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Vietnamese bánh mì makes stamp in the US
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VietNamNet Bridge – According to Restaurant News (USA), Vietnamese bánh mì (bread) has become a favorite food in the US.

Long before Chipotle’s ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen opened in September in Washington, D.C., with bánh mì as a menu cornerstone, the West Coast bánh mì chain Lee Sandwiches had been expanding rapidly, with 43 units and climbing. In New York, the 2-year-old Baoguette chain has plans to open its fifth location in a few weeks.

Earlier this year, Bun Mee in San Francisco debuted with a modern, fast-casual take on the sandwich. And next week, BONMi is scheduled to open in Washington, just a few blocks from ShopHouse.

The bánh mì is a traditional baguette sandwich prepared with a variety of proteins combined with crisp marinated or pickled vegetables and sometimes pâté and creamy mayonnaise or aioli. The Vietnamese-style baguettes typically are made from a mixture of rice and wheat flour, which offers a crispy crust and tender texture.

Previously available only in Vietnamese mom-and-pop restaurants, the sandwich also has become a frequent offering on menus across all segments, from New York fine-dining chef David Chang, who is often credited with inspiring the bánh mì craze in 2009, to the Nom Nom food trucks in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

These burgeoning bánh mì concepts, however, focus almost exclusively on the sandwich, along with a few Asian sides and salads, as well as Vietnamese-style coffee and desserts.

Chain officials maintain it’s a concept that will appeal to a broad audience in cities across the United States — especially as most bánh mì sandwiches provide a filling meal for less than $10.

One of the largest bánh mì chains in the US is San Jose, Calif.-based Lee’s Sandwiches, with 43 units in five states.

Lee’s was founded by a Vietnamese family that arrived in the US in the early 1980s and initially built a catering truck business. Company founder Chieu Le changed the family’s business name to Lee so it would be easier to pronounce.

In 1983, Le’s parents, Ba Le and Hanh Nguyen, started serving bánh mì sandwiches from a catering truck. It was such a hit that the couple opened their first brick-and-mortar location of Lee’s Sandwiches in San Jose. In 2001, one of their children developed a more Americanized, contemporary take on the family sandwich shop, serving as a model for Lee’s Sandwiches today, said Jimmy Le, also a son of the founder and the chain’s vice president.

Today, 37 of Lee’s locations are operated by franchisees, and the chain is growing. Thang Hoang, director of marketing, said another 15 are expected to open by the end of next year.

Michael Bao and his wife Thao Nguyen opened their first bánh mì shop in New York in 2009 at the height of the gourmet sandwich craze. The tiny 400-square-foot space had only a few counter seats and the menu was brief, with just a handful of bánh mì variations.

Now the couple has four locations in the city and plans to open two more before the end of the year. Their fifth unit, scheduled to open later this month, will be a relatively large 900 square feet.

Once the chain reaches 10 units, the couple plans to take the Baoguette concept outside New York, eventually even to Vietnam.

Vietnamese-American Denise Tran was studying to become a lawyer in New York when a bánh mì craze hit the city in 2009. After a trip to Vietnam to taste the real thing, Tran decided on a career change. She said she believed the bánh mì had potential.

Tran developed Bun Mee, a fast-casual bánh mì restaurant with a name that played on the phonetic pronunciation. Tran found a busy spot on San Francisco’s chic Fillmore Street, far from the Asian neighborhoods of the Tenderloin, which she felt would prove the concept’s crossover potential. The restaurant opened in April.

Knowing that Bun Mee is the first bánh mì experience for many of her customers, she designed a menu that offers both traditional and Americanized versions, such as the Sloppy Bun, with red curry ground beef, house garlic aioli, onion, cucumber, Thai basil and jalapeños — with the option of an additional fried egg.

The 1,200-square-foot space has only 16 seats, and Tran said about half of her business is takeout. Tran is looking for a second location in San Francisco, but her focus now is on perfecting operations as she readies for growth.

Her goal for the first year of operation is to reach $1.5 million in sales, which may be within reach following a rave review by the San Francisco Chronicle in September that specifically called out Bun Mee’s pork belly bánh mì. Tran also welcomes ShopHouse to the bánh mì niche.

Not far from ShopHouse in Washington, a group of investors is planning to open the first BONMi restaurant Oct. 17.

Another contemporary, fast-casual concept, BONMi will measure about 1,800 square feet with about 40 seats, but is designed to be scaleable.

Also going for a playful, phonetic spelling, BONMi’s menu will feature a variety of proteins, such as garlic-lemon grass chicken, pork meatballs, garlic-black pepper pork butt and brisket — many of which will be prepared with sous-vide techniques.

Vegetarians will also be able to choose from chile-garlic tofu or butternut squash bánh mì. Unlike many bánh mì shops, BONMi will not offer pâté as an option, instead focusing on other authentic ingredients.

Even with ShopHouse a short walk away, Kukuka said BONMi welcomes the attention its future competitor has brought to the bánh mì.

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