Just had one of the best sandwiches I've ever had and for only $2.50! It's called a Bahn Mi.

Bale Vietnamese - French Bakery & Deli has two locations in Chicagoland. The original is on the corner of Broadway and Argyle (5018 N. Broadway, phone 773.561.4424), this intersection is three blocks north of Lawrence Ave.

There is a second location in Glendale Heights at 1971 Bloomingdale Road (phone: 630.539.1550

Now to the sandwich. Vietnamese sandwiches are known as Bahn Mi and there are many different varieties of Bahn Mi. All Bahn Mi vary a bit but all are served on a crusty 6" roll (like a small baguette). Most have 2 or 3 types of meat (like a coarse-textured sausage, barbecued or shredded chicken or pork), usually some sort of smooth pate. Some of the meats don't look very appealing but most taste great. They are garnished with carrot and daikon (lightly marinated in vinegar) or some pickled vegetables and some fresh jalapeno slices and sprigs of fresh cilantro. A version of mayo is put on many and is usually not listed, so beware if you don't like mayo. Most cost $2.50 or under. Buy 5 and get one free.

Your sandwich will come wrapped in white paper, secured with a rubber band.

The bahn mi I had was the #2 or Bahn Mi Ba Le Dac Biet. This sandwich is served on a 6" crusty baguette and the ingredients are: jambon (ham), pate, headcheese (don't worry, just a slice), and pickled veggies. INCREDIBLE!

My wife had a warm shrimp omelet Bahn Mi with the pickled veggies on it.

Bale also carries good noodle dishes. We tried the Bun Bi Cha Gio Thit Nuong, which was cold vermicelli noodles w/roast shredded pork, an egg roll, lemon pork, lettuce, herbs, bean sprouts. What a combination, Very tasty and refreshing being cool.

Can't recommend these sandwiches enough!!!!!!


[This message has been edited by Sweet Willie (edited 05-18-2002).]

Just had the #6, a Bahn Mi Bi or Shredded roasted pork and pickled veggie. Again, a great sandwich.

Also, by the register, there is a hot case w/various hot appetizers. Tried two things:

a Bahn Boa, which looks like a fist size head of cauliflower, but actually is a steamed bun w/a ground pork mixture and a boiled egg inside, VERY GOOD.

Did not get the name, but it was ground shrimp that a piece of sugar cane had been stuck through and then it was fried. Again VERY GOOD!

I really like this place.

The manager told me the Glendale Heights location is open, but is a much smaller store than the Broadway/argyle location.

Just had a $4 salad from BALE. It was one of the multitude of dishes you see spread all over the counter tops when you walk in.

Salad consisted of: noodles over chopped salad, in the salad are: mint, cilantro, bean sprouts, scallions, chopped peanuts, carrots and just for kick some sliced jalapeno. There is a side of pickled veggies. The meat in the salad is two types of sliced Viet sausage and some sliced pork. A vinegar sour sauce is used as the dressing.

WHAT a symphony of flavors, so good.

Bale is good.

I went nuts over their sandwiches too.

They used to have buy 5 get one free and it used to be mix and match. Now you have to buy 5 of the same kind to get one free.

Its good, but little heavy on the garlic. Don't get me wrong, I love garlic, but after probably eating 50+ sandwiches at Bale, I think I am starting to want it a little lighter.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by chichow:
They used to have buy 5 get one free and it used to be mix and match. Now you have to buy 5 of the same kind to get one free.
</font>

As I have never had this problem, I'm guessing it is a particular person who is deciding this, I was just there and mixed/matched no problem. go figure.

$2.50?! They're awfully expensive over there. http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/wink.gif Then again, the $2.00 sandwiches at the local "Ba Le" sandwich shop I like to go to near DC seemed cheap to me... until a friend from Orange County, CA told me they go for as little as $1.50 there. All of the above are buy five, get one free. And, they're very similar to the tasty sandwiches sold on the sidewalks of Vietnam, though those are usually in the $0.20 range. http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/smile.gif

A couple of things: Banh mi, not bahn mi. It means "bread", or "sandwich". Dac Biet means "special". Banh bao, not bahn boa. In VN, the banh bao is often sold by people who ride on a bicycle with an "oven" on the back -- a metal box with a fire underneath it. A guy comes by my house in Da Nang a couple of times a day, riding his bicycle with built-in fire and yelling "banh bao here!"

Anyway, great restaurant recommendation... I'll have to check it out next time I'm in Chicago.

[This message has been edited by danang (edited 01-25-2003).]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by danang:
$2.50?! They're awfully expensive over there. http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/wink.gif Then again, the $2.00 sandwiches at the local "Ba Le" sandwich shop I like to go to near DC seemed cheap to me... until a friend from Orange County, CA told me they go for as little as $1.50 there. All of the above are buy five, get one free. And, they're very similar to the tasty sandwiches sold on the sidewalks of Vietnam, though those are usually in the $0.20 range. http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/smile.gif

A couple of things: Banh mi, not bahn mi. It means "bread", or "sandwich". Dac Biet means "special". Banh bao, not bahn boa. In VN, the banh bao is often sold by people who ride on a bicycle with an "oven" on the back -- a metal box with a fire underneath it. A guy comes by my house in Da Nang a couple of times a day, riding his bicycle with built-in fire and yelling "banh bao here!"

Anyway, great restaurant recommendation... I'll have to check it out next time I'm in Chicago.

[This message has been edited by danang (edited 01-25-2003).]</font>


no no no...the best is eating on the streets of cambodia for 10 cents a meal...

the restaurant banh mi is in the new chinatown or viet town part of chicago...take Lake Shore Drive and get off at Lawrence. viet town is just north at Argyle street between broadway and sheriden...oh and the surrounding area can be a little rough...fyi

Made it to Chicago last week, and took the train up to Argyle... those are some GOOD sandwiches! A bit of a long trip just for a sandwich, but in the end I think it was worth it. I liked the sandwiches so much that I got a couple to go... they made for a nice dinner when combined with the free drinks and hors d'oeuvres on the executive floor at the Palmer House. http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/smile.gif

The owner (Mrs. Le) said that the Ba Le sandwich shop near DC is owned by her son, a nice surprise. And, I was surprised to see such a substantial Vietnamese area near Chicago... not as big as near LA or DC, but a good selection of establishments.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by chichow:
no no no...the best is eating on the streets of cambodia for 10 cents a meal...</font>

Hmm... I've never been to Cambodia! So next, I'm off to SE Asia do a ten-cent Cambodian vs. twenty-cent Vietnamese meal comparison http://www.flyertalk.com/dining/ftdining_forum/tongue.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by chichow:
They used to have buy 5 get one free and it used to be mix and match. Now you have to buy 5 of the same kind to get one free.</font>

Mix and match worked fine for me too... try again!

after posting how horrible most food is at Wrigley, before last night's game, I grabbed a few banh mi sandwiches for my clients. We were munching in these sandwiches in the stands, had numerous people asking (scratch that, demanding) where we got the sandwiches from! :)

Not as Americana as a hot dog at the ball park but soooooooooooo good.

Just out of curiosity, but does Bale translate (or at least sound like) "Paris" in Vietnamese? I think I saw a symbol of the Eiffel Tower on the awning... and because of the French influence in Vietnam (and note the french bread used in the sandwiches), I thought there might be a connection. In Chinese, the pronunciation of "Bale" sounds a bit like Paris.

Just out of curiosity, but does Bale translate (or at least sound like) "Paris" in Vietnamese? I think I saw a symbol of the Eiffel Tower on the awning... and because of the French influence in Vietnam (and note the french bread used in the sandwiches), I thought there might be a connection. In Chinese, the pronunciation of "Bale" sounds a bit like Paris.

Yes, Bale is "Paris" in Vietnamese.

In this month's Chicago Magazine, they claim that the banh mi at Simply It (2269 N Lincoln 773.248.0884) "is more Potbelly's than Pasteur, but it's terrific"

--

For those that are new to Vietnamese food I'd like to point you out to a tasty soup call pho. You can get it veggie, tofu, beef and chicken and really hits the spot during those cold winter days. I am not sure if the above resteraunts offer it but ask around I'm sure they will point you in the right direction.

For those that are new to Vietnamese food I'd like to point you out to a tasty soup call pho. You can get it veggie, tofu, beef and chicken and really hits the spot during those cold winter days. I am not sure if the above resteraunts offer it but ask around I'm sure they will point you in the right direction.

There have been whole pho threads here :) Bahn mi places in NY and also pho places. DC also has some excellent pho. In fact I was there on business a year or two ago and richard met me at a metro stop and we had pho for lunch near Falls Church. I think he started the pho thread.

In NY pho is excellent at Cong Ly. There is a bahn mi place near the places where the bus stops to go to Philly that I cant remember the name of. Maybe someone can add it. Also there is another bahn mi place on Avenue C that is great. Not doing well on names today though Im afraid.

But both my wife and I thought Cong Ly was outstanding for pho. She went there with a Vietnamese co-worker first. We are comparing it to pho we had in Hanoi. Its the real deal. As was the place in DC.