, we had a lot to handle the first week, we had lots of people coming in. It was a challenge. I am still learning and still have a lot of questions, managing a restaurant is a lot of work,” Nguyen said.

Business hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. except Tuesdays, when the restaurant is closed. Pho Love will stay open to 9 p.m. in the summer, Nguyen said.

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.