Vietnamese Sandwich Update

Does it seem like I'm obsessed with these stupid sandwiches? It is perfectly reasonable to seek out a food item described as "one of the best things ever" by your friends. I was sorely disappointed when we were shut out on Friday night so when I headed back from taking pictures this afternoon I decided to try Ba Xuyen again.

Luckily they were open and I found out that they close at 6:30 every night. Ba Xuyen is a small restaurant with a few tables, a small counter, and cases of yummy looking foods. They have a decent sized menu and serve everything from durian milk shakes to egg and cheese on a roll. If you've never heard of durian it is a south Asian fruit that smells so bad it is banned from hotels, public transportation, and public areas in large parts of the continent. Some people love it and it makes others retch. I just wanted to grab my sandwich and go but next time I'm going to be a little more adventurous.

Their sandwiches are all displayed on the wall with very helpful pictures. For each one they show it and then have pictures of the ingredients: cucumbers, different chilies, cilantro, carrots, etc. Look for the red chilies that will denote spicy. I got the spicy shredded pork for $3.75 and ran out of there to drive home and devour my find.

The sandwich is served on a toasted and overstuffed baguette with noodles, carrots, cilantro, pork, cucumbers, and some peppers. Despite its name it wasn't very spicy. It was a wonderful mix of salty pork, crunchy carrots and cucumbers, with that wonderful fresh cilantro and lime juice and hints of fish sauce. There was no sauce so the sandwich is a bit dry but the toasted bread adds a good flavor. A word of warning, because the baguette is toasted the top is pretty hard and sharp. It shredded the roof of my mouth. I ate it in one sitting and woke from my feeding frenzy surrounded by bits of bread and pork. It was pretty damn good.

I was a bit sad that my husband and friends couldn't join me but I'll have to bring them back another weekend afternoon. Ba Xuyen is on 8th Ave between 42nd and 43rd and is only open until 6:30pm.