A platter arrives overflowing with greens like a personal salad bar: rounds of seed-in jalapenos, a pile of bean sprouts, cilantro, mint, basil and limes. Instead of dressings, the table offers a bevy of Asian condiments such as sriracha as well as teriyaki, soy and fish sauces.

Indeed, Pho Lu’u Asian Noodle Restaurant’s palpably fresh spread, provided with every order of its Vietnamese ‘pho’ soup, has much in common with a salad bar in that the final outcome and flavor of your meal is up to your imagination and willingness to follow it.

What makes the meal truly special, though, are the components left up to them: the tender vermicelli rice noodles, onions and rich broth that make up the pho (which is pronounced “fuh,” not “foe”), to which you add your greens, watching them wilt and melt as you stir gently with a chopstick. That broth is silky and bold with hoisin, ginger, chile paste and beef (vegetarian broth is also available), an artful elixir that needs no herbs or greens to make it amazing.

With this streamlined ideal of pho, Pho Lu’u attempts to be clean and precise rather than fancy. The exterior sign and blue-hued dining room are sharp and modern yet comfortable, made ultra casual by the TV broadcasting basic cable in the far corner. In keeping with the casual vibe, all customers seem to be treated like regulars.

The straight-forward quality that results is hard to argue with. Of the more than 20 versions of pho available on the menu, I chose the marinated rare steak. The ground meat is nestled in the nest of the soup’s noodles, and the crunchy scallions a nice counterpoint. The shrimp was tender. Only the No. 1P with Vietnamese meat balls fell slightly short, the sliced rounds of beef feeling more processed and boring.

Other combinations include brisket done rare or well, steamed chicken, tofu and the more exotic tendon and tripe, all served with a big spoon for the broth and chopsticks for the noodles. (Don’t be intimidated. Pinch those noodles and scoop!) In terms of proportion, the noodles originally lurking at the bottom of your soup bowl turn out to be a huge amount versus your meat of choice, which can make them seem like a cost-cutting filler.

Then again, consider the cost of the pho: $5.75 for a small, $6.50 for medium and $6.95 for large. Being the eater I am, those worked out to be two, three and four meals respectively, revealing that no matter the amount of filler noodles, Pho Lu’u is ladling up fresh soup at rock-bottom prices.

And not just soup. My happiest surprise at Pho Lu’u was their grilled meats, available on both their noodle bowls and rice plates. On the Grilled Shrimp in Lemongrass bowl ($7), the tail-on prawns are equal parts delicious brown char and red spice rub. The Grilled Chicken plate ($7) dished up slices of chicken that is seared on the outside, white and moist in the center. The combination plate ($8) — with grilled beef, pork, chicken, shrimp, egg rolls and egg — literally stopped restaurant traffic, halting incoming diners to question, “What’s that?”

In terms of appetizers, those Vietnamese egg rolls ($5.25) -– also served as the main “meat” in pho, bowls and rice plates –- are thinner than average, but the tightly rolled rice paper crackles around their filling of raw vegetables. The spring rolls are freshly made (With a stellar savory/sweet peanut dipping sauce), although the “salad bar” element of lettuce fills more of the roll than your choice of shrimp, pork or vegetables (all $3.50). On the other end of the menu, the Thai fruit or pudding desserts (all $3.50 ) are puckeringly sweet.

No matter the combinations, Vietnam and Pho Lu’u’s noodles, veggie and meats should be thoroughly unintimidating to most American eaters, different enough only to provide spice-of-life variety. Where Pho Lu’u goes off our American cultural rails is actually the beverage menu.

Salty Lemonade ($3), anyone? Actually, the touch of salt was interesting, the flavor of citrus lacking. They’ll stir in condensed milk and egg to make it a Salty Soda Lemonade ($3), should you choose. (Don’t choose.) On the other hand, the fresh shavings of coconut flesh in the Coconut Water ($3) were delicious and refreshing.

Lest you miss the huge sign behind the counter or the almost full page of menu, Ph Lu’u also takes pride in its smoothies. They blend a few of the expected varieties, meaning only fruit, but most are Boba Smoothies ($3.75). The main feature of the Bobas are tapioca pearls, blackish-purple spheres that rest in the bottom of the cup waiting to be sucked up by the drink’s extra thick straw. They’re funny looking, chewy and pretty much flavorless, certainly unobjectionable but also puzzling as to their appeal.

That said, I found the avocado smoothie ripe and buttery, and the mango delicious, despite the inherent unpleasantness of chewing one’s drink.

In addition to the beverage cultural divide, there is sometimes a language divide between customers and staff. Again, all customers are treated warmly as regulars, but that casualness also means that explanations aren’t offered up front, nor are they incredibly informative. The quick servers also expect diners to decide fast, returning every five minutes with only one word: “Ready?”

On my visits, I saw that many customers chose to forego the whole show, calling directly or using the Go Waiter service to order food take-out. Pho to go is a somewhat messy affair: the broth in one container; noodles, onions and meat choice in styrofoam; and vegetables in a knotted bag. Still, it’s no less delicious for all the parts.

The perfect char on the shrimp of Pho Lu’u’s Grilled Shrimp in Lemongrass noodle bowl is only one example of their proficiency with grilled meats. Photo by Kate Jonuska

Stir through the savory house broth to find onions, scallions and a hefty serving of noodles in all of Pho Lu’u’s various soup offerings. Photo by Kate Jonuska

In addition to the soup noted in the restaurant’s name, Pho Lu’u also offers rice plates like the Steamed Chicken with Ginger Sauce. Photo by Kate Jonuska