Best Vietnamese restaurant
With its wealth of fresh produce and herbs - mint and basil, cilantro and scallions, lettuce and sprouts, lemongrass and lime - Vietnamese food, at least as we know it here in the States, rates as one of the lightest, most refreshing cuisines there is. In the relatively health-conscious city of Boston, Pho Pasteur can chalk up its longevity (not to mention its ubiquity, as a five-link chain) to its herbivorous aspects. Indeed, though the big-bowl soups known as pho soak up most of the limelight, some of us prefer the cool cabbage-based, peanut-topped, fish-sauce-and-lime-dressed goi (salads) or the veggie-loaded stir-fries - especially paired with the tropical fruit shakes and limeades. And even pho fans privilege the good-for-what-ails-you broth over the meat that flavors it. Maybe someday, we'll be able to chalk up our own longevity to a daily dose of Pho Pasteur.

By contrast, making a habit of Pho République could be hazardous to your health. There is such a thing as being too hip for your own good, and it usually entails killing copious amounts of time in the dark corners of Saigon-shantyesque lounges over cocktail after tropical cocktail of the rum- and sake-based, lychee- and mango-layered ilk. Throw succulent retro-Asian street snacks into the mix - shrimp Rangoon, crispy tuna spring rolls, pork dumplings - and next thing you know, you're a strung-out pu-pu addict, begging for spareribs. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Pho Pasteur, multiple locations; Pho République, 1415 Washington Street, Boston (617) 262-0005, www.phorepublique.net.