Where to find the best bánh mì in Vietnam. Photo / Getty Images
Regarded by many as Vietnam’s national dish, the bánh mì is a culinary institution and a reminder of the country’s colourful history. Here’s where you’ll find seven of Vietnam’s best, writes Tamara Hinson
The sandwich dates back to the 1600s, when French missionaries arrived in Vietnam, armed with baguettes, which they ate with pâté. Wheat didn’t grow well in Vietnam and the high cost of imported bread meant the sandwiches weren’t an immediate hit with the locals, who eventually transformed them into a more affordable snack by reducing the amount of pâté and adding pickled vegetables and a hit of chilli for their much-loved blast of heat. Soon, the pork and pâte-stuffed bánh mì (wheat bread) was a staple of Vietnamese cuisine — and it still is. Today, they’re sold everywhere in Vietnam — on street corners, in supermarkets and in Michelin-starred fine dining restaurants.
Here’s where to find the best ones.
Read more: The best food in Vietnam: What to eat and drink
Bánh mìs don’t get posher than this — a $177 bánh mì made with pork grilled for six hours, before being topped with pâté, foie gras and truffle mayonnaise. It’s the brainchild of Peter Cuong Franklin, founder of Anan Saigon, otherwise known as the city’s first Michelin-starred restaurant. And if you’re wondering about the price, it converts to US$100, which did a much better job of grabbing the headlines when it launched in 2017. Vietnamese chef Peter says it’s not just a gimmick, but a version that honours Ho Chi Minh. “Hanoi’s bánh mìs are similar to Cantonese cuisine — just bread and meat — and Hoi An’s are smaller,” he said. “But here in Ho Chi Minh, if we can stuff more inside, we will! They’re bold and flavourful, like our personalities.” His latest creation? Le Petite Bánh Mì — pâté, wagyu beef and Oscietra caviar in an air baguette, inspired by the cloud-soft bread made using techniques first pioneered by Ferran Adrià at el Bulli.
This is another Ho Chi Minh institution – step inside this pork-scented paradise and you’ll find a wide range of My Bánh Mì merchandise to purchase (we recommend the tote bags). My Bánh Mì was founded in 2014, and all of the baguettes are freshly baked in-house, although it’s the meat which sets these bad boys apart – the pork is slow-cooked over charcoal and careful attention is paid to the balance of flavours. There are around eight versions available at any one time (if you’re feeling adventurous, consider the insanely delicious bánh mì gà sả, made with lemongrass chicken, pork pate, cilantro, green onions and chilli) and there are four sauces to choose from: spicy garlic, creamy basil, teriyaki and smoky black pepper.
For an elevated take on our favourite sandwich, you can’t beat the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi’s Le Club Bar. The hotel has a rich history — it opened in 1901 and former guests include Charlie Chaplin, W. Somerset Maugham and Jane Fonda. Whether they ordered one of the hotel’s famous bánh mìs remains to be seen, but this is, without a doubt, one of the most glamorous spots to chow down on the country’s famous sandwich. Yes, at $27 it’s slightly pricier than the ones sold by street vendors, but it looks much swankier too, sliced neatly into bite-sized pieces and served on the finest porcelain. We were somewhat sceptical about the addition of green papaya — if it ain’t broke, why fix it, after all — but the unexpected extra gave it a sweetness which perfectly complemented the pork.
Now for something totally different. At this tiny Ho Chi Minh bar, which you’ll find at the heart of the Ben Thanh Street Food Market, bánh mì fans can sip the No Pain No Gain, a potent cocktail made with rum and whisky and garnished with a liberal sprinkling of chilli (a key ingredient in bánh mìs), which gives the drink a fiery kick. A fun fact? If you’re a fan of Vietnam’s other national dish, pho, make a beeline for Hanoi’s Ne Cocktail Bar, where one of the most popular drinks is the pho cocktail — a rum-based tipple flavoured with anise and cardamom.
This is a Hanoi institution. Yes, it’s insanely popular — so much so that there are now three Bánh Mì 25s on Hang Ca Street, where the very first one opened in 2014. All three are within a few metres of each other and all three have the same cheery décor — think colourful paper crane mobiles and sunshine-yellow walls hung with photographs of rural Vietnam. Staff are incredibly efficient and orders are placed once you’ve grabbed a seat (there are almost always one or two available), moments before your bánh mì, made with the softest, oven-fresh bread you’ve come across, arrives at your table. Traditionalists might disapprove, but there are over 14 versions available — alongside the original pork versions, there’s a vegetarian one made with oyster mushrooms and another made with honey-drizzled chicken.
This classic hole-in-the-wall joint has about seven types of bánh mì — and numerous other classic delicacies — available at any one time. The original version is what they do best — it’s delicious, full of flavour and made with some of the softest oven-fresh baguettes you’ll find in Hanoi. Full disclosure, we can’t quite forgive the presence of a pork sausage and cheese bánh mì, which, basically, resembles a cheese sauce-drizzled hot dog, but the original bánh mìs served here are so good that all is forgiven. We’re also huge fans of the meal deals on offer, particularly the bánh mì and drink combos which start at about $3.14 dollars. Bargain!
This is one of Vietnam’s most famous hole-in-the-wall bánh mì spots. Even if you’re not in the mood for Vietnam’s famous sandwich (although we’d argue there’s always time for a bánh mì), we urge you to drop by to watch the employees in action. Peek beyond the counter, on Ho Chi Minh’s Le Thi Rieng Street, and you’ll see a finely-tuned production line of workers beavering away, constructing this tiny store’s bánh mìs in the shadow Leaning Tower of Pisa-like stacks of pork slices, wedges of pâté and freshly baked baguettes. It’s a hive of activity — there’s a constant flow of food delivery drivers collecting app-based orders, and the queue almost always snakes out the door. But don’t give up — trust us, this $4.70 bánh mì is worth the wait.
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