Banhwich
Categories: Vietnamese, Sandwiches [Edit]
Neighborhood: Parkside1105 Taraval St
(between 21st Ave & 22nd Ave)
San Francisco, CA 94116 (415) 665-2233
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: No
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: No
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Lunch
- Alcohol: Beer & Wine Only
109 reviews
Neighborhood: Potrero Hill
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49 Reviews for Banhwich
I stop by Banhwich every once in a while because its in the neighborhood. They make pretty decent Vietnamese sandwiches. I love the pickled carrots.
Minus two stars for cleanliness, they got a low score for the inspection card. I can see from over the counter that they don't really take care of the store. The sandwich man once made me a sandwich while talking on the phone. When he hung up, he then used both of his hands and raped my sandwich. I don't know where that phone has been, but I guarantee it's not clean! Let's just say it was a tragic experience.
I will keep coming here for my monthly intake of Vietnamese sandwiches though =)
Should be one star, but gets bonus points for the clever name.
The friendly and quick service doesn't make up for the quality of the banhwich.
They serve up a baguette with no texture and the flavor of the whitest Wonder Bread you've ever tasted. The typical banh mi fillings are sloshed with way too much sweet sauce. C'mon! Banh mi require savory flavor with a touch of sweet, not the other way around. Maybe they're making up for the LACK OF HOT PEPPERS. A banh mi without spice is no banh mi at all.
Again, one star for the clever name, but I'm a sucker for wordplay.
I dunno any other place on Taraval to get Vietnamese sandwich. Used to be able to get V sandwich from Lam's, but I think they went out of business or something.
-1 star for candy always empty.
-1 star for lack of other regular vietnames deli fare, like goi cuong, banh hoi, things like that.
There used to be a younger girl who worked there, and I remember the place being very clean and well-stocked when she was there. Place is kinda run down and the older cats there now are mean.
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They make some good vietnamese sandwiches here!
It's a little hole in the wall type place run by some very friendly peeps...
The set up is real simple and the guy who makes the sandwiches is quick and fast.
I ordered the combo pork sandwich and it was pretty tasty for just $3...can't beat that!
They also make spring rolls with the noodles and shrimp inside..my fave!
There is like one table in there and it's tight quarters..but if you're in the mood for a quick V sandwich..this is the place to go!
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This place makes a somewhat decent sandwich. SOMEWHAT decent. Not exactly decent. Not exactly good. Somewhat decent. It has nothing to do with the guy that makes the sandwiches and just about everything else in the front but more to do with the sandwiches themselves...It's like they lack soul or something meaningful...Like, the sandwich feels lacking of something that is unattainable without the help of something...Sounds philosophical and hokey, I know, but I am passionate about food and food is passionate about me. Just ask my big belly.
There are some decent vittles in this joint. The fresh spring rolls are nice on certain days...The egg sandwich is interesting...And the hot dishes are somewhat palatable. Your miles may vary compared to mine...
All in all, a place I wouldn't frequent too often. Maybe once in a while...Maybe...
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Perfect place for a quick snack or lunch.
I ordered the steamed rice noodles with shredded pork and fancy pork this time. It sounds odd but it is an authentic Vietnamese dish. Rice noodle served with shredded pork, lettuce and Cha Lua ( a popular kind of Vietnamese ham ), very light on dressing, $4.50.
This place has very limited seats. I had my order to go and enjoyed it in my car. Not a heavy lunch and it hit the right spot :)
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One of my first ever threads on Yelp was the Search For the Best Vietnamese Sandwich in SF...
http://www.yelp.com/to...
(Yes, I did get a professional smackdown by Hao on that thread...
Oh, those were the days. )
Sadly, this isn't one of them. It fits the bill when I need to grab lunch during my 30 minute lunch break when I'm working down the street- seriously, who decided 30 minutes was enough for lunch, anyway?
$3 gets you a BBQ chicken sandwich, (50 cents cheaper than Little Saigon off of Clement) but the flavors just aren't there... the right Vietnamese Sandwich is something I *crave* and will eat with reckless abandon- again, this isn't one of them.
Parking in the area is easy, going during lunch hours during the school year is a *bad idea* (Lowell HS is right up the street,) as mentioned by fellow yelpers here.
NOTE: they close at 3PM on Tuesdays.
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Mmm, Banhwich! I remember coming here one time (I think it was a Tuesday) and it was closed! A little piece of me died right then! Seriously, who closes that early on a TUESDAY? Whatever, I forgive them because the man behind the counter is usually friendly and makes good sandwiches! And they come pretty cheap! Mm, warm toasty Vietnamese sandwiches! Count me in!
I would recommend taking it to go since the place is fairly small and it's usually jam-packed with teenagers during lunchtime and in the afternoon.
Bahnwich has the misfortune of being my next sandwich review after the exceptional Saigon Sandwiches.
I ordered the pan-fried bbq chicken for $3. For starters, their Sub Centeresque bread was nice and toasty. But the filling was less interesting. More so, the lack of filling was a problem. I found myself biting into just bread at times. The bbq chicken didn't have much flavor and the vegetables aren't marinaded.
Still, the sandwich did temper my hunger for a bit before dinner. Also, their rice plates are pretty decent. About $5 a pop.
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In the sunset area this is my favorite Vietnamese sandwich place. I love the egg sandwich and the spring rolls with cold noodles. The people who work here are super friendly. The guy even remembers that I always get my sandwich spicy with no cilantro.
The closest place to me to satisfy my Vietnamese sandwich cravings. They have other menu options, but I've only tried their sandwiches, which are decent enough. I don't mind that it's not loaded with meat, but I wish they wouldn't skimp on the vegetables. Is more than one cucumber and a few pieces of carrots really going to break the bank? You end up with a lot of bread, but at least it's good and toasty bread. It's not the cheapest in town, but on average they're about $3, which isn't bad at all.
Ehh, their food is okay. Just okay. A lot of the kids at my school come here since it's close by and we have off campus lunch. Their sandwiches are mediocre and their stuff with rice is alright too. Nothing special, but not in a way that it's bad.
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Best place to go to for vietnamese sandwiches. They are cheap and delicious. I love the BBQ chicken sandwich. I wouldn't recommend getting tapioca drinks here though. Also, take your sandwich to-go, cause the place is small.
This place is good and very easy on the wallet. I've been going here for lunch a lot lately and like the creature of habit I tend to be have yet to actually try one of their sandwiches. Sounds crazy, but the first thing I had here was their spring rolls and I've been stuck ordering them ever since. They are prepackaged with 2 rolls of either shrimp, pork, or one of each. One of those plus 3 egg rolls will run you $5.25. I've eaten out for lunch enough in my lifetime to know that's a helluvadeal. One of these days I'll try their sandwiches ... maybe.
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My favorite Viet sandwich place. Yum! I always go when it's not crowded...I would NEVER EVER go when school is still in session during peak lunch hours. I can only imagine....oh God...
No, I usually go to this place during the summer when I have my lunch break...not so bad maybe one or two other people or after work around the late afternoon (4ish).
I always get the bbq chicken sandwich or beef. I hate cilantro...so none for me. I've also tried their imperial rolls, I think that's what they are called? The pork one and shrimp ones are both excellent. =)
Not much choice in the Sunset if you want bahn mi (viet sammies), I just feel fortunate that I don't have to drive more than 5 minutes any more to get any...
Sammies here are good in general, but awfully inconsistent.
Avoid this place like the plague during lunch time if you don't like waiting. With only 2 sammich-makers during peak hours, your wait can be interminable.
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They can transform an ordinary ham sandwich into a practically gourmet experience. It must be something in the dressing, or maybe it's the marinated shredded carrots -- whatever it is, for $3 bucks it's beyond worth it! My only complaint is that the thick, toasted French bread is a little too dry...I can't hold a conversation with anyone for fear of little bread crumbs "pppffffffft"-ing out of my mouth mid-sentence. (yes I do talk with my mouth full sometimes) All in all, a great, cheap, quick, yummy sandwich place!
I had a craving for a Vietnamese sandwich and didn't want to go all the way to TL so I thought about this place and decided to give it a shot. I walked in there around noon and ordered 2 chicken sandwiches, one for me and one for a friend. Even though we were the only people in there is took a while which I didn't mind. When I got the sandwich, it was really empty and so was my friend's. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a big meat eater and I actually prefer my sandwich kind of empty but this was just ridiculous. I don't think there was enough filling to make a decent sandwich with half the bread. Saigon sandwiches is so much better and slightly cheaper. Those sandwiches have at least 3 times the filling as these if not even more. Needless to say, not even the nice man behind the counter can get me to go back. Now only if bahnwich and Saigon sandwiches would switch places...
Neh... I've been here twice and both times kind of sucked. Unfortunately, it's the closest Vietnamese sandwich shop near my house. My first time there was actually around the time it opened. At the time my sister had a big Vietnamese sandwich phase. Every weekend we used to go all the way to Clement to go to Little Paris for their BBQ Beef sandwich, but sadly us it closed down :( So to suppress our sadness, we wanted to find a nice local shop. While we were driving on Taravel one day, we saw Banhwich. In my head I thought, what a cute name! (In Vietnamese the word for sandwich is Banh Mi so I liked their play on words.) So we stopped by and decided to try the pork sandwich. When we got home we found that the sandwich had sort of a bleach-y taste to it... somewhat bland and as if someone sprinkled something special ingredients on it. Definitely wasn't too happy with that. I gave it another try recently and it wasn't as bad as the first time, but there was nothing too striking about it. Total let down :(
Vietnamese sandwich with bread ala Sub Center.
Inexpensive,
tasty,
and you won't wonder if your heart will stop ticking somewhere during digestion.
One of my favorite "on the way home from Ocean 24 hr Fitness and I'm starved" spots.
Toasty!
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DO NOT COME DURING LUNCH TIME! You'll run into a bunch of high school kids and he will heat up your bread in a different way and it will be hard and your gums will hurt! Otherwise, I love this place. If I'm craving a Vietnamese sandwich, I come here. There is no other place that I will go.
The sandwich is tasty and cheap, and he gives me extra cilantro when I ask him to. BBQ chicken sandwich...you can't go wrong. One sandwich and the 2 pretty fat fresh spring rolls, somewhere around $6. The guy is nice and the price is low and the sandwich is delicious. It's a small place, only seating is the stools at the windows, but if you're just here to pick up a sandwich, which is the majority of their customers, it's not a big deal.
Kind of your typical vietnamese sandwich place. Cheap, good, and tasty. I still prefer the sandwiches from Vietnam Village in San Bruno, but this place is closer and cheaper. If anyone knows Vietnam Village and has sandwiches they prefer vs. them, let me know since they are definitely my gold standard.
Their BBQ Pork Sandwiches are the best!
i love their bread! its so fresh! real soft on the inside and toasted to perfection on the outside. i usually order the combination ham/pork whatever it is.. the banh mi dac biet :] and sometimes an ice coffee and thats it im full :] i think the sandwiches are about $3 something? great price for a great simple snack or early meal! really great on the go but its really small there probably seats about 8-10 people in 3 different sections? simple place.
I love this place. I'm not gonna lie, though - it's definitely not the best Vietnamese sandwich I've ever had. But this little gem is only a few blocks away from my house, so when I crave a Viet sandwich (which is admittedly, like, once a week at least) then I'll grab a couple dollars and walk over. If you're in the outer sunset near/around Taraval, basically, definitely check it out!
Banhwich is one of those standard hole in the wall type joints - best for a drive-by pick-up so you can lounge in front of the tube (or youtube) at home or on your way back to class if you're a nearby Lincoln High student - my brother is, and the owner always knocks off like fifty cents whenever I go with him. Hey, I'm cheap, I'll take it.
I've had their cold noodle/vermicelli dish, too (with bbq pork and Imperial rolls) and you really can't go wrong with that - and this place doesn't. I think they get their rolls from the French bakery next door, so the bread is always yummy, toasted, and HUGE!
If you're from this area, definitely stop by. If you're a Lincoln student - you already go here often, probably. I'm giving this review five stars not only because they make a really decent sandwich/noodle dish, but because the owner in his faded baseball cap and million smoke breaks - is super sweet, gracious and never forgets to smile, and a yummy sandwich to go with that? I'm so there (. . . and I am, most of the time)
This place looked promising but the sandwich elements were out of whack. One, there was way too much bread. Two, I think they gave me one cucumber spear and no jalapenos. They could have asked me if I wanted jalapenos. The meatballs tasted tomato-ey and a bit off. The roast pork was okay. The verdict: Not enough filling and way too much bread. You can even see this from the picture.
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Yes, another local Vietnamese sandwich shop, but not the best one around. Their sandwiches are good, but they don't put enough meat or cucumber in it. I always feel like I've gotten more bread out of it than anything. It would be worlds better if they'd just add a few more slices of fancy pork and maybe two pieces of cucumber. Is that too much to ask? I mean, when you compare the size of the sandwich roll to what actually goes into it, you'll wonder where all your ingredients went. Despite my complaints, I still keep coming back here for a sandwich and I don't know why.
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i didn't like this place for about a year but then i found out they were doing things big for lunch and competing with sushi zen for the $3 lunch price range and boy is this soo much better. keep doing what you guys do and the students of ALHS will continue to come
Is this the new place that replaced Lam's Deli up the street?
THIS PLACE SUCKS! There were 3 people in line and it took them 15+ minutes to get to my damn order. And it wasn't that great. All bread no meat.
They get the lowest possible rating for vietnamese sandwiches: 2. I love them so much that there are some things you can't mess up as long as you're sanitary (which this place is decently clean).
Get good sandwiches--go to Saigon Sandwich
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This place not only has received the symbol of excellence(99 rating!) from SF Dept of Public Health, which if you know Taraval, well lets just say that is quite a miraculous feat...they serve pretty darn good banh mi for less than $3. Sure this isn't top-notch like Saigon Sandwich shop, but did i say the bread was perfectly toasted and not the standard bagette size.
We are talking a bun that rivals the size of ur standard dutch-crunch, but with the same french/vietnamese flavor happenin. I went with the pate and guzzled down a red colored, gelatin, yellow bean cocoction that was sweet and refreshing.
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The perfect Vietnamese sandwich! At about $2.75 per, its a great deal for a cheap lunch that satisfies. I always get the meatball sandwich or the combination pork. The tofu/shrimp spring rolls are also really good and fresh. The owner, or the man making the sandwiches is very nice and friendly and knows me and my boyfriend since we go there so much....Good for grab-n-go, because it can get a lil busy during lunchtime.
Has my vote for the best Vietnamese sandwich in the city. People like Saigon Sandwiches in the TL, but I think this place rules way harder bro.
The secret is the butter+mayonaise+who-knows-what-else spread that they use. The bread is perfectly toasted too. And the pork is sweet, not tangy like other places. Sometimes it takes a while because it's mostly just one guy working, but trust me, it's worth it. Under $3--how it's supposed to be.
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This tiny place is owned by a Vietnamese family (the mom, dad & daughter were all watching Paris By Night on t.v. from behind the counter).
The bread was nice and toasted but the ratio of filling to bread was off....way too much bread. They didn't put much cilantro or pickled carrots/turnips so it didn't quite have that bahn mi flavor. I ordered chicken which was decent but perhaps I'll have to try another flavor & ask for more veggies...
Actually, I don't recall if they put jalepenos or not. I think I'd prefer Lee's to this place if there was a Lee's was close by...and you bahn mi connoisseurs know how that ranks Banwich. But considering the lack of Vietnamese places I've come across in the city, I'd still come back and try this place again.
Millions of Americans suffer from laziness and unwillingness to cook. Don't let that get in the way of your life. Introducing Bahnwich.
Before I met Bahnwich, I had sunk so low, I was resorting to frozen foods. Eating had become a task and it was taking it's toll on my soul. And then one day, I looked out the window from the L and there was Bahnwich, looking inviting and tasty and, best of all, affordable! So I walked in and got myself a sandwich and things turned around. I started feeling like myself again.
If you are suffering from laziness and unwillingness to cook, ask your doctor about Bahnwich.
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I've eaten here twice this weekend. Was craving their rice noodles with fancy pork place above a bed of shredded lettuce and cucumbers. The menu says it comes with shrimp cake, but that was missing both times. Their cha gio is made with the type of skin that I like, not like a chinese egg roll skin. YUM!!! I find their banh mi thit nuong to be too fatty for my taste, going to try the banh mi siu mai next time. I think it's a husband and wife owned hole in the wall, they aren't the friendliest, but the second time I went this weekend, the guy warmed up and said thank you have a nice day.
Pro: Right in my 'hood, pretty righteous cup of Cafe Sua Da
Con: Pate doesn't taste quite right...
If you know anything about banh mi's, you would know that the pate makes or breaks it since it goes on every sandwich like mayo or mustard. When it doesn't taste right, the sandwich doesn't taste right either. With that said, they would have a pretty good sandwich if they remake their pate with a different recipe. The owner is a sweet man, so I'm not too proud of this review. =(
Not awesome, but not bad. I am a huge fan of BBQ Chicken Vietnamese sandwiches, so I figured I might as well try this place since I was in the area. I am not exactly sure, but it always seems like these sandwiches take much longer than one would expect - no matter where you go. This time it was no different - though I was a touch saddened to see my chicken had been microwaved. :(
I couldn't finish 2 sandwiches - so at least they are filling.
I will be honest w/ you though: if you are in the area, just hit up New Loi's @ 19th and Taraval - they make a mean BBQ Chicken sandwich, and the bread is a lot crisper. But if you don't want to go to New Loi's (since it can be busy), this isn't a bad option when you are itching for banh mi.
If your looking for a yummy place to get vietnamese sandwiches, and not around the chinatown region, go to this place. It's rather hard to find, but look for a yellow awning before the Walgreens.
We always order the #1 (combo meat with "jaa") and the bbq chicken. Im not much of a hard bread eatter guy, so I try to avoid those cases.. their bread here is soft, and they told me it is delivered fresh daily. Once, they ran out of bread on one of my cravings, but thats only because I came in late in the day.
The price is between $2.25 and $2.75 for all their sandwiches. They also sell entrees and rice plates, but definately try their sandwiches! You can ask for no jalephenos if that's not your thing.
BTW, banh mi means bread in vietnamese french inspired baguette :)
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The sandwiches are delicious. They have the best BBQ pork sandwiches. And the owner is extremely nice and courteous too.
They also carry my favorite flavor of vitamin water, which is pretty hard to find, peach-mango!
Food: This place is a very small hole in the wall that serves delicious Vietnamese subs! I went here and ordered the Bbq chicken sub which was very cheap and also very satisfying! The sub is not too heavy but just right.
Service: The people are very nice.
Location: Right on Taraval
Price: Dirt cheap!
Atmosphere: Small, take your sub to go
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