As we are in the midst of cold and flu season, I wanted to remind the community of one of the best ways to relieve a stuffy nose — with a hot bowl of noodle soup. The Puget Sound region is blessed with one of the best varieties of noodles and broth, Vietnamese pho (pronounced “fuh”).

Recently, I tried pho at Downtown Renton’s Pho Asia Noodle House and was not disappointed in the slightest.

Typically when I order pho, I order the meatball and brisket pho, but the gentlemen at this establishment recommended the House Special Pho, which included rare eye-round steak, brisket, flank, marble brisket, tendon, tripe and meatballs.

It was somewhat of an adventurous order for me as I have never tried tripe, nor tendon, but now I am glad I did.

The pho came out quickly, as the broth is typically prepared in a large vat and kept hot so it can be poured over the thinly sliced rare meats so as to cook them in the time it takes for the bowl to make it out to your table.

The clear broth had the sweet and savory balance that all great pho broths have. The meat was tender and I was pleasantly surprised by how delicious the tripe and tendon were. Both had unique textures as the tripe was almost like a noodle and the tendon was as soft as butter.

Nothing opens up the sinuses like a healthy bit of Sriracha and chili oil. The classic pho accompaniments of Thai basil, bean sprouts, and a lime wedge added both aromatics and texture.

It was a lunch worthy of a cold winter day, and I look forward to going back to warm up this season.