Banh Mi Throwdown!! Does Price Matter? Seattle Edition

Have I ever said I love a banh mi? I’m sure I have at one point over the years. SF was rife with them. I think my enjoyment of them really flourished during that boom of $10 sandwiches that predominated my time there and how I railed against them over the years for being too much money for too little enjoyment. Yet with the banh mi I found myself being thoroughly satiated without having to break the bank of my wallet. Strangely enough, my first experience with a banh mi was actually in Vietnam. Me and the SO were wandering around Hoi An (I think) when we popped into a tiny shop for a bite and got a super traditional one for around $2.

The thin slices of pork, the jalapenos, the pickled carrots, the slight smear of pate and mayo. It was quite the tasty bite. Granted, we may have been famished at the time but whatever the case, we quite enjoyed what we got. From there I started searching them out in SF to see what a “Americanized” version would be like and outside of maybe the bread being and size in general being bigger, most places stuck to the basics inside. Though I did find, not everyone did the pate. Seems that was hit or miss.

Still, it is a sandwich I would highly recommend to anyone particularly as here in the US one can get variations of main fillings besides pork like chicken, beef, tofu, all veggies. Places are definitely catering to tastes here. With my arrival in Seattle it seemed like a great opportunity to venture and out and see how their banh mi game measured up. What I found was a fair number of places serving it up and also a varying range of pricing all leading me to wonder—is a $10 one that much better than a $5 one? While the below are a small sample, I figured the five I have had so far seemed a good time to see what is what with what I’ve eaten.

What makes a good banh mi? A baguette that is crisp on outside, soft inside, thin slices of grilled pork without too much fat, chunky slices of vegetables, crisp pickled carrot and daikon, a nice spread of mayo and pate to enhance without overwhelming all in mostly even distribution to get the full flavor in every bite. Sounds simple but we all know it doesn’t usually work out that way so I am keeping an open mind, mouth and stomach. Let’s see how they all went down.

I am going from least to most expensive which starts me with a tiny hole in the wall spot called Saigon Viet Nam Deli. (That is how they spell it and they actually have a website!) Located in a strip mall right on the edge of the International District, I had walked by this spot a few times before deciding to just check it out. It is super tiny but in the time I was there, it was bustling with business. Seems I may have unknowingly stumbled on something lots of others have already found. It is like a tiny grocery with a hot bar and kitchen serving up Vietnamese specialties. Took me a minute or so to figure out how to order. The banh mi board is prominently displayed up top and you tell them the number next to the version you want and how many. I am doing pork for all mine and just to make everything consistent. Here, it is a $5 option—that includes tax.

It is made to order and even with all the other folks crammed in, it doesn’t take long for me hand over a fiver and get a pretty decent sized banh mi. First bite in and I got pork, jalapeno and the tangy sweet carrot-daikon. I was a good first taste which held up mostly well as I made my way through the sandwich. I might have liked another slice of jalapeno or slightly more mayo but as is, the pork was tender, the veggies crunchy and the bread crisp and soft. For a flat five dollars it was pretty satisfying and filling lunch.

Now I find myself at Saigon Deli, not to be confused with Saigon Viet Nam Deli, two totally different places located around the corner from each other. Saigon Deli is a much larger space, more than twice the size of the other place. On the day I am there, they also seem to be doing a rather brisk business with the same kind of hot bar, deep fried stuff and pre-packaged made treats lining their tables. Their banh mi menu list is posted almost identically to the other and taking my cue from previously, I order up by number, wait a few minutes and for $5.75 tax included this time, I get a sandwich which kind of appears to be just slightly bigger.

This one has more meat and veggies appearance wise and first bite in seems to also be pretty good. Though I do notice there is no pate in this one and with each bite, the pieces of pork get fattier. Pork needs the small pieces of fate which line its slices as they do give flavor and help keep the meat from drying out while cooking. Here though they seem as big as the chunks of meat and for me it isn’t working. The more I ate the more I just got distracted by it and just couldn’t get past looking for it in every bite. Ultimately, I’d say for me this could have been really good without the fat but that plus the lack of pate dropped it on the list for me regardless of the price.

Grain House is something I walked by everyday but didn’t think much about until I decided to look them up online. I never realized it was kind of a hybrid boba tea Vietnamese deli kind of place. Once I saw what was up I made a point to drop in after work and banh mi myself. At this time of day in the middle of the week I was the only customer and was able to order up and then watch as she made the sandwich. From toasting the bread to putting the pre-cooked pork in a convection roaster to heat/crisp up to spreading on mayo and pate plus as you can see some overly generous cilantro. What I didn’t notice till I got home was the lack of jalapeno, a bummer since I like that bite of heat and found myself using a squirt of sriracha to get some heat.

Even with the misstep I liked how the pork here was hot with some crispy edges and the pate gives it a richness you could actually taste in each bite. Some of the others had it but it was more light touch essence of instead of a really noticeable addition. I might have liked a bit less cilantro, a tad more of the pickled veggies and somewhat fluffier bread on the inside, but overall a nice choice at $7.45 including tax for something that would be an easy pick up for me on a night I feel too lazy to cook anything.

Pho Saigon is another place I’ve walked past a few times and then finally ventured in one day as it was sort of close to work. This spot is more quick order sit down restaurant with it’s own hot bar too. I had checked their online menu before coming and seems they are kind of known for their pho bowls but they had banh mi all priced at $7 not including tax (like $7.70 something). They had a fair number of people coming in and out with to go orders and it did take a bit to get my sandwich. First look, they seemed to have the heartiest bread of the lot and they definitely did not skimp on the carrots. Though one bite in and, well, I think the term “dry AF” comes to mind. No pate, barely any mayo left just a bunch of bread which needed something. It didn’t help the pork was also some the toughest and chewiest I had. To be honest, I could get though the thing. It was one challenging bite after another and none of them very satisfying. I didn’t need to eat anymore of this to know it won’t it. For me this banh mi just gives all others a bad name and taste in your mouth. This place might know how to do a bowl of noodles but their sandwich game needs a lot of work. At least I can mark if off my list.

The name alone of this place wants to draw you in—Vietlicious. It is just down and around the corner from the Pho Saigon place. Funny how these spots seems to be near each other even when outside of the International District. I had also happened by this place quite a few times but truth, had not gone in even though they were prominently displaying their banh mi options. The part that kept me walking by was the price—$9.50 not including tax. It would end up being over $10 and we all know how I feel about such a sandwich price point.

In the interest of comparison shopping I did eventually breakdown and pony up the money because you know, I do it for you, and the food. Okay, let’s go with that. As you can see, they slice their veggies a little differently. No long strips here but you still get some chunkiness. There was also an ample supply of meat which actually came freshly cooked off the grill and not reheated, which is pretty much what all the others had in some variation. The size on this seemed a hair smaller, the bread wasn’t as thick as others and the pate was there but a light touch again. Still, enough mayo, lots of veggies and meat and I hate myself for liking this more than my cheapness wanted to. I know, but hey, at least I can admit it in writing.

If you need all this in a list then here you go:

Saigon Viet Nam Deli—between price and taste it averages out on top
Vietlicious—as much as it pains me, it was pretty good
Grain House—best use of pate despite the lack of jalapeno
Saigon Deli—maybe if I had trimmed all the fat off it would be higher? Who knows
Pho Saigon—let’s just forget this ever happened.

It is just a small sampling and for me really just a start. I know I am sure to come across many banh mi across this town as the months/years progress. As you can see though, there are lots of options with varying degrees of success. As stated above, it a sandwich I highly recommend people search out. Depending on your style of choice you may find you like one of the above places better with a different version than just pork. Not to mention, beyond an outlier, you can get a decent version at a decent price that will be filling and satisfying. I am sure I will find my way back to Saigon Viet Nam Deli and maybe try a different meat. And while that $10 version hit some good spots, I will defer to more affordable options in my continued search. But don’t let that stop you, it didn’t stop me and sometimes the results can be surprising if somewhat painful to admit.