A new Vietnamese restaurant is coming to Columbia County, but its proprietors are already close to home.
Andrew and Angela Phan have been doing business in the area for years, with enterprises such as T Nails & Spa in Grovetown and the Gong Cha Augusta tea shop on Washington Road. This summer they’re taking on a new business and a new challenge, in return for the patronage they’ve already received.
“We’ve been here for a while, and the love community just gives us so much — the love, the support, the sense of belonging,” said Angela. “We just want to give back to community something that we really wanted: a taste of home.”
The menu selections will include Vietnamese cuisine staples, such as pho, a soup with rice or noodles, herbs and often beef or chicken, and spring rolls, as well as vegetarian options.
“For someone who’s looking for a healthier version, but won’t have to sacrifice the flavors,” Angela said.
Pho 81 will be setting up shop in Martinez’s Belair Plaza shopping center, at the former location of Funnel Cakes, via a leasing brokered by Sherman & Hemstreet.
Gong Cha, which opened in 2023, offers boba teas and snacks, but Pho 81 will be the Phans’ first foray into running a full restaurant. While Angela finds that prospect a little daunting, she’s encouraged by local support to “step it up again and say, ‘OK, it’s time to open!’” She also hopes that patrons will warm up to the new eatery enough for it to become something of a local hub.
“A place that everybody can connect, not just a restaurant,” she said. “You just come to eat as a place like you to hang out, to share with family. We just want to make everybody feel like home.”
Pho 81 will be located at 212 South Belair Road in Martinez, and is expected to open in July.
Skyler Andrews is a reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
