In 2019, Quang “Ryan” Tran opened 3 Pho Bowl 09—a playful take on the Schertz restaurant’s location on FM 3009, commonly called “three-double-oh-nine.”
Tran is the head chef and co-owner alongside his mother-in-law, Celia Garcia, a retired United Express Jet flight attendant.
Tran said the bun thit nupong, or vermicelli bowl with grilled pork, is the most popular dish he serves. It comes with shredded carrots, cucumbers and fish sauce.
The banh mi, or Vietnamese sandwiches, are served on fresh bolillos with a choice of grilled meat—beef, chicken or pork—or fried tofu; pickled carrots and cucumber; jalapenos; cilantro; and a special 3009 sauce.
“Anything with pork is good,” he said.
The menu also includes cha gio, or crispy, deep fried Vietnamese spring rolls; several salads; rice dishes, such as com tom nuong, or grilled shrimp with rice; and 10 varieties of pho served with fresh basil, bean sprouts, raw jalapeno slices and lime on the side.
Tran said he knew he wanted to open his own business for a long time, but the timing was never quite right. He was an engineer by training who worked for KCI Kinetic Concepts and later H-E-B.
Tran said the tragedy of 9/11 was a pivotal moment for him and his family, and it set him on a different path, both spiritually and professionally. He and his wife, Celeste, and their two children began attending church, and now he is a deacon at First Baptist Church of Universal City.
“It’s faith that keeps me going and gives me hope,” Tran said. “I just fell in love with how [Jesus] loves—unconditional love.”
Tran said he grew up in Vietnam, one of nine children, and his father, Xuong Tran, owned his own business.
The family applied to emigrate to the United States—where Tran’s sister already lived—but their application was denied.
Tran’s family landed first in Malaysia, then Holland, before they were able to move to the U.S. in 1985.
Tran’s sister was living in Converse with her husband, and the family has all settled in the Northeast Metrocom area, he said. Several of his siblings are entrepreneurs and own their own businesses.
Tran said the idea of owning a restaurant came back to him in 2017.
“I started to pray to the Lord,” Tran said. “I prayed about everything. I prayed about the location. I prayed about the name.”
He spent the next two years learning to cook the classic Vietnamese dishes his sister cooked when he was growing up, Tran said.
Tran practiced perfecting his own recipes including the delicate broth that is the base for pho.
“I practiced a lot,” he said.
He also credits his mother, Cua Tran, with his gifts of cooking and servitude, sharing on the restaurant’s website that his mother was known for her “hospitable warmth” and took great joy in having her family gathered around the table for a delicious meal.
Tran said he lives by the motto “we are third,” a belief found on the walls of the restaurant and the menu.
It means Jesus comes first, customers come second, and everyone else, “we are third,” Tran said.
“I opened this restaurant, and it’s a ministry for everybody,” Tran said. “Praise the Lord, I give him all the glory."
3 Pho Bowl 09
917A FM 3009, Ste. 100, Schertz
210-983-3746
www.3phobowl09.com
Hours: Mon.-Thu. 11 a.m.-7:30 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-8 p.m., Sun. closed
