Montreal is filled with cheap food options, but none of them satisfy us quite like the banh mi. The delicious Vietnamese sandwich combines the best of Asian cuisine with the finest food that French baking has to offer by putting yummy meats cooked in Eastern styles inside of a hefty baguette. Top it off with coriander, veggies, and sauce, and you’ve got yourself a damn fine sandwich. Here are Montreal’s best banh mis.
Marché Hung Phat
Hidden amongst the delicious offerings found in the vicinity of the Jean Talon Market is one of the best city’s best banh mis. Hung Phat doesn’t have much in the way of atmosphere, but it more than makes up for it with their delicious sandwiches. There are a bunch to check out, but our favourite is the #4, which is stuffed with wonderfully tender sweet and sour pork and covered in savoury garlic mayo.
Vua Sandwiches
We’ve talked before about how great Vua is for being affordable and close to UQAM, but it deserves attention simply on the merit of their banh mis. For under $4, you can sink your teeth into their crusty french bread, as well as the yummy meat and onions they pack into it. Wash it down with one of their famous bubble teas for a delicious meal.
Café Banh Mi Linh
With all of the great banh mi places in Montreal, it takes some serious balls to name your café after the sandwiches like these guys did. Thankfully, they’ve got the goods to back up their swagger. We especially love the Banh Mi Xu Mai, which is packed full of Vietnamese meatballs and veggies. It comes on an Italian roll rather than a baguette, but you won’t miss the French bread at all when you taste how crispy and moist it is.
Hoang Oanh Sandwich
If you like having a variety of meats to choose from for your banh mi, this is the place for you. They do grilled beef and sausage particularly well, but they’ve also got grilled pork, chicken, and more. If you get hooked on them (which you will), you’re in luck, because they offer a “Buy 10 Get 1 Free” card. The only thing we love more than banh mis are free banh mis!
Cao Thang
Even though the area is called Chinatown, it’s also home to some of the best Vietnamese food in the city, as you’ll see when you take a bite of one of Cao Thang’s banh mis. You’ll want to give the dac biet a try, which is filled with a bit of many of the different offerings here. You’re sure to love gnawing your way through the delightfully chewy bread just to get to them.
Thaison 1997
There are lots of things that go into making a great banh mi, but one of the most important is most definitely the bread. Thankfully, this place knocks it out of the park in that department. It has that perfect contrast that you crave, where the inside is nice and soft, but the outside is just crispy enough to make you work. They don’t skimp on what’s inside the bread, either, as their xiu mai are some of the best in town.
Marché Kim Phat
Come here for a no-frills banh mi done exactly the way you like it. They’ve got everything you want from your banh mi experience—the bread is nice and crispy, the meat is tasty, and the garnishes add that little bit of flavour you look for to make a banh mi pop. Since it’s a market, you can also come up to stock up on all your East Asian food needs.
Marché Orientale
You might have trouble finding it amidst the delicious Asian foods that line the aisles of this family-run market, but the store is home to one of the city’s best banh mis. The bread and the meat combine perfectly to get you that banh mi flavour you crave. If you’re still looking for banh mi deliciousness after your sandwich, don’t worry, because Marché Hung Phat is right next door!
Restaurant Lieu O
Everyone has different ideas about what makes a good banh mi, but we particularly love crispy bread, and this is the place to go for that. It’s not exactly easy on your teeth, but the delicious flavour you get makes it more than worth the struggle. They’ve got lots of delicious varieties, but we’re particularly partial to the grilled sausage sandwich.
Fusion Asiatique Santé
1550 Boulevard de La Cote Vertu
As much as we love a good banh mi, sometimes you need the perfect drink to compliment it, and that’s what you’ll find in the coffee here. The coffee beans are actually imported from Vietnam, and you’ll get a delicious taste of authenticity in every sip. No matter what you get in your sandwich, an extra jolt of caffeine is perfect for helping you wake up and enjoy it.
Vie&Nam
This place is famous for their banh mis, and it’s not hard to see why when you take a bite of one. It’s loaded with pickled vegetables and coriander, just the way you like it. Spicy food fans will love it here—they’ll add chilis to your sandwich to your liking. If you still have room, you’ve got to try their grilled pork chop, which is one of the best in the city.
Banh Mi Tran
If you love banh mis, but can’t bring yourself to go out and pick one up, this is the place for you, because they deliver their delicious sandwiches. They’ve also got tons of tasty drinks to go with their food, like their wonderfully sweet mango smoothies, so you’ll definitely find something good to wash down your banh mi with.
Café Saigon Montreal
Lovers of Asian foods of all sorts will be able to get their fix here. Not only do they have slammin’ banh mis, but they’ve also got some of the best pad thai in town. Even better, it’s a BYOW place, so you can get drunk on your bottle of choice while you gorge yourself.
Restaurant Caravelle
Caravelle offers a stripped down take on the banh mi, but it’s no less delicious than any of the more elaborate sandwiches you’ll find elsewhere. Rather than an array of pickled veggies, you simply get get a heap of carrots and cabbage. Just give it a try—it’s the banh mi experience you didn’t know you were missing from your life.
For more, follow Max on Twitter @mbled210
