Hot Soup? Pho Sure.

swap chicken noodle's tired old carrots and celery for fresh bean sprouts, basil, and lime. then inhale.

THE BEST Pho dac biet (mixed beef noodle soup) large $6.95, Pho 2000

Like all great soups, great pho can be judged by the quality of its broth. Pho 2000's broth is rich and light, sweet and salty, and intensely beefy with a warm balance of star anise, cloves, and charred ginger. The hot noodles and meat come to your table in a tub-sized bowl with all of the usual herbal trimmings, but this soup's true beauty is only skin deep: The tiny droplets of rendered beef fat floating on the surface deliver a burst of flavor with every spoonful. Bottom line Come cold and hungry and leave warm and full, with enough leftovers to keep you that way for days.

Pho xe lua (mixed beef noodle soup) large $6.50, Pho Thien Thien

Here's the beef: Pho Thien Thien's noodle soup includes all the standard cuts -- rare slices of paper-thin eye round that cook directly in the hot spiced soup, fragrant braised brisket, crisp fresh tripe sliced into noodlelike ribbons, ultra-beefy shredded flank steak, and soft gelatinous tendon that adds distinctive body to the broth. But at Thien Thien, the eye round's more tender, the brisket juicier, the tripe fresher, the flank beefier, and the tendon richer than any of its competition, making it the perfect pick-me-up. Bottom line Feeling thirsty? Order the light and slightly sour "33," because nothing washes down hot Vietnamese soup like an ice-cold Vietnamese beer.

Pho sate dac biet (mixed beef noodle soup) large $7.50, Xinh Xinh

While it's theorized that pho has its roots in French consomme, Xinh Xinh's house special pho sate dac biet pays less homage to its colonial past and more to the heart of Southeast Asian cuisine. Expect a broth laced with sweet coconut, citrusy lemon grass, and pungent dried shrimp, along with a sprinkle of roasted chopped peanuts that add a welcome nutty crunch. A red slick of oil along with crimson flecks of chopped chilies prove that this soup means business. An extra squeeze of lime will help balance its fiery heat. Bottom line For best effect, eat with your face down. Then you can deeply inhale vapors as you're slurping. -- J. Kenji Alt

Pho 2000 198 Adams Street, Dorchester, 617-436-1908, pho2000boston.comPho Thien Thien 8 Kneeland Street, Boston 617-357-5536, phothienthien.comXinh Xinh 7 Beach Street, Chinatown, 617-422-0501