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Best Banh Mi Restaurants In Hoi An

  Jul 29, 2023

  By Ms. Minh Thu

Overview

You are traveling to Vietnam and have a crave for Banh Mi? Then visit these Best Banh Mi Restaurants In Hoi An. Banh Mi in Hoi An still have general characteristics of Vietnamese Banh Mi such as golden and crispy crust and various delicious fillings, but still have some particular traits. Let's explore the best delicious street food all over the world with Vietnam Escape Tours and you will know which Banh Mi restaurants are recommended for your upcoming Hoi An trip.


General information about Banh mi

Banh mi, or Vietnamese Sandwich, is a popular dish in Vietnamese cuisine, often eaten as breakfast because of its fastness and convenience. This is a dish which has a crispy crust, soft inside crumb and diverse and nutritious fillings. You can find Banh Mi In every part of Vietnam, from the North to the South, from the countryside to the urban area. Anywhere does the familiar image of Banh Mi.

In September 2022, Banh mi, among the 370 new words, is proud to be added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary. After that, Banh Mi is still enumerated in the top 23 of the world’s best sandwiches. Banh Mi has become the signature dish in Vietnamese Cuisine and the pride of Vietnamese people to the world. 

Banh Mi - the signature dish in Vietnamese Cuisine


The term “Banh Mi”

People over the world often associate Banh Mi to a kind of Vietnamese Sandwich which has various mouth-watering fillings. But to Vietnamese people, Banh Mi is a general term referring to a type of bread that is baked from wheat flour, to differentiate from Banh te (made from rice powder), banh nep (made from sticky rice powder), banh bot loc (made from cornstarch). So if you want to buy a banh mi in Vietnam, you should clarify what you want to order is banh mi with pork sausage or pate, or they can give you banh mi without any filling. And to be easier, the term “banh mi khong” or plain Banh mi can be applied.


The origin of Banh Mi

Banh Mi took root from baguette, a common dish of French cuisine. During their Vietnam colonization in the 20 Century, French brought this baguette into Vietnam while building the very first banh mi bakeries here. Banh Mi appeared in the Northern part of Vietnam first, then spread to the Central part and Southern part of Vietnam. 

At first, Banh mi was a luxurious dish to the locals, and was often consumed by French soldiers only. After that, the import of wheat flour to make banh mi was interrupted because of some reasons. As a result, some banh mi producers started to mix cheap rice powder with wheat flour to bake banh mi, which consequently caused the price to decrease. Thanks to this, more and more normal Vietnamese people could try this dish. As the time went by, banh mi became more popular in Vietnamese meals, especially their breakfast.

Banh Mi took root from baguette, a common dish of French cuisine


Banh Mi evolved to fit Vietnamese tastes

Banh mi at the time when it was first brought to Vietnam was quite big. Then its size was then reduced to about 30-40 cm in length to suit Vietnamese eating style. This size then became the standard size, which is typical among other kinds of baguette, and was maintained till nowadays. Vietnamese Banh mi was only formed basically when a bakery in Saigon providing plain banh mi and cold meat, had an idea of putting cold meat inside banh mi which customers would bring along easily and conveniently. After that, many other ideas popped up such as putting pate, spring rolls, pork sausage, cheese..into banh mi. In order to balance the taste so as not to make eaters easily get bored, many people added vegetables and herbs into banh mi, making a great dish for every Vietnamese meal. The transformation of appearance as well as ingredients reflected complicated needs about cuisine of Saigon people. Nowadays, Banh mi is present in every corner of Saigon streets.

Banh mi evolved to fit Vietnamese tastes


Banh Mi is loved over the world

Vietnamese people love banh mi because this is a convenient and fast meal, especially for breakfast. Banh Mi, which has the golden and crispy crust and nutritious stuff, easily enchants every Vietnamese person, not only because this is a balanced but also a nutritious dish. Let’s discuss a little bit about Vietnamese cuisine. Vietnam’s dishes often focus on the perfect harmony between ingredients, spices, flavors and colors in order to boost the taste and increase the attractiveness of the food. Not only Banh Mi, many other famous dishes of Vietnamese cuisine also show this characteristic such as pho cuon, nem nuong, pho,... The recipe and ways to cook are always simple, but the effect on the tongue is extraordinary. Vietnamese people love eating herbs and herbs in banh mi are medium and reasonable to be added. Banh mi is also a nutritious dish, including carbohydrates from plain banh mi, protein from meat and fiber from vegetables and herbs. It is no more needed to have full energy for the whole day than a banh mi for breakfast.


People around the world fall in love with banh mi at Hello. They find that the taste and flavors of banh mi is delicious and unique, not similar to many other sandwiches all over the world. To Western cuisine, which uses a lot of meat, cheese and fatty ingredients in cooking, Banh mi appears as a healthy and balanced dish to enjoy. So when many international tourists set foot in Vietnam, the first thing they do is find a banh mi restaurant to enjoy this wonderful dish in its very motherland. No wonder, Banh mi is regarded as the most delicious street food all over the world and enumerated in the top 23 of the world’s best sandwiches. In addition, the South China Morning Post also listed this dish on the list of typical Asian breakfasts. In 2009, when chef Anthony Bourdain visited Hoi An, Quang Nam, and enjoyed a banh mi on Phan Chu Trinh street, he expressed his surprise and said: "This is indeed a symphony of bread" when he cut the bread himself, spread butter, pate, sauce, and grilled meat inside.

People around the world fall in love with banh mi at Hello


Ingredients

Bread 

Vietnamese bread is the compulsory ingredient, which has a golden and crispy crust, and soft and tender crumb. 


Fillings

The main ingredient for the fillings is meat, which can be bo kho (beef stew), spring rolls, pork sausage, pate,... Vegetables include sliced cucumber, pickles (carrots, white radishes or green papayas). Herbs consist of coriander and other Vietnamese mints. Sauce is also an important element to boost the taste and flavors of banh mi. Different banh mi restaurants use different, unique and exclusive sauce recipes, but often including soy sauce, oil, mayo and chili sauce.


Best Banh Mi Restaurants In Hoi An

Banh Mi Chay

Chay banh mi is famous in Hoi An, is a typical bread of Hoi An with a very specific flavor. Chay Banh Mi also has a branch in the US. The menu of Chay bakery is simple and unchanged. The shop serves two "all-in-one omelets" with pan-fried ingredients and a "burger" with cold cuts of meat. Drinks are equally simple, only iced coffee, milk coffee and mineral water, tea… Banh Mi Chay - a delicious place to eat when traveling to Hoi An, not only captivates Vietnamese people but also foreign tourists, also falls in love with this rustic but rich Vietnamese dish. They raved, delighted with the burgers, pate, ham, vegetables and sauces.

Banh Mi Chay


Banh Mi Lanh

No fancy and spacious shops, Lanh's bakery only has a set of tables and chairs next to a small bread counter. Therefore, tourists hardly know the existence of this small eatery, however, since the 1990s, Ms. Lanh's banh mi has become the pride of Hoi An people. The price has been the same for a long time, you It will only cost from 10 to 20,000 VND to enjoy this delicious dish. Banh Mi Lanh is famous near and far because it is the combination of many factors, from the big crispy bread with butter, fatty pate, fresh deli to the mild taste of pickle. But the "specialty" of the shop can not fail to mention is the mixture of "everything" that smokes in a small pan.


Banh Mi Lanh


Banh Mi Phuong

This bakery was born in 1990, originally just a small stall in the market. Increasingly crowded, the owner moved to Phan Chau Trinh street in the middle of Hoi An old town. The bread that thousands of people love makes diners who have once enjoyed it forever. The filling is rich, adding a fatty sauce, the crust is crispy. Diners at home and abroad do not mind standing in line for 25-30 minutes to buy a loaf of bread. Additionally, a hot, tasty loaf of bread may be had for between 10,000 and 30,000 VND thanks to the charcoal stove. Banh mi Phuong will indeed awaken all your senses, creating an explosion of taste. Biting a piece of bread, we can feel the essence of Vietnamese cuisine in general and Hoi An in particular.

Banh Mi Phuong


Banh Mi Bich

This is also a bakery that is loved by many people because of its unique way of making pate, unlike other shops and also not mixed in taste, eating without getting sick at all! The shop is reviewed by many young people as holding a loaf of bread without water, the filling inside has a strange but delicious taste, no matter how much you eat bread, but trying Bich bread will give you a different feeling. that difference. Banh Mi Bich shop is now moved to Hoi An cinema, at 57 Phan Chu Trinh, the number of visitors to the shop is quite stable, you do not need to worry about waiting in line for too long, the price here is also good. It's very affordable, so you don't have to hesitate to buy, especially since the owners are very friendly and close! Oh, and another point is that the shop is not open for sale on the full moon day, except for the full moon day, and on other days, the shop is always ready to serve!

Banh Mi Bich


Banh mi Madame Khanh (Banh mi Queen)

Also among the top delicious breads besides Phuong bread in Hoi An, there is another bakery that also receives high praise, which is Madame Khanh bread. The scrumptious eatery in Hoi An was originally simply known as Khanh bread, the name of the owner's spouse, Loc. With love and respect, foreign visitors who had been enjoying themselves here since then gave Madame Khanh's Banh Mi, also known as "The Banh mi Queen," a more "Western" name. Customers will never forget the attentive, dedicated and cute owner, who always adds a little "carefulness and joy" into each loaf of bread. For Mrs. Loc (Madame Khanh), getting up early to prepare ingredients, stand at the counter and manually prepare each loaf of bread for customers for the past 30 years is not only her job but also her joy and love. 

Banh mi Madame Khanh 


Conclusion

Above is all the important information about Banh Mi as well as Best Banh Mi Restaurants In Hoi An for you to choose from. Coming to Vietnam, you can’t ignore this wonderful dish. Try Vietnamese sandwiches at their very homeland and share your thoughts with the locals and your friends. Thanks a lot for reading!