*** Ba Le Linda Vista has closed.
To complete the Banh Mi "tri-fecta" I stopped by the old dependable Ba-Le Sandwich shop in Linda Vista. I say dependable mainly for the simple reason that I had been a regular customer of Ba-le back "home" in Honolulu. As a matter of fact, the first Banh Mi I had ever had was from Ba-Le.
This franchise of Ba-Le had changed hands over the last year or so, and the new owners have made alot of improvements, including an upgrade of the menu, and a renovation of both the storefront as well as interior. Of course to pay for this prices have risen, though a 25-50 cent increase on something that costs two-bucks isn't really that bad. The one thing that I do lament is that I'm unable to order extra veggies or meat anymore. Today I purchased the Banh Mi Dac Biet - or Deluxe Sandwich as well as some spring rolls. The damage all told - $5.25.
The interesting thing about Banh Mi is that I've found, no two are the same. This version's roll was basically "all crust", almost as if the bread portion had been torn out, "po' boy style". The roll was decently crusty, the meat was very thinly sliced, tasty, but a bit dry. The "veggies" were flavored well, but the cilantro was a bit of a problem. In this case the stems of cilantro were included, and you'd basically have all the cilantro pulled out by the fibrous stems during the first two bites. The peppers included in the sandwich were not very spicy, but the sandwich was still a bargain at $2.75! All other sandwiches, including an "egg" sandwich are priced right at $2.25. If I read the sign right; you buy 9 you get the tenth free. So far no really bad Banh Mi, and there are a few more to try! I think in the end I'll do a comparison chart for the Banh Mi in San Diego, as they vary so much in size, taste, and even bread! I'm looking for recommendations.....BTW the spring rolls were OK, the ones in Viet Dong are better IMHO, but that's another story!
The Other Two: Cafe Dore' and A' Chau.
Bale French Sandwich Shop
6937 Linda Vista Rd
San Diego, CA 92111
858) 565-8057
Interesting that the coffee shop did a more refined banh mi than Ba Le.
You are a true banh mi connoisseur, Kirk! I have never noticed whether my banh mi joints includes the cilantro stems/stalks. I think this calls for a banh mi run for lunch to investigate!
Posted by: elmomonster | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 08:39 AM
Hey Elmo - Thanks for stopping by - Thanks for the compliment, but "me no Banh Mi connoisseur", especially compared to Prof Salt: http://www.chowhound.com/california/boards/losangeles15/messages/76853.html
http://professorsalt.blogspot.com/2005/03/banh-mi-story-in-oc-weekly.html
The reason that I noticed the cilantro is that those stalks are really tough, and you can't really bite through them! They also get stuck between your teeth - and I already floss, thank-you-very-much! Nothing worse than walking into a meeting and having a stalk of cilantro hanging out of your mouth!
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 08:50 AM
::snickers at the mental photo created:: Well, I have to do some research I suppose. I've never even heard of banh mi until I saw it blogged here. Guess that goes on a priority list along with all the other mental lists I have!
Posted by: Jo | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 04:00 PM
Jo - Banh Mi is simply a Vietnamese Sandwich, and has kind of developed quite a following. A real bargain at between $2-$3. Very tasty at it's best....
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 09:06 PM
Much to my surprise we are apparently Viet-cheated up here. We have all kinds of other Viet eats, but I wasn't able to locate Banh-Mi within 15 miles of us... If I wait patiently, will it come?
Posted by: Jo | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 10:32 PM
Jo - Are you close to SJSU? There's the ultimate Banh Mi chain - Lee's up in San Jose. http://leesandwiches.com/default.cfm
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 10:41 PM
ahHA! I thought there was but I couldn't find the link for love nor money. Found a dozen different blogs on it, but no direct link! I'm not sure exactly how far we are, it's sort of between us and Japantown. So if I can get Mike to Japantown, I KNOW he'll go for this. He loves Vietnamese food!
Posted by: Jo | Thursday, 30 June 2005 at 10:50 PM
Hi Jo - Remember I expect a report if you go to Lee's...
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 04 July 2005 at 11:28 PM
Hey Kirk,
I totally missed this one. You're so lucky that you can get good banh mi so cheap. I think the cheapest here is maybe $3.50?
When I eat banh me here, I only get one tiny sprig of Chinese parsley. I always feel like they should give more. Looks like you got quite a bit in yours...
Posted by: Reid | Tuesday, 05 July 2005 at 03:44 AM
Hey Reid - Well I pay $1.00 more for plate lunches - you pay $.75 more for Banh Mi - look like that makes us even :). What I don't like is when they put all the stems of cilantro in the sandwich.
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 05 July 2005 at 06:04 AM
This thing doesn't remember me anymore! }ahem{ Reid, Want me to mail you some Chinese parsley? ::grinning:: I've got tons of it fresh in my garden!
Never fear Kirk, I will let you know about Lee's. I don't think it will happen this week though. I probably won't get any posting done this week. Homework, a group outing to a fortune cookie factory, laundry, dirty kitchen... I'm in over my head here!
Posted by: Jo | Tuesday, 05 July 2005 at 09:28 AM