New Vietnamese street food restaurant set to open in a Kent town centre

A new restaurant is set to open in Tunbridge Wells in a large town centre building. Pho Vietnamese Street Food is poised to move into Mount Pleasant Road.

The company has applied to Tunbridge Wells Borough Council for permission for its signage and awning at the building on the corner of the road leading to Calverley Grounds. The large site used to be a Nat West Bank, then became a popular Carluccio's.

It later became Bocca Social, a restaurant and cocktail bar, with an expensive looking refurbishment. But as KentLive reported in August last year, the company went into voluntary liquidation, after just two years of trading there.

READ MORE: Stunning former council offices in Kent town set to become envy-inducing elegant homes

READ MORE: Unique family-run pub which 'reflects a different era' named best in Kent by Daily Telegraph

Despite its swanky refurbishment, and location near Tunbridge Wells railway station, Bocca Social often looked empty through its large windows. As KentLive reported, Pho opened its first Kent restaurant in Canterbury in August 2023.

The location of this venue looks good on paper: it is opposite Tunbridge Wells railway station, near one of Tunbridge Wells' beautiful public parks, and has the Great Hall council car park about 30 steps away.

It is also positioned between the top and bottom ends of the Tunbridge Wells 'town spine' and for the winter season, it is a matter of steps away from the hugely popular Tunbridge Wells Skate ice rink and attractions.

Pho Vietnamese Street Food serves everything from seafood spring rolls and pancake for starters, to salads and their namesake, pho - which is pronounced 'fuh', and is the national dish of Vietnam. The menu says: "It’s a fantastic steaming bowl of rice noodle soup served with a side plate of fresh herbs to add as you please."

Tasty menu

There's also spicy soups, curry noodle soups, curries, wok fried noodles, rice bowls and lots more. On its website it says this about the company: "Stephen and Juliette Wall opened Pho after they travelled to Vietnam and fell in love with the food.

"In 2005, they made the decision to start a restaurant serving phở while sat on high stools, slurping pho bo, in Ho Chi Minh City.

"All these years later, Pho is a group of restaurants dotted around the country, serving great value, healthy Vietnamese food that’s cooked fresh in each kitchen daily."

Carluccio's, which always looked busy during the day, crowded with lunching ladies enjoying wine, had shut in 2020. The Italian chain went into administration.

The decision to go into administration followed a "sustained period of challenging trading conditions, which have been exacerbated by Covid-19, The Mirror reported at the time. The chain was taken over but a number of branches closed.

What is a creditors’ voluntary liquidation (CVL)?

Bocca Social went into creditors' voluntary liquidation. The Gazette explains 'creditors' voluntary liquidation'. It said if a company could not pay its debts, it might put itself into liquidation, which is what Bocca Social has done and it is called CVL.

A company is insolvent, which means it can't any more pay its debts and that means it owes money to its creditors. The main plus for a company's directors and shareholders doing CVL is it gives them can control as far as when their company goes into liquidation and who it appoints as liquidator, who would deal with any legal action against the company once it is in CVL.

Where can I see Pho Vietnamese Street Food menu?

You can see everything you need for a visit to Pho by clicking here