Van Sandwiches

They re open, under new management i believe. Food is great, slushies, smoothies, etc. are good. price for a regular sandwich is about 7 $ but is worth it! taste is good, meat is tender and whatever sauce they use is out of this world! Unfortunately, it took them about half an hour to make 2 sandwiches and 2 drinks and there were only 5 people in the restaurant. So, if you’re in a rush, go somewhere faster, hopefully they’ll get better before it gets busier.

This place is not closed. Just went there the other day for lunch. They have a veriety of sandwiches, from Italian to American, and a couple of Asian inspired ones.
I ordered a banh mi, and my friend had the philly steak sandwich.
The banh mi was $ 5.50, and for the size, it wasn’t the best deal. The sandwich was good though. The bread was realyl good quality and their pork loaf was really tasty. I liked it.
My friend’s sandwich was really greasy he said.
I would have given three stars had the service been a little faster. We waited almost 25 minutes for 2 sandwiches. It doesn’t seem like they have an efficient system going for taking orders and putting out food. It takes forever, and if you are with someone else, don’t expect your sandwiches to come out at the same time.

Van sandwich re-​open
New owner
Excellent VN iced coffee, and famous sandwich
Banh Mi thit, café sua da, excellent
Highly recommand

The place has shut down.

Having eaten at some of the top-​rated Vietnamese sandwich joints in Little Saigon, etc., I have to say this place is not bad for a little hole-​in-​the-​wall in Gardena. I like their chicken banh mi and the chicken phở (of all things! and this is the only phở they offer). We also get the egg rolls and my family likes it. It’s just perfect for a quick weekend banh mi take out — it’s too far to go to Westminster for good Vietnamese food (unless we are already nearby at the Maps Sports Center or something for a tournament). The ladies are nice, the price is CHEAP — so totally worth it, and the place is super clean. If you are looking for a quick take out and don’t want to drive all the way to Westminster — I recommend this place.

Good straightforward ban mi. Given I don’t have a lot to compare it with– but I’ve enjoyed the sandwiches I’ve had do far. Avocado shake/​smoothie was good. Solid go to. WIsh they were open on Sundays!

The pork meatball sandwich is the best! I eat here after class 2 – 3 times a week, and it’s good every time. Vans is very consistent with their sandwiches. They are a bit slow with making the sandwiches, but they’re always worth the wait. Avoid any bulk orders!

Not a great place for bulk orders.
I was tasked to order 52 bahn mi for a work function, should be pretty straightforward right? I called the day before to put in my order. There was some language barriers, which led my to repeating my orders 5 – 6 times. Its fine, happens every now and then. But then the lady started to hang up on me, again probably due to some miscommunication (she hung up on me 3 times when i was asking if I could pay over the phone).
Finally giving up on phone orders, I decided to come by the next day to place my order. Sadly the process was just as painful. This time i was able to write down my order, but it took her a good 10 minutes to calculate the total. It’s not that hard really? 42 order (10 beef, 12 pork, 5 combo, and 15 chicken), priced at $ 3.50 each. And 10 veggie combo, priced at $ 3.75 each. I specifically wrote (NO MEAT) on the order, and asked her to acknowledge it.
Anyways, after finally getting the total, now she proceeds to punching it in the register machine. Should be quick right? She did calculate the total already? Nope. I guess she never gets large orders, so she had to punched in the order INDIVIDUALLY. Yup, all 52 orders one by one. And guess what? She did it incorrectly. So had to wait for it to be done all over again, this happens a few times, when finally she got the order right.
Fast forward to pick-​up time, I asked if the bahn mi were cut? She said no. Okay, I guess that was my bad for not asking it to be cut. So at the office I asked some of my coworkers to help cut the bahn mi. One of my coworker is vegan because of religious reasons, to him even touching meat is considered unclean. He offered to help out, and I asked him to cut the vegetarian bahn-​mis. The orders were marked in individual bags, but later i found out that we were never given those vegs bahn-​mi. And because of this, my coworker unknowingly had to handle the meat.
Overall, disappointing experience and very frustrating.

I usually come here after class at least 3 times a week. Must try the BBQ Pork Banh Mi, Chicken Lemongrass and rice, o and dont forget the Thai Tea yummm! 5 stars for friendly service, affordable meals, delicious drinks!

Disappointed.
Charge you 50 cents for all credit card transactions, regardless if you spend $ 1 or $ 100. Ordered the chicken baguette for $ 3.50 and avocado smoothie for $ 3. No tax. Although you get a nice 10 inch Vietnamese sandwich, all I really tasted was white, stale bread. The chicken meat was practically non existent in my sandwich. And the bread overwhelmes every bite because THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH CHICKEN! It was shredded chicken, not even pieces of chicken. Skimping on the quality (a.k.a. meat) is the worst! RIGHT?!
They are lucky banh mi is hard to find in this part of town. But one extra star for their delicious avocado smoothie!

Finally a local spot to get a Vietnamese sandwich that’s almost as good as Lee Sandwiches. Their blended drinks are yummy too. Avocado, lychee smoothies & of course… iced coffees. The servers are nice too.
Save gas and try it. You won’t be disappointed.

Nice place to grab a sandwich on the run or chill out with tea drinks. The banh mi is not as good as what you can get in Westminster/​Garden Grove because they use big, thick baguettes instead of thin, crispy, light ones.
I like the dac biet (special combination) and grilled pork with no onions, extra cilantro and jalapeño.

I saw the sign outside that read «Buy 2, Get 1 Free», so I figured I’d have food for the week. But then I went inside and asked about it and the lady at the counter said it was only good for chicken sandwiches only. Um, okay… totes different from what other reviewers said.
Anywhos, the sandwiches are a pretty good size. I couldn’t finish half in the first sitting. I tried the pork and the combo one. It’s pretty good, I’ve had better, but it’s a pretty good choice if you’re not in the mood for subway or mcdonalds next door. It’s a pretty good deal for a lot of food.

This place is Very convenient and cheap. 10″ subs for 3.50 and their pretty good. Perfect place for lunch if you go to El Camino College. I used to hit up subway next door until I stumbled in this place. Check it out!

I was in the mood for a sandwich and had every intention of going to Subway but as I drove into the plaza and parked, I noticed Van Sandwiches. I was still craving Subway but I was curious about’s Van’s so I decided to give them a chance. I walked in and the place was empty. There were two ladies sitting in the back watching tv. They greeted me nicely and quickly as I walked in. For a sandwich place, they really don’t have that many sandwich choices. They have plenty of hot korean plates and smoothie choices. I ordered a chicken croissant and I wanted a watermelon drink but the lady informed me it was watermelon powder not fresh so I decided to go with mango. I though it was going to be a mango juice not smoothie, nonetheless it tasted pretty bland. The croissant was good, didn’t satisfy my sandwich craving though. The prices are decent but this place is just ok. I can easily overlook this sandwich café with all the other choices around (Subway, Chicken Maison, Mc D’s, Dominos, Golden Bowl, etc.)

Lee’s is too far away from work… Van’s is almost just as good! And the Café Sua Da makes my days happier… and probably more wired :)

I ordered THREE of the exact same sandwiches (spicy pork). I was the only customer in the shop. The nice lady, took out one french bread, cut the onions and pepper, then went to the back to heat up the meat. She assembled the sandwich, wrapped it, and put it in a bag. Then she… took out one french bread, cut the onions and pepper, then went to the back to heat up the meat. She assembled the sandwich, wrapped it, and put it in a bag. Then she… took out one french bread, cut the onions and pepper, then went to the back to heat up the meat. She assembled the sandwich, wrapped it, and put it in a bag. 20 minutes for three sandwiches! It would have been a lot easier to make all three sandwiches at the same time. The sandwiches are delicious, so I’ll be back, but not on my lunch break!

BF and I went here last weekend craving some good deli sandwiches. Read reviews on Unilocal and decided to try. Menu was pretty limited but lady in the front (could be the owner) told me she can fix up any meat she has with either baguette bread or croissant. I tried a ham baguette with cheese. Yum! Tasted so fresh and delicious. Will be back soon!

Rats! Someone beat me to the punch! Hahaha.
I saw this place go from an empty leasing square into Van Sandwiches. When they finally opened up I was really excited, because I really enjoyed Lee’s Sandwiches in Anaheim. My first reaction to this place was WHOA after I saw the menu. The Prices are extremely affordable :-). Most of the baguette sandwiches are $ 3 and croissant based sandwiches are $ 2.50!
What a deal! (seriously, I do not know if McDonalds and Subway next door can survive with these prices).
The baguette takes a few minutes to make as it is all made by hand and the orders can back up. I always order the Chicken Baguette and it never disappoints me. It is loaded with all sorts of Vietnamese veggie goodies. The pickled carrot and onions deliver the tangy 1 — 2 punch, while the cilantro and jalapeño draws out the exotic flavors of the southwest region of Asia. It’s a great deal at $ 3. The Chicken baguette is about the size of a subway foot long.
Warning, the «Cafes» pack a caffeine punch. It’s like an early morning Haymaker to the senses (It feels like someone shot pure industrial strength adrenalin into you). It is super dark and rich. They know how to make powerful coffee over here! I ordered the Ice coffee and I never knew Vietnamese style coffee could be so strong. It was only $ 3 which makes it one of the priciest things on the menu.
This place is cash only, so be prepared!
Cheap prices, good food. I’m a regular now!
³⁄₅ stars. This is a place I wouldn’t mind going to very often, but it doesn’t scream WOW.

Conversation from six months ago–
Me: I could kill for a banh mi right now. Why isn’t there a Lee’s in Torrance?!
The Boy: There’s no banh mi in the South Bay?
Me: Ridonkulous right?! Someone should open a Lee’s or banh mi spot near El Co. They would make a fortune selling cheap sandwiches to poor college kids.
TB: So true.
Me: Hey! There’s a vacancy next to Chicken Maison across from El Co! That would be the perfect place for a Viet sammich shop.
TB: You should open one lolz. Do you even know how to make banh mi?
Me: I’m a banh mi-​eater master. I can totally make a bombtastic banh mi.
TB: Go for it.
Me: Ha ha ha…
Six months and dozens of unsatisfied banh mi cravings later, imagine how stoked I was when I spotted a ‘coming soon’ sign next to Chicken Maison for a Viet sammich shop! Though bummed I missed my chance to make a fortune selling cheap sandwiches to poor college kids, I couldn’t wait to get my banh mi on and today was the day.
I got the special combination banh mi; aka, the I-​rather-​not-​know-​what-​kind-​of-​meat-​is-​inside, banh mi. It’s not bad, but I wasn’t blown away. The secret is in the baguette — crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside. The baguette Van’s used was just ‘meh’, and it made the rest of the sandwich just ‘meh’. And I couldn’t figure out why there were tomatoes and shredded lettuce in my banh mi. This ain’t Subway folks! Leave the lettuce and tomatoes alone! They have no business being inside a banh mi but more pickled radishes and carrots wouldn’t hurt.
The verdict: I think the banh mi-​eater master (me) can make a better banh mi, but I’ll come back to try a different sandwich if I’m ever craving a banh mi and need a quick fix.
Less than $ 3.50 a pop and bigger than Lee’s, it’s hard to complain. (That’s what she said?)
Oh, and I’ll save you the embarrassment. Don’t order two sandwiches expecting to get one free, like I assumed from their ‘Buy 2, Get 1 Free’ sign. That’s only for coffee, the lady said, as she smiled at me and nodded like I was a crazy person. The Vietnamese coffee, though bordering on near diabetic coma sweet, was quite good.
You can thank me later.