Baoguette

So sad this place is gone. It was awesome. Best bang per buck I’ve had in NYC when it comes to Vietnamese sandwiches. And super fast service! Favorite lunch: catfish sandwich with a bubble tea from next door. Perfect!

This was my go-​to banh mi for a while. Sad to see it go.
While the food was not traditional banh mi, it was still great and an inventive take on the item. Great sandwiches, especially the Sloppy Bao.

Not bad but not great. Their sandwiches are pretty average but consistent when I dine-​in. I like their original baguette sandwich and their sloppy bao. The sandwiches are average-​sized but quite cheap. Pretty good value for what you get. The sandwiches taste eh and they could be done a lot better.
I used to order take-​out from them a lot but they had horrible service. Our orders would come an hour or more late. They would do nothing to remedy the problem. And sometimes the sandwiches arrive soggy and in pieces. Sometimes, they don’t even give us the right order. Pretty disappointing. One time, they told my friend that her sandwich got stolen by a homeless person and that’s why her sandwich is late. I don’t understand.

Some decently priced bahn mi for cheap by the Flatiron area.
Portion size is ok considering you’re paying $ 6 – 7 for a sandwich, and the flavors are nothing to scream about, BUT I’ll put in my personal pitch for the catfish sandwich! Of them all, they do the catfish pretty well: not dry, flavorful, and the spicy kick + a little sour flourish with the catfish works wonders.
Haven’t tried their phở or many other things. Their summer rolls and other smaller plates are so-​so; not really worth the similar $ 5 – 6 price tag in comparison to the bahn mi sandwiches.
If you need a quick lunch sandwich under $ 8, this isn’t a bad place to go. You need to hit a $ 10 min to use a card though, so BRING CASH!

I tried their banh mi for the first time recently. They were out of the classic sandwich so I tried their BBQ chicken. It was decent enough for a standard banh mi but wasn’t anything to write home about. So I’m just giving them 3 stars.

Baoguette easily has the best bread that I’ve tried thus far in the city. (Best I’ve ever had was in Boston) Crusty exterior that houses a fluffy interior. Good ratio of everything inside the sandwich for my tastes, although cilantro haters might find they’re a bit heavy handed.
You’ll get a lot more meat in your sandwich here than in any banh mi I’ve had in Ctown. Meat was juicy with good texture. However I found a piece of bone in my sandwich. Twice. Fortunately I’ve got strong teeth and the meat was pretty tasty so I’ll let it slide as just bad luck rather than attention to quality.

Yum! Just started working in the area and have been looking for an awesome Vietnamese place — and I’ve found it! Ordered the chicken salad with cabbage, carrot, chicken, peanuts & fresh mint — amazing! Will have to go back and try the summer rolls :)
An awesome find for a cheap, fresh and tasty salad!

I had lunch here with my mom. She had the veg sandwich and i had the chicken. Both were very good. I’m already craving it again. We both got our sandwiches mild, which still had a nice amount of spice and lots of flavor. The bread is perfect– crispy on the outside and soft on the middle. There’s only a few stools inside so during the busier times you may need to take your food to go

There has always been a special place in my heart for sammiches, whether paninis, heros, burgers, and tortas. More recently, I’ve taken a liking to the Vietnamese-​style bánh mì, which has unleashed the carb fiend in me to another notch.
The dining environment at Baoguette may be humble — stool seating at high stainless steel counters, opposite of a rather cluttered open kitchen — but the flavors of their food, are more complex than what meets the eye. The ingredients incorporated into their sandwiches — cilantro, pickled daikon or white radishes, cucumber, and carrots — work tremendously well together. There’s sweet and tangy, dancing with the savoriness from the tender, juicy meats (or for the vegetarians out there, their menu offers the «veguette,» made from kung pao soy protein).
The most important component of any bánh mì, is the baguette, yet many places are unable to get this right. Even the best and most generous of fillings may be overlooked, if the bread is not fresh. The bread at Baoguette, however, is how a proper baguette should taste; a texture that is slightly crispy on the exterior, with a pillowy center. There is that crunch that you will both hear and feel, when you’re biting into it – almost a crackle, like the surface of a crème brûlée — but the first cardinal rule: A baguette should never be dry or tough.
If you prefer some heat, fresh slices of jalapeños may be added to your well-​packed sandwich. If trying one for the first time, I would recommend selecting the «Baoguette Classic,» to get an idea of what a bánh mì is all about. This consists of pork, terrine, pâté, and fresh jumble of veggies and herbs, as previously mentioned.
The bánh mì here are the highlight, but there are other items on their menu, including summer rolls, lime dressing salads, and even sticky rice with Chinese sausage and chicken. For beverage choices, you may accompany your order with some hot or iced Vietnamese cofee, or homemade lemonade that have jalapeños for an added zing.
While there was only one gentleman assembling sandwiches behind the cramped counter of this shack-​like establishment, service was attentive, friendly, and quick. I must point out that I am no seafood aficionado, but wouldn’t think twice about ordering the catfish bánh mì on my next visit. That certainly makes a solid statement about Baoguette’s sandwiches, which is to say, they really are something.

There is no better Bahn Mi in the city. Despite some cons, I can’t rate this less than five stars because I’ve had terrible Bahn Mi, and this isn’t terrible. In fact, it’s remarkably good!
Pros: The baguette is unreal, tastes like eating bread baked in a Parisian bakery. The minced pork is rich and sweet. Curried spicy beef (the «Sloppy Bao») is actually overtaking the traditional minced pork (the «Baoguette») as my favorite sandwich, but the traditional is truly delicious as well. Plenty of pickled carrots but not enough daikon. And when you ask for spicy you get it, which I really love! They actually spread delicious, peppery pâté on the bread — this is worth pointing out because some Bahn Mi establishments have taken to spreading mayo instead of, rather than in addition to pâté. (+*****)
Cons: Tiny place, but there’s outdoor seating at Baruch around the corner; vegetarian sandwich is actually kinda gross, but don’t go there for that so I don’t care. Hardcore vegetarians out there should definitely go elsewhere. (-*)
If you want what I imagine is Bahn Mi faithful to the cause of true Bahn Mi, then please treat yourself to lunch here. (=*****)

Baoguette definitely does not make a good Veguette (their version of a vegetarian banh mi) sandwich. I’m very sorry to the vegetarians who have been eating it because that vegetarian meat thing they put in there is really disgusting. The texture is much like that of a sponge and the taste is similar to a sponge soaked in soy sauce. It’d be much better if they put in grilled tofu instead.
Service is speedy-​quick. My banh mi was handed to me about 20 seconds after I placed my order and paid. Not a whole lot of seating space so don’t bring a crowd. I may go back in the future and try their chicken or beef banh mi, but never again will I order that Veguette. :Shudders:

I ordered a delivery through Seamless today seeing as this place has got good reviews on Unilocal.They were the closest Vietnamese restaurant in my area so I thought why not give them a shot. Plus, I was craving banh mi since I haven’t had it in a while.
The only reason I am giving this place two stars instead of one is because they were very swift in their delivery time. It only took them about 20 minutes to deliver the food – granted I reside only a few blocks from them, but still I didn’t have to wait very long.
Now, onto their downfall: their banh mi is extremely, extremely bland and stale! It is the worst I have tasted in my life, and this is coming from someone who has had a fair share of them. It is immensely tasteless and unappetizing. The bread was incredibly hard and was very tough to swallow. I literally took the first bite and felt like I was chewing a sandwich that had been left out for days. The bread was hard and rigid, not crunchy like how they are supposed to be. The carrots were unseasoned (most banh mi carrots have a little tartness and pickled sourness to them). I also specified for my banh mi to be really spicy and all I got was mild at best.
I definitely agree with most of the other reviews stating that you can find a much better banh mi shop in Chinatown for half of the price. Do yourself a favor and go to a different restaurant where you can get two times the amount of food you will pay for here and more tasty and palatable food.

Hadn’t been to this location in a long time. It’s still my favorite Banh Mi. Now you can get a fried egg as well on it but I’ll stick to the original Banh Mi Spicy. Everything about is sheer perfection. The Phở here is outstanding as well. They also have a good selection of mash beverages as well. Usually I get this to go. Last time I ate at the counter which was fine. The ladies at the counter are awesome! You should eat here because it is so good!

tiny place. no bathroom. no beer. cash only.
being vegetarian, i had the vegette. Vegetarian Kung Pao Soy Protein, Cilantro, Cucumber, Pickled Daikon. overall very good. when they brought it out i thought the sandwich looked small, but it was more than enough and i was pretty hungry. the fake meat was good, just like it says — the kung pao style like veg chinese places serve. bread seemed fresh to me, nice and a little crispy.
A lot of other banh mi places dont seem to cater to herbivores so i was glad to try this place.

NEVER AGAIN!!! I can’t even talk about rating the food right now!
I placed an order at 1:04PM and by 1:40 I still hadn’t received my order, called and they said it should be there in 10 min. fine.
The delivery guy gets here and he’s all huffy and puffy telling me that it was too far for him to deliver and he lost money delivering to me. Hello jackass, no where on your website does is show parameters of how far you’ll go! You’re on 26^th street and lex, I’m on 41^st and lex, do like the chinese and get a freaking bike then!
They could have called me the minute they saw my order, freaking google mapped my office and called me and to say they won’t deliver instead of having me wait for an overweight crabby pants to get me my food!
Oh and learn the English language!!!

* MINIMUM $ 10 for CREDIT CARD*
DECOR: 2.5÷5
–Tiny! Seats maybe 4 – 5 people
–Can get very smoky during rush hour
SERVICE: 2.5÷5
–average, nothing special
FOOD: 2.5÷5
–Tried both the Baoguette (Pork) and the BBQ Chicken. Both were average to below average. Received both sandwiches slightly cold. I ate both cause I was hungry.
–The pork in the Baoguette is very salty.
–The bun can be a hit or miss, it was okay today.

C+
I wish people didn’t give good reviews about places that are really not that special.
I went out of my way to come here after work once and was disappointed with the banh mi. I tried both the classic and the BBQ and was not impressed with either.
The bread is just plain bread, meat was okay, the vegetables were not that fresh. It was bearable. I would only come here if I was desperately craving for banh mi, maybe once a year.
By the way, not to ruin your appetite, but I’m having diarrhea this morning after having their banh mi for dinner last night. It was either Baoguett’s banh mi or Bao Noodle’s banh mi. Bao Noodle’s was better so I wouldn’t mind having theirs despite the diarrhea but if it was Baoguette’s banh mi that did the job, I would be pissed. I wouldn’t be surprised, since the ambiance of this place doesn’t exactly scream «clean» and «inviting».
$ 6~$ 7 for this? Please people. Go to Boston and try one of their banh mi in the back alleys shops of real Vietnamese-​Chinese ladies and have something 2x, 3x better for $ 3.
Not coming back.

This is one of the best banh mi places in the city.
The place inside is a bit cramped, so it’s more of an order out place. The seating is just a bunch of stools along a wall. The counter people were Vietnamese and the guys in the back were Mexican, but of course, that’s typical for NYC!
I’ve only had the classic baoguette from here which was only $ 5, and it is awesome. Bread is nicely toasted, and the ingredients used in the sandwich are of a good quality. They are very fresh. I recommend that you ask for the sandwich to be spicy. The spiciness mixed with the sweetness and tanginess creates a flavor explosion. They offer several sandwich options including beef, BBQ chicken, and catfish.

This place serves as one potential reason why the Banh Mi (Vietnamese styled sandwich) in New York City is actually better than the Banh Mi in Boston. Wait a second. I take that back. This place could serve as a potential reason why New York City could kick Boston in the arse (with a fast and furious force) in terms of Banh Mi. I’ll give you my reason why based on my account.
I went inside not knowing what to expect. I saw that they had the Catfish, also known as the Signature with a little spice. So far, I have not seen any Banh Mi establishment in Boston that serves that type of Banh Mi, which is why I ordered it. At the first bite, the baguette was fresh and warm, and it was not stale and dry. It was so soft and chewy on the inside, and the outside had the near perfect amount of crispiness and it was pretty toasty. I have not been to a Banh Mi place with a baguette this good and almost perfect until I came here. The catfish itself was really tasty, it was soft, and had a good amount of flavor thanks to the little spice I asked for. Vegetables were also really good and tasted really well with the spice inside. I was really hungry, and it kept my stomach full for the next several hours.
I would have given this place 5 Stars, but this place breaks the record on the most money that I have ever spent for a Banh Mi ($ 7), even though this place is in New York City. I would definitely come back again to eat the other variants, but the Catfish would probably be the best, because I have never ate Catfish Banh Mi until I came here. Out of the few places that I have been to, this is probably the best Banh Mi I have eaten in New York City so far, and I believe that the establishments in Boston (and even Dorchester) could take a few pointers from this place to make their Banh Mi better, especially in terms of the baguettes.

My fellow gastronome from Manhattan just could not wait to taunt me about Baoguette being spotlighted on Eyewitness News last week.
Emails and phone calls came flying in and layin da smack down; «We are better! We are better! We are better… Queens S**K»
Well… we cannot have that, so several of us from Queens strategized and headed down last Saturday morning to the Baoguette Café location in Mrray Hill.
Five of us sampled almost everything and here are our rating so read and weep:
Regular Pork Banh Mi– not any better than Queens and not as authentic; $ 5! I can get two for this price in Queens.
Sloppy Bao Banh Mi– OK, something different; it is good; but $ 7!
Catfish Banh Mi– hmmm… skimpy on the ingredients; it is only OK another $ 7! Chef had a bad day or a shortage on fish?
Sticky Rice– this was actual pretty good but $ 8!!! There goes the gas money.
Roasted Fish Vermicelli Noodle– pretty good but also $ 8. Duh!
Well, there you have it, Queens Dudes say, «It ain’t good enough.»