Paris Banh Mi

 

Located at 2703 West Gate City Boulevard in Greensboro, Paris Banh Mi serves Vietnamese sandwiches, coffees, and desserts. It is open from 9-8 every day except for Tuesday. Online ordering and delivery are available.

In need of a quick meal near the Colosseum, I decided to give Paris Banh Mi a try. Knowing that the gold standard of banh mis (Saigon) was just up the road, I entered this chain eatery with lowered expectations. While Ban Mi Paris’s rendition of its signature sandwich doesn’t compare favorably, it still offered a good overall experience.

If nothing else, Paris Banh Mi has menu variety in its favor. In addition to the titular sandwich, there are sandwiches on croissant buns, Korean corn dogs, apps, teas (regular and milk/bubble), coffees, vermicelli bowls, pastries, and more. Whether seeking a snack or a meal, a vegetarian or an omnivore, you will find something here. It also helps that the location is reasonably spacious, brightly lit, and clean.

 

I went with a special combination banh mi (pork roll, jambon, BBQ pork, pate, mayo, and veggies) and a jasmine green iced tea. After placing my order at the counter, there was a very short wait before it was called out for pickup. The sandwich was appreciably larger than banh mi I’ve had elsewhere, but at $8.25, it was also more expensive. It tasted fine, yet it gave the sense that something was missing: more heat from the jalapeno, more of a pickled flavor from the carrots, more flakiness from the bread. The tea was refreshing (and not at all sweet).

Paris Banh Mi wouldn’t be my first choice for a banh mi in Greensboro, but its variety and expediency make it a decent option for a fast Coliseum-area meal.

BaoBao Kitchen

 

Located at 2403 Battleground Avenue in Greensboro, BaoBao Kitchen serves Vietnamese cuisine from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day except for Sunday. Online ordering and catering are available as is (limited) outdoor seating.

Tiny hole-in-the-wall Vietnamese and Thai places are often among the best of their kind, and so I had reason to be hopeful for BaoBao Kitchen despite its limited dimensions. While BaoBao is small (a few tables with limited space between them), the menu is not. Buns, rolls, curries, pho, rice dishes, banh mi, and more are yours for the taking. BaoBao even offers all-day breakfast, a rarity among Vietnamese eateries in the area.

Dining solo, I went with pork bao buns, shrimp fresh rolls, and a hibiscus tea. Though BaoBao was busy, the crew here seems adept at getting food out quickly. I enjoyed most of what I had. The tea was sweet with a tangy note and especially refreshing on a warm day. They definitely didn't skimp on the bao bun toppings, and while their sheer sauciness led to some structural integrity challenges, that also made for a very tasty bite. Unlike other establishments, BaoBao serves three rolls to an order rather than two. However, they are short and smaller. As they were also chewier, this is probably not something I'd opt for again.

Provided that you aren't coming in with a large group, BaoBao seems like a reliable option for modestly priced Vietnamese eats. I've yet to try the banh mi or the pho to see how they stack up, but I'll know to keep this place in mind the next time I'm in the area and want a quick bite.

Kalm Bistro

 

Located at 3557 S. Church Street in the Westbrook Shopping Center in Burlington, Kalm Bistro offers Vietnamese cuisine. It is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Online ordering is available.

I was on the way home from the Triangle, in need of lunch, and in possession of a banh mi craving, so geographic convenience more than anything led me to Kalm’s door. Tucked inside a plaza shared with a Food Lion, it isn’t much to look at inside or out. However, some of the best Vietnamese and Thai places are these too-easily ignored hole-in-the-wall joints, and Kalm proved to be no exception.

In addition to a few banh mi options, Kalm’s menu includes rice and noodle dishes, apps, boba tea, poke, and pho. There are several vegetarian selections as well as a kid’s menu. If I didn’t have a specific craving, I might have had a hard time choosing as several other dishes looked good.

I went with a classic Banh Mi Dac Biet (roast pork, sausage, and veggies on a baguette). Kalm’s preparation was different than I’ve had elsewhere: they serve the sandwich deconstructed with cilantro, cucumbers, carrot, daikon, and jalapeños on the side. This preempts patrons from picking out any toppings they don’t like. At any rate, the banh mi definitely hit the spot. The bread was very warm and flaky, and the meats were flavorful. The cucumbers, daikon, and carrots offered a refreshing balance to their saltiness.

Service here is also great. I got a greeting when I walked in, my order was taken and prepared quickly, and everyone was pleasant and polite throughout the meal.

For those despairing about Burlington’s food options, you needn’t have to drive far to find some welcome variety. Support local, keep Kalm, and carry on.

JakJin Bistro Pho & More

 

Located at 4414 Lawndale Drive in Greensboro, JakJin Bistro Pho & More serves Vietnamese cuisine from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Lunch specials and online ordering are available. There is limited seating (indoor and outside).

 

This small, unassuming, family-owned spot serves up an excellent bowl of pho. While other varieties are available, if you are OK with meatball or chicken, the $9.50 lunch special is quite a good deal. I opted for meatball and was rewarded with a large bowl served hot and fresh. It came with the usual accoutrements bean sprouts, Thai basil, etc.), but I was tempted by the mention of the chili paste being made in-house. Though the broth was plenty flavorful as-is, it added a welcome burn.

 

JakJin’s proprietor was friendly and appreciative, and service was fast. The rest of the menu looked promising (beef basil and stir fried noodles are also lunch specials here) though some of the regular menu items (I’m looking at you, papaya salad) seemed priced a bit high.

 

For those traversing the Lawndale/Battleground area, JakJin should be toward the top of your list of lunch spots.

Rice Paper

Located at 906 Greensboro Road in High Point, Rice Paper offers Vietnamese cuisine for lunch and dinner (10 a.m. to 10 p.m.) daily. Outdoor seating is available, and there is a drive-thru (which may not yet be in operation).

Rice Paper doesn’t do anything exceptionally, but it does a number of things well. There is plenty of parking, and though the building seems small from the outside, plenty of seating as well. The interior is tastefully appointed with dark woods and hanging lights. The establishment was mostly empty when my wife and I visited, but we went during an off-hour (Sunday mid-afternoon). Lunchtime on a weekday may paint a different picture.

The menu here is appreciably extensive. Banh mi, bubble teas, pho, and vermicelli bowls share the stage with dishes less common to the area such as hu tieu or pressed noodles (banh hoi). With the ability to go large or small, vegetarian or carnivorous, Rice Paper has something for everyone.

For our first visit, my wife and I split a fresh roll and each took on a banh mi (grilled pork and the classic Vietnamese ham/pork/vegetable respectively). A Vietnamese coffee and a Thai tea rounded out our meal. The roll was lettuce-heavy but tasted fresh, and the accompanying peanut sauce delivered the expected flavor. The grilled pork banh mi was seasoned well, but both sandwiches were quite a departure from what we were used to. The bread was soft rather than crisp, and the mayo lacked tang. Perhaps Saigon Bakery has spoiled us. On a more positive note, the Thai tea seems like a future re-order, and the coffee was appreciably strong.

As mentioned above, Rice Paper’s offerings run the gamut from small bites to full meals, and the prices vary accordingly. Banh mi are a perfectly reasonable $5 each, and our app (sized for two people) was $7. Some of the rice and noodle dishes run into the teens, and nothing seemed like too much of a reach. Though servers were not always easy to understand, they were attentive and accommodating, and our food came out quickly.

Were Rice Paper situated in the heart of Greensboro, it would be subject to stiffer competition and would rate an occasional visit for some of its less ubiquitous menu items. But in the eastern High Point/Jamestown area, it serves a much bigger need and is a must for anyone in the vicinity with an appreciation for Asian cuisines.

Master Tea Cafe and Bites

Located at 5103 West Market Street in Greensboro, Master Tea Café and Bites offers teas, coffees, and smoothies as well as Vietnamese sandwiches, meals, and snacks. The restaurant is open from 11 to 9 Sunday through Thursday and 11 to 11 on Friday and Saturday. Books and board games are available.

Situated beside a paint store in a plaza between FantaCity International Shopping Center and Ace Hardware, Master Tea is, like many of Greensboro’s hidden gems, easy to overlook. But if you are able to find a parking space in the smallish lot, you will be glad that you stopped by. Whether you have a bubble tea craving, are in search of an inexpensive meal, or just want a break from run-of-the-mill coffee shops, Master Tea has a lot to offer.

As the name implies, beverages are the main attraction here, and Master Tea has plenty to choose from. You can opt for milk teas (with boba), fruit teas, hot teas, matchas, coffees, or smoothies. The food side of the menu is more limited but not without appeal. There are seven different types of banh mi sandwiches as well as a few entrees (vermicelli bowls and pho) and snacks that range from the expected (egg rolls and spring rolls) to the surprising (crispy quail and kimchi fries).

For our first visit, my wife and I went with a taro milk tea and lemongrass banh mi and a Thai tea and a bulgogi banh mi, respectively. The teas were perhaps the best milk teas in town: smooth and refreshing without any graininess or unpleasantly artificial flavors. The sandwiches were good but not great. The sauces delivered the expected flavors and the meats were none too tough, but both banh mi were a bit small and may rankle sticklers for authenticity.

Our food and drinks arrived relatively quickly, and our server was helpful and patient while we ordered. The pricing proved quite budget-friendly though not the outright steal that Banh Mi Saigon Bakery is. Sandwiches were $5 a piece while the teas were $3.75 for a regular (16 ounce) and $5.25 for a large (24 ounce).

While Saigon Bakery may off both lower prices and more sandwiches to choose from Master Tea has a distinct advantage in the décor department. From a well-scribbled chalkboard wall to repurposed doors and shutters as ornaments to blue and yellow hues, Master Tea offers a bright and clean environment that is fun and relaxing without being ostentatious. The establishment is also deceptively spacious.

Good service, tasty food, and affordable prices make Master Tea a worthwhile lunch/tea/snack option for all but the most steadfast purists. I cannot speak to the quality of the pho, snacks, or smoothies, but what I did taste has given me reason enough to come back.

8/10

nOma Food & Co

Located at 2403 Battleground Avenue in Greensboro, nOma Food & Co offers Vietnamese and Thai soups, sandwiches, curries, rolls, and bowls for lunch and dinner. Online ordering is available.

nOma’s motto is “Fresh. Asian. Fast.” and that is a good indicator of what you can expect here: Viet/Thai-inspired dishes made to order in a fast casual setting. It’s an appealing concept, and one that the owners (one of whom, Kieuanh, also owns Boba House) are determined to make work. While there is definitely room for continued improvement, there is also enough promise here to suggest staying power.

Nestled in a shopping plaza near Maxie B’s and Krispy Kreme, nOma tries to make the most out of limited physical space. The green-hued interior is bright and clean with descriptive, easy to read menus and a bird’s eye view of food preparation. It is, however, still quite small, and despite the decorative touches, it may be better suited for take-out than dine-in.

The menu here is limited: don’t expect more than banh mi, pho, rolls, bowls, curry, and bubble teas. However, keeping it simple allows for some measure of quality control, and many of the dishes are customizable. Not only are vegan fillings available (as well as beef, pork, and chicken), but larger and smaller portion sizes are also among the options. Even the larger (32 ounce) phos and bowls top out at $7.95, which makes for a fairly decent value.

Further, nOma lives up to its promise of freshness: dishes are prepared in front of you, and the ingredients appear to be quality. The creamy Thai curry is a standout: try it with chicken and jasmine rice. Unfortunately, other dishes simply fail to eclipse the competition. Pho Hien Vuong has better pho, Saigon Bakery has better sandwiches, and both have better rolls. Nothing here was unpleasant, but the flavors came across as somewhat muted.

Though nOma would not be my first choice for Vietnamese or Thai, it has all the makings of a solid option for quick, cheap, healthy eats.

7.75/10

Banh Mi Saigon Sandwiches and Bakery

Located at 3808 High Point Road, Banh Mi Saigon Sandwiches and Bakery specializes in banh mi sandwiches and other Vietnamese fare. Bubble teas are also available, and the establishment is open seven days a week.

Whether the result of its downmarket location (beside a High Point Road pool hall) or the public’s unfamiliarity with its primary product, Banh Mi Saigon is one of Greensboro’s best-kept secrets. And were there any risk of this review inspiring a shortage, a secret it would surely remain.

Banh mi is a Vietnamese catch-all for a variety of sandwiches served on baguettes. At Banh Mi Saigon, you can pile on everything from roast pork and ham to beef and meatloaf to vegetarian mock-meat and more. All are made to order and come layered with veggies (watch out for the hidden jalapeno) and amply spread with mayo. No matter which option you pursue, you’re in for a treat. The bread is fresh and the fillings sublimely flavorful. I ordinarily detest liver, but their pork and pate sandwich — #2 on the menu – was a weekly standby all summer long. The BBQ pork (#4) and the grilled meatloaf (whiteboard special) are quite habit-forming in their own right. Among the non-sandwich offerings, the fresh spring rolls are tasty once you bite into them (especially when dipped in the accompanying peanut sauce), but the waxy appearance of the wrap is somewhat off-putting.

Given the quality of the food, it would be easy to expect pricing that belies Banh Mi Saigon’ss location. Fortunately, however, the opposite holds true: prices here are an absolute steal. Most sandwiches and the spring rolls are a meager $3.50 each, a few sandwiches run $3.75, and even the vermicelli bowls don’t run past $8. Consider what $3.50 will buy you at a fast-food chain, and you will marvel at Banh Mi Saigon’s ability to stay in business.

Though there are a few tables and chairs, Banh Mi Saigon is best utilized for takeout. The counter staff are polite and relatively quick, but the barebones interior lacks the ambiance to make dine-in worthwhile.

If you are a world traveler, chances are you have had better banh mi than you are likely to find here. But if you are a Greensboroian on a budget looking for a quick and satisfying meal, this is as good as it gets.

8.75/10 

Vietnamese Garden Cuisine (CLOSED)

NOTE: Vietnamese Garden has since closed. Los Gordos Mexican Cafe currently operates in its location.

Located at 2505 Battleground Ave., Vietnamese Garden offers Vietnamese dishes, sushi, and desserts. Lunch specials are available from 11-2:30 Monday to Friday, and the restaurant is open all day on Saturdays.

Vietnamese Garden is Vietnamese food for Americans who can’t handle the real thing. Whereas the more authentic establishments tend to put a lot of emphasis on the food, Vietnamese Garden plays up appearances. The décor is handsome and tasteful: dark mustard colored walls, bamboo accents, and plenty of artwork. Don’t go here expecting a quiet meal, though: the restaurant’s popularity among families and the business crowd means you’re in for a boisterous dining experience. It also means you could be in for some wait time, both before and after you get your table.

Of course, the wait and the noise would be abundantly more tolerable if the food raised its game. I tried the combination (pork, shrimp, and spring roll) vermicelli bowl on two occasions. It was decent the first time around, but the pork was overcooked on the second occasion. It’s also telling that the menu offers an extremely limited selection of pho, the noodle soup that has become synonymous with Vietnamese cuisine.

On the other hand, that very same menu can’t help but curry (pun intended) the favor of diners seeking a break from the usual. Braised quail, crab fried rice, and stuffed calamari rolls give me hope that I’ve simply been ordering the wrong thing. The dessert selection is also impressive and showcases French influences. Mousses and ganaches abound.

For those new to Vietnamese cuisine, Vietnamese Garden is probably a good way to gain an introduction without overwhelming your palette. But if you know what a proper pho or mixed bowl is supposed to look/taste like, better options exist. Only the breadth of the menu encourages a repeat visit.

6.75/10

Van Loi Restaurant II

Located at 3829D High Point Road, Van Loi Restaurant II offers a variety of Vietnamese dishes and Chinese barbecue. The restaurant is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. six days a week (it closes on Tuesdays), and takeout is available.


When it comes to Vietnamese dining, Greensboro offers plenty of options. With gentle-sounding music and nicely appointed interiors, establishments like Pho Hien Vuong and Vietnamese Garden offer a pleasant dining experience. But if all you care about is getting the most authentic food, then Van Loi is the way to go. Located in a slightly shady strip mall off Farmington Road, it is unlikely to attract the business lunch crowd – or much of a crowd at all. I went there at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday and was the only customer. The white-and-green interior is Spartan, and at least a half-dozen Heineken-and-pho posters adorn the walls.

What Van Loi lacks in ambience, it makes up for in menu variety. In addition to the standard soups, noodle bowls, and rice dishes, you can get BBQ duck or make your own spring rolls. There are also enough dishes featuring random pig parts (brains, blood, etc.) to give Anthony Bourdain a run for his money.


Eschewing the exotic, I opted for a grilled pork-and-egg roll vermicelli bowl. The meat was suspiciously red, though quite tasty and not undercooked. The incorporation of mint was a nice touch, but on the whole, the dish wasn’t markedly better than it was at any of Van Loi’s more Westernized competitors.

Pricing at Van Loi is higher than the rudimentary interior design suggests. Nothing here is unreasonable – my entree was $8 and you can feed yourself for under $10 – but again, it is comparable to the competition. A family-owned restaurant, Van Loi employs minimal staff. This isn’t a problem due to the aforementioned emptiness, but I wouldn’t want to be there on a busy day.

The diversity of the menu makes Van Loi worth at least a second visit, and a sampling of some of the Chinese BBQ items might lead to a reappraisal. But for now, “authenticity” isn’t enough to put Van Loi ahead of Greensboro’s more appealing Vietnamese establishments.

7/10

Pho Hien Vuong

Located at 4109-A Spring Garden St., Pho Hien Vuong serves Vietnamese and Thai cuisine including pho (noodle soup), rice, noodle and vegetarian dishes. A $4.95 lunch special changes daily and the restaurant is open on Sundays.

The measure of a bad Asian restaurant is that everything tastes the same. At Pho Hien Vuong, everything is good, but nothing tastes the same. Several pages worth of menu options ensure there’s plenty of variety to be found. In the mood for something light? Try a spring roll. They come fresh (steamed) or fried, vegetarian or with shrimp, with peanut sauce. Want something heavier? Dig into a bowl of pho. The soups come with your choice of noodle (egg, clear or rice) and filling and enough accouterments (cilantro, sauces, bean sprouts, etc.) to allow you to season to your liking.



Thai dishes, such as curries and pad thai, have enough seasoning to please those familiar with the cuisine without overwhelming the palates of newcomers. Other authentic staples include Tom soups, lemon grass dishes and Vietnamese-style ribs.



Prices at Pho Hien Vuong are more than reasonable. The lunch specials, which include rice and a spring roll, are a bargain, and many of the regular entrees run $8 or less. Seafood dishes are less economical, but even the $13 shrimp pad thai isn’t an outrage. Service is satisfactory – the wait staff is prompt, but they don’t rush you — and the atmosphere (plenty of booths, gentle music, a large fish tank) is comfortably elegant. The only real downside to Pho Hien Vuong is its lack of parking. The lot is tiny and fills up quickly, rendering the restaurant virtually inaccessible during the lunch rush.



Like a Swiss army knife, Pho Hien Vuong’s versatility comes in handy in a variety of situations. Whether you have a craving for a particular dish or no clue what you want; whether you’re well-versed with Vietnamese or Thai cuisine or are just starting out, Pho Hien Vuong has you covered.



8.5/10