Saigon Bakery & Deli

After trying some of the mushroom tofu shared with by a coworker, I ventured out to get some for myself. My principal draw, the aforementioned tofu was (still) delicious; that day, there was also lemongrass tofu as well.
Not having had lunch, I ordered a #5 sandwich, an avacado bubble tea and a sugarcane juice. Each was good– although pieces of the meat the sandwich had too much fat in it for my liking the flavor was well balanced and tasty. The avacado bubble tea was more of a smoothie and the sugarcane juice was refreshing, but it was also the least sweet version I’ve ever had of this. Perhaps, though, this isn’t a fair comparison since I’ve also tried the juice in India and in Brasil as well.
There are vegetarian options, cakes, take away portions and cakes. It seems to sell rather eclectic food items, but it all seems to work.
Parking is in the lot that is shared with the rest of Eden Plaza.
I would certainly not hesitate to return and try different things each time!

i dont the lackluster reviews, perhaps im not vietnamese enough to give a good critique but i tried 2 bahn mi sandwiches (the number four and five), both were delicious. i preferred the four though
the deli also sells small vietanamese pastry and cold drinks
there is not much room to sit
the counter staff is nice. the elderly vietanamese counter woman made our sandwiches and was very nice. they were around 5 bucks if i recall the price. they put a long stack of cilantro (vile weed!) which was very easy for me to take out
id like to try their boba when i come around to the area next time but i will be back.

Their Vietnamese Iced Coffee & Mushroom Tofu are amazing! Their tofu is pleasantly firm, flavor is amazing, and they will give you a side of fish sauce for dipping if you ask for it.
Their pork egg rolls were served iced cold and the filling was meh. The owner really tries to up sell you so you gotta get in and order quick. Luckily I know exactly what I want when I walk in. The first time I came, she talked me into buying 6 egg rolls for $ 5 (I only needed 2 for the BF!)…I didn’t realize I only saved a total of 10 cents on all 6 until I got home… I don’t deal well with shopping under pressure.
I have been here the past 4 weekends for iced coffee and I wanted it frozen last time, so I asked for «1 vietnamese coffee frozen» and they repeated my order back to me but then handed me an iced coffee. When I explained that I wanted it frozen, the owner scolded me and said «Next time you need to ask for a Coffee Smoothie, don’t say frozen»
Whoops. Kind of annoying to be treated like a kid but I will keep coming back for their coffee until I find a better place.

Bread: Sufficient, but underwhelming — gave us the crisp and the chew without much else. Definitely not baked on the premises.
Meat: First thing I noticed was that instead of beurre, it was slathered with mayonnaise. While some don’t mind it, I find it a big, unsatisfying cheat as mayo supplies only the creamy texture while skipping out on flavor. The protein the cold cut combo was serviceable, but nothing spectacular– overprocessed and definitely not house made. The meatball was equally disappointing — the only detectable flavor was black pepper — not that pork savoriness one seeks out of a Vietnamese meatball. It was also denser than the other two sampled.
Pickles: While the wife loved the ample number of carrots, I thought the shaved radish/​carrot medley offered neither the crunchy texture nor the vinegary bite of properly julienned pickle slaw.
Overall Flavor: One of the very few banh mi sandwiches that I would turn down if offered again. None of the components added up to anything worth eating again. I dare say that a McChicken has more flavor (albeit, artificially enhanced) than this sandwich.

Worst bubble milk tea I’ve ever had in my life. Save yourself a trip and don’t have it here. Sadness.

Great stop-​in for Buy 5, Get 1 Free humongous sesame balls (not that you need that many, but if you’re splitting with your family or a group of people, I deem it OK), steamed pork buns, and other Vietnamese dessert staples and pastries.
The lady is SUPER nice, but also wants to sell you every item in the store. I suppose being right next door to Song Que is the reason for her aggressiveness which I can’t really blame her for.

The owners were fantastic but the milk tea was not very tasty. All four of us were a bit disappointed.
We will be back for the delicious food but not the tea.

I was wandering around Eden Center with a friend last weekend and went into this place for some steamed buns. I’d had bbq pork buns at restaurants before, and have had the frozen ones from Trader Joe’s (which are actually really good!). The buns from this place are excellent. The steam bun dough is light and fluffy, and just a tad sweet, which complimented the saltiness of the pork really well. I also got some with chicken filling, which also had another surprise inside — a hard-​boiled egg. The egg added good flavor, and the chicken was great. Of course, you can’t really go into any of the places in Eden Center without leaving with something you weren’t planning on buying. So I also got these things that are like Vietnamese empanadas — sorry to be ignorant and not know the name of them! Anyway, I got a pork one and a chicken one. The crust was great — flaky and buttery, but not greasy. And both types of fillings were very good. I’ll definitely be back to Saigon Bakery and Deli, And I’m sure I’ll come away with something else new and delicious!

I think I found my new go to bubble tea place.
I’ve always been a Song Que person due to their coconut. If you read the reviews, everyone says it is lovely. Try it here. I find the one here better overall.
Also, they do take cards and offer the same selections as Song Que and their bakery competitors. The bread here for their Banh Mi’s I think is better too.
Don’t let its appearance fool you, although small, take a look and try it.

I was feeling adventurous last weekend so I cheated on my usual Eden Center bakery Song Que for the lesser known Saigon Bakery and Deli. If I was Cher, I would turn back time because my experience was not so great. I ordered banh cuon which is a Vietnamese dish that I can only describe as a shrimp and mung bean muffin and an egg roll and both were served ice cold even though they had been sitting under a heat lamp. There were no offers to warm things up like they do at Song Que for me.
All of the reviewers were right — the lady up front barely speaks any English but boy does she know the art of the upsell! I had to respectfully decline and I am glad I did because my food was basically unrecognizable due to it having been sitting out so long.
i gave Saigon Bakery & Deli an extra star because they have pulled through for me with their chicken and beef skewers which I can easily pick up before a party, stick it in the oven and voila instant Vietnamese housewife without the mess (or tattooed eyeliner but that’s another story).

I hate to say this because I really like the owners of this place — BUT the hot tofu hasn’t been very consistent lately. From the tofu itself to the ginger, it varies, meaning you can get a batch of tofu that’s a bit on the grainy? side (I can’t quite describe it), or ginger syrup that was a bit watered down. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, I get a little upset because I order 4 – 6 containers at a time (yea I told you I was a obsessed! hahaha).
All in all, I enjoy it and still prefer Saigon Bakery & Deli to others, but the lack of consistency is an issue.

They sell ning-​gao even when it’s not Chinese New Years!
Haven’t tried their hot foods/​sandwiches, but their ning gao is great and it’s pretty much the only place I’ve found that has it more than one month out of the year. And it’s fresh!

Saigon Bakery always tries to upgrade you! I came in looking to buy just one brick of banh chung, but ended up walking out with two plus another random Vietnamese cake. I actually have no idea what I bought — the lady behind the counter was speaking to me in at least three different languages at once, and I couldn’t fault her logic that more was better than less. The ability to order in either English or Vietnamese is a pleasant change, but you’re now more susceptible to them pandering their goods.
Aside from the lunar new year stuff, I tried the avocado smoothie with tapioca bubbles and my buddy ordered the red bean smoothie. We agreed they tasted watered down, which is probably why I found the durian flavor so tolerable last time. The banh da lon (green striped thingy like banh com) comes in a larger serving size than found at other places, and it’s just as sweet and chewy. None of the baked goods outside of the display case have name tags, but a few have price stickers. The banh cam (fried sesame balls) are a good reason to go here as well. They also have indoor seating here unlike Cha Kim Phung, Huong Binh, and Phuoc Loc; that’s sometimes a good reason to buy some pastries here if you’re walking around Eden Center. Though Saigon Café offers some scrumptious baked goods, I still prefer Song Que for their consistency and larger variety of offerings.

Of all 4 bakeries on the sidewalk at Eden Center, Saigon Bakery is the unwanted stepchild of the bunch. It’s smaller, there is no line waiting for banh mi like the other bakeries, etc. It’s almost a little sad when you go in there, but fear not — there are other treats to come here for…
Banh bao (large steamed dumplings filled with minced pork, mushroom, onion, Chinese sausage, and hard-​boiled egg) — Saigon Bakery is my go-​to place for ‘em. I’m pretty picky about my banh bao, and don’t like the crumbly overly doughy, overly sweet ones. No, Saigon Bakery’s are just right with thinner, chewier, just sweet-​enough dough. One of them had shiitake mushrooms (a little different for me), though, and one used wood ear/​cloud ear mushroom. I prefer the latter. They were freshly made, and still slightly warm.
I was just there collecting some goodies for Tet yesterday, and their sesame balls were still warm and toasty. Heated up in the toaster oven later that night, the rice flour was wonderfully crisp at first bite but then immediately yielded to a nice, thick layer of gelatinous rice flour and a perfectly sweet, slightly coconutty mung bean center. They were excellent, making me sigh with nostalgia over my childhood and say how much better they were over the Chinese’s red bean paste version.
They also carry pandan leaf and regular sweet & unsweetened soy milk; I suspect it may be from the tofu shop a couple doors down though. Other than that, the only things they have that the other bakeries might not is its selection of exotic fruits, although not always in the freshest condition.
Overall, this place is probably 2.5 stars, but I’m ranking them a 4 for those top-​notch banh bao & sesame balls.

What do you do when there are 3 Vietnamese bakeries side-​by-​side? I’ll save you the trouble and recommend that you stick with Song Que. Having tried all three (Saigon Bakery, Kim Phung Bakery, and Song Que) there is one undisputed choice.
Saigon: Bahn mi bread is soft and vegetables slightly limp. Lacks the crisp texture and flavor when compared to Song Que. The triple combination dessert (shaved ice with sweetened beans and jelly) is salty and off-​putting. The lack of customers added an unpleasant feeling in the air.
Song Que: Bahn mi starts with a crunch. The flaky shell signifies the perfect bread (see «Ratatouille»), the vegetables pickled and snappy, and the meat wonderfully marinated. You pay a premium ($ 3.00-$ 3.50) but it’s well worth the paying extra for quality. Triple combination dessert is addictive. it’s where everybody comes. Always a crowd.
Kim Phung: A very small shop with limited options. Triple combination is not offered so comparison is difficult. Didn’t have the stomach capacity for another bahn mi but I purchased a pre-​packaged rice dish instead. OIly and heavy. Again, the lack of customers lack of customers added an unpleasant feeling in the air.
[Last Visit: December 2010]

Located in Eden Center, Saigon Bakery & Deli is a good spot for getting sandwiches and bubble tea. Its a small spot filled with variety of Vietnamese foods, which I don’t know enough about to describe in this review.
They only have a few tables with chairs, probably seating for around 10 people.
They seem to specialize in cakes. I usually try a new flavor or style each time I go here.
I love the flavors in the sandwiches, but I don’t like the hard bread. I usually bring the sandwich home and microwave it for 25 seconds to get the bread warm and soft… then its awesome. I guess there are people who like hard bread, but I am not a fan of it. But I’ll stress, that I did like the flavors of the sandwich.

A new Vietnamese bakery where Song Que used to be. My friends and I tried Song Que but they were closed at the time, and that’s why we ended up here. Different workers but same products offered. While the cashier at the time was selling us on how her banh mi’s and bobas were good, they weren’t as good as what Song Que offered. Banh mi’s were less hearty in filling with the grilled pork not as flavorful. The boba teas tasted syrupy.
It does the job if you need a banh mi fix, but if you actually want good product, walk a few doors down to Song Que for quality product.