Bahn Mi Saigon Bakery
Bahn Mi Saigon Bakery
138-01 Mott St (at Grand St)
(212) 941-1541
So the word on the street is that this place serves the best Viet sandwich in town. #1? I don’t know if that’s true, but, I’m here to investigate. I’ll rank the sandwich in terms of quality, taste, ease of eating, and the look of the sandwich.
This little shop is hidden in Chinatown but it’s past the marketplace, thank goodness. I always have a problem walking through there because it’s crowded, dirty, and chaotic. If you can avoid going down that section of Mott St, do so.
Upon arriving to this deli you’re going to see a jewelry shop in front. Don’t worry, you’re at the right place because the joint is just straight inside. Now there are a lot of hip, young, good looking people there. I’m sure they are loyal fans who can’t get enough of this deli, but just be forewarn about all the people in side.
My brother who was there ordered the chicken viet sandwich and the pork one. Pork is what I’ve been eating for years, but he wanted to change it up by having chicken. Of course they ask you if you want jalapenos in yours, and of course we didn’t. After waiting for like 10-15mins, and yes it really took that long and I literally have no patience especially at a deli, our sandwiches arrived. For $3.75, that price can’t be beat. We couldn’t wait to go back home in Brooklyn to give it a shot.
Pork Banh Mi Sandwich -
Alright, after taking this baby home, I realized that it was a little cold. Ok, not to worry, a little time with the microwave should help. One it came out, I quickly took a bite into it and first noticed how incredibly spicy it was. I could have sworn I asked for it not to be spicy. The reason why I didn’t want it to be spicy was because spiciness kills flavor and I didn’t want it like that for my first time. Some people like it, some people don’t, but I prefer it without. I took a look inside, and there is it, jalapeños. Lots of it. I’m like, what the f— is this? And you see the this deep dark red color? That’s right, that’s the pork. That is the hardest piece of meat that I have bitten on and it just made the whole experience unpleasant. Very unpleasant. I figured that I probably need to heat it up some more? Well, that didn’t help much either so the entire time it was like eating pork jerky. Yeah, it has like the same texture as jerky, but wrapped up in clumps.
With this and the jalapeño problem aside, I have to admit that the presentation was very good. I love all the nice vibrant colors and how pack the sandwich is. The bread was nice and toasted, the carrots and the salami tasted very fresh, but it was the pork that just threw it off.
Finechina’s Rating: 3.88/5
Quality – 4/5
Taste – 3.5/5
Ease of eating – 3.0/5 (because of me picking out all the jalapeños and gnawing on pork)
Presentation – 5/5
Chicken Banh Mi Sandwich –
Unfortunately, this one has jalapeños in it too, but I’ll overlook it. Look how beautiful this sandwich is. Hands down, I have to say Banh mi can really make their sandwich look drop dead hot and sexy. You see on the right picture that there’s garlic or egg smeared on the bread? That makes a WHOLE LOTTA difference. Most amateur viet sandwich joints don’t put that, but Banh Mi does. But because of my first bad experience with the pork sandwich, I didn’t know what to think about the chicken.
To my surprise, this is an excellent sandwich! Hurrah!! I knew this place has to live up to its expectations. The chicken was moist, juicy and soft, which is how chicken is supposed to be. And its partnership with the other ingredients, salami, carrots, turnips, cucumber and cilantro, resulted in a very mouth-watering…er, droolage moment. The bread was of course nicely toasted, the taste was very sensational where the sauce did not overwhelmed the sandwich, which usually happens with some sandwiches, and it was very easy to eat.
Finechina’s Rating: 4.9
Quality – 5
Taste – 5
Ease of eating - 4.5
Presentation – 5
So to me, this place is definitely not my number one, because of the long wait, putting jalapeños when I specifically asked not to, and the pork jerky-ish pork. I figure the pork sandwich is the signature sandwich. How can they screw that up? But I will still recommend people to come here to try out their sandwiches, especially the chicken one!
Look forward to my next post on Paris Sandwich!
Now the NYC Health Inspection Results!
SAIGON BAKERY INC
138 MOTT STREET, MANHATTAN 10013
212-941-1541
Current violation points: 8 – PASSED
Inspection Date: 03/23/2007
No violations that present a threat to the public health or relate directly to factors which lead to foodborne illness were recorded at the time of this inspection.
1.) “Choking first aid” poster not posted.”Alcohol and Pregnancy” Warning sign not posted. “Wash hands” sign not posted at hand wash facility. Resuscitation equipment: exhaled air resuscitation masks(adult & pediatric), latex gloves, sign not posted. Inspection report sign not posted.
2.) Non-food contact surface improperly constructed. Unacceptable material used. Non-food contact surface or equipment improperly maintained.
3.) Pesticide use not in accordance with label or applicable laws. Prohibited chemical used/stored. Open bait station used.
Viet-Nam Bahn Mi So
A Vietnamese sandwich is just a a Vietnamese sandwich? Wrong. With so many shops that devote themselves to the art of making this unique sandwich, each and every shop varies with their style and technique. But what makes them so special? Their style, technique, and love for this piece of bread. Haha.
Try the Viet sandwich at a Chinese bakery, like Century Cafe, and you’ll see how different tastes compared to your more authentic Viet sandwiches. When you get an authentic Viet sandwich from a Viet deli, you can’t imagine how rich some of their flavors are. I can’t even describe. Of course I can’t cover all of the shops, but I have a few that I like to start off first.
My battlefield is Chinatown, Manhattan. The so-called renowned ones are, Banh Mi Saigon Bakery and Viet-Nam Banh Mi So. Of course there are others, but I’ll just concentrate on these two first. I’m also going to visit Paris Sandwich and see how they go neck to neck with these two.
First stop:
Viet-Nam Bahn Mi So Corp (Vietnamese Deli)
369 Broome St
(at Mott St)
New York, NY
(212) 219-8341
I grew up eating the sandwiches here and it never disappoints. The only thing I regret is ordering the same sandwich, #1 [on menu], the pork Viet sandwich for over 5 years. My friends tell me that they make this kick ass meatball sandwich, which I swear I will try. I never had the courage to try other things on the menu, but I will soon. The people in there are nice and friendly who can speak in Cantonese, Vietnamese, and English. The place is a little small, but who cares right? It’s the food that counts? Of course that means it’s a take-out place, so don’t expect to be sitting around.
The woman who works there is still the same woman that I knew as a child and she’s always nice to give me some extra meat, which I can’t get enough of! Of course she’ll ask if you want it hot or not, and I prefer mines not because I think hotness kills the flavor, which isn’t what I’m looking for.
What’s different about their sandwiches is that there are more flavor and color in their sandwiches. I believe there’s a taste of garlic and butter in it, but I can’t be sure.
After bringing this baby back home in Brooklyn, the sandwich still remains warm and the aroma is strong. Yumm. Inside of course you see Viet salami, Viet turkey (I don’t know, I think so?), thinly sliced carrots, turnips, and cucumbers, and a leaf of cilantro. Yum yum. Don’t worry, it’s already toasted and it’s the only way you can eat it. The meat is so succulent and moist and the deli’s secret yellow sauce makes it that much more delicious. It’s not too salty, but it’s definitely a satisfying sandwich. I would give this sandwich a 5/5!
Rating: 5/5
NYC Dept Of Health Inspection Results:
VIETNAMESE DELI
369 BROOME STREET, MANHATTAN 10013
212-219-8341
Current violation points: 2 - PASSED
Inspection Date: 04/18/2006
No violations that present a threat to the public health or relate directly to factors which lead to foodborne illness were recorded at the time of this inspection.
1.) Plumbing not properly installed or maintained; anti-siphonage or backflow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly.
Wait for my next few posts on Banh Mi on Mott, Paris Sandwich, and Sau Voi Corp!
Koryodang: Korean Dessert (K-Town 32nd St.)
Koryodang
31 W 32 St
(btw Broadway and 5th Ave)
(212) 967-9661
It has been a while that I’ve been back in Korea-town. I believe it’s been over 3 years and you cannot believe how much this neighborhood has changed. There are more new and exciting shops opening around for young adults and hipsters to come here to hang out. I remember there was a day that this neighborhood was bombarded with many expensive korean bbq restaurants that was glowing with red neon lights to attract customers. But now not only are there korean bbq restaurants at competitively good prices, but there are local korean restaurants w/o the bbq and ones that have both. Added to that list are korean bakeries, cell phone stores, and lots more up and rising stores. This is a great time to be in K-town!
After my dinner at Gahm Mi Oak which was literally next store, we decided to come here. From what my friend Danny tells me, there’s a Koryodang bakery in Flushing and now there’s one here. It looked really nice, and what sealed the deal was a man flipping ice cream on a pan! I thought, how cool was that.
I really love how the koreans come up with new and innovative treats for me to eat. As a first timer, I knew I would not be disappointed here.
When me and my group came in, the place was literally packed with Korean people. 
Really packed. The waiter had to grab us 2 extra crappy seats for a table supposedly for 2, but it was alright. Nice gesture instead of having us to wait. Luckily I sat on their nice leather seat and Kim and Dawen sat on the “patio” chairs as Kim would put it.
After we were seated down, we received a framed menu with choices on both sides. I was already excited about the Icepan Icecream and Danny was excited about a Pear tart. I never had one, but I was excited to see one! Kim and Dawen ordered bubble tea, but I was curious on how the Korean’s take on it.
The Icepan Ice Cream! It comes with strawberry, kiwi, mango, green tea, pineapple, banana or raspberry. Price: $6.49
Beautiful isn’t it? I chose banana ice cream because I haven’t had that in a long time and I was so craving it. The ice cream is buried underneath all the fruit. My god, this is one of the BEST dessert I have ever had. My mouth was watering for more and my mood was excellent after getting into a fight with the bf. After we both had a taste of this, all the negative energies dissipated into thin air and we were both smiling and feeding each other. I loved this so incredibly much. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND you guys to try it! HIGHLY.
Here comes the honeydew bubble tea! It’s very expensive – $6.99. And I thought Ten Ren is expensive!
Honestly, this is not worth the $6.99. At Ten Ren’s, it tastes a whole lot richer and thicker than this. It’s better that all the other bubble teas, but this is not worth the price. I wouldn’t recommend this.
Next on the list is the Pear Tart! Price: $3.25 I’ve never had a Pear Tart before, but I know dam well that it sounds like a sweeeeet treat! Let’s see!
My god, gorgeous. Gorgeous. When I digged into this magnificent tart, it was like I was in heaven. This treat is so rich in sweetness that it drives my mouth wild. You have to try it to believe it. The tart itself as you can see is sweet too, which I wished it wasn’t, but it was still a very very delicious treat. At this time, Danny was bouncing off the walls because he’s very sensitive to sweets.
Overall it was an excellent idea to come here. I would definitely come here again to try their other treats. If you want to know what else is on their menu, let me a comment and I’ll show you. I don’t believe there is a menu online now but that doesn’t matter.
Ok, the NYS health inspection results!
KORYODANG
31 WEST 32 STREET, MANHATTAN 10001
212-967-9661
Current violation points: 25 – PASSED (27 to pass)
Inspection Date: 01/11/2007
Violations were cited in the following area(s) and those requiring immediate action were addressed.
1.) Toilet facility not maintained and provided with toilet paper, waste receptacle and self-closing door.
2.) Sanitized equipment or utensil, including in-use food dispensing utensil, improperly used or stored.
3.) Sufficient refrigerated or hot holding equipment not provided to meet proper time and temperature requirements for potentially hazardous foods.
4.) Cold food held above 41°F (smoked fish above 38°F) except during necessary preparation.
Gahm Mi Oak Korean Restaurant
Gahm Mi Oak
43 W 32nd St
(Btw 5th Ave & Broadway)
(212) 695-4113
24-hours, but there’s a limited menu after a certain time.
On this day, my Korean friend Danny came back from Boston for spring break and was going to take us (Kim, Dawen, and I) to a tasty place for “local korean food.” No, none of that fake american crap that gets pumped out everywhere else. I was so looking forward to this day that I literally starved myself, waiting for this fantastic delight. And when the time came, Danny-boy forgot where on earth it was and decided to call his homeboy. No one picked up. So after walking up and down and around the block, he decided to go in a korean cell phone store and asked where it was. Long story short, that man gave us wrong directions and we didn’t know where to go. We couldn’t stay out in the freezing cold anymore so we picked something that was price affordable and shared the korean experience.
Alright when we first came in, it looked like a nice cozy place. 
There was a couple in front of us, but after when Danny spoke with the waiter in Korean, we were off to a traditional table where there’s no chairs and only pillows on an elevated platform towards the back of the restaurant where the kitchen is. See it would have been nice if Danny boy told me we were gonna sit traditional style because then I could mentally prepare myself to sit with my legs crossed. Because of my thick ass thighs, usually the blood flow to my legs get cut and I have to recross my legs. Very annoying, but it happens to the best [fattier] of us.
When we finally sat down, we had korean menus!! I’m like, what in the hell is this? Danny literally had to recommend some of the things he thought was good. Apparently he didn’t translate the entire menu or asked for an english menu, which would be good!! I knew what I wanted, well the only thing I can eat and that’s the bibimbap. I wanted to see how their take is like here in comparison to Li Hua in chinatown. But yeah, after seconds of settling down, 3 waiters at different times came to us and asked what we wanted. I found that very annoying and I absolute HATE to be rushed. I really do. I know it’s all in good faith, but still, give me some time.
So Danny recommended the Sul Long Tang, which is snowy white ox-bone soup with white rice and white noodle, add scallion, salt and pepper to taste. I wasn’t in a soupy mood since I was famished, so the three of them decided on this since we had came out of the cold.
Okay, time for appetizers which came out the second we finished ordering! Wow, talk about fast fast service!
Kim Chi. Of course you get it in all korean restaurants, but I must say this is the best Kim Chi I have ever had. Usually I would get them in tiny portions which I can hardly get the taste of, but this, oh my god, it is really good. Really! It’s for free, so you must as well wolf down a lot of it. The free warm hot cup of barely tea helps tame the hotness from the kim chi too.
Sul Long Tang Snowy white ox-bone soup with white rice and white noodles. Carefully chosen bone and meat are cooked together more than 12 hours in a giant cast-iron pot to remove the fat and oil. Add scallion, salt
Price: $6.95
So I had a taste, seeing how desperately hungry I was, and this is one of the blandest soup I have ever had. Yes you can taste how pure and hearty it is, but it lacked a whole lotta taste even though if you add a sheit load of scallion and salt! Tasteless, my god, tasteless. You can taste how healthy it is. But if you want to come here for grease and taste, avoid this one. I didn’t like it, I’d have it for an afternoon snack, but definitely not for dinner.
Ahh, here comes my bibimbap. Bibimbap korean style jambalaya of rice, assorted vegetables and ground beef. Add long hot pepper paste to your taste and mix them in your bowl. Price: $10.95
I was hoping that it would be in a stone bowl like how it was at Li Hua and Bonjoo, which I need to do a post on that. Ok, so there’s no stone bowl, shouldn’t be a big deal right? Well…after mixing it and without the pepper because I’m scared of it, I had a taste and it was pretty bland. I had to add salt, which didn’t helped much and it was still bland! My gosh, Li Hua was starting to look better and that restaurant is based in Chinatown!
At this time our pancakes came, Bin Dae Dduk 
korean style fried pancake made of ground mung beans, carrot, onion, scallion, bean sprouts and ground pork — Price: $8.95.
This unfortunately tastes bland as well, and I had better ones before. I had to put a lot of salt on this to make this tastes better. It wasn’t all bad and this seems to be the hottest plate since I see it being pumped out a lot from the kitchen. Usually the waiter would only serve two big pancakes, but seeing how nice he was, he gave us 4 and didn’t charge us extra which was very nice!
My legs were getting numb at this time and the check came to us when we were done. I actually liked the traditional experience, even though my fat legs were gone. Would I recommend this place? Sure. It’s relatively inexpensive, but the taste is really really lacking. If you don’t mind, sure come and eat bland. But I care and probably would never come back. There are so many restaurants in k-town that there’s bound to be one that’s not korean bbq and that it’s rich in flavor. I will definitely find it.
Health Inspection report by the NYS:
GMO RESTAURANT
43 WEST 32 STREET, MANHATTAN 10001
Current violation points: 8 -PASSED
Inspection Date: 04/12/2006
No violations that present a threat to the public health or relate directly to factors which lead to foodborne illness were recorded at the time of this inspection.
1.) Immersion basket not provided, used or of incorrect size. Incorrect manual technique. Test kit and thermometer not provided or used. Improper drying practices.
2.) Plumbing not properly installed or maintained; anti-siphonage or backflow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly.
3.) Garbage receptacles not provided or inadequate. Garbage storage area not properly constructed or maintained; grinder or compactor dirty.
Man, a clean restaurant equals to a bland restaurant? Hm… I am seeing a link….
Anyways, look forward to my review on korean dessert. Oh man….absolutely amazing.
3pm Munchie: Peanut Butter and Pepperoni
What do you do when you’re craving for a mid-afternoon snack but you don’t want anything too heavy? Well here’s a little something something that I pulled out from my fridge.
Let’s start off with Peanut Butter.
This is Trader Joe’s crunchy peanut butter and it looks homemade, which by the way does not taste bad at all. There’s a lot of oil on top, but don’t worry, it’s okay. Just stir it all around and you’ll see how rich in peanuts there are. 
This isn’t as thick as Skippy or your other lead brand, which is good for me. Peanut butter doesn’t have to be incredibly fattening and can taste good at the same time. Having your food portioned always helps.
Next thing I pull out is a pack of pepperonis that I bought from Trader Joes. God, I love pepperoni, and it doesn’t have to be on your pizza. Having some meat always give me a quick fix. If you don’t have pepp, improvise! You can use salami, ham, or what have you. Like I always say, whatever floats your boat.
And to top things off, a round cracker thick enough to absorb the peanut butter! You can grab some sesame rounds at Trader Joe’s or wherever you can find it.
So wah lah, here you have a little light afternoon snack! Enjoy!
