Thanh Thanh Cafe

Preliminary review just for the vietnamese sandwich I had. I may give this place another chance to see how the rest of their food is, but based on the sandwich my hopes aren’t high.
Bread wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t very fluffy. Kind of flat. Ingredients were just a bit more sparse than I’ve had at other places, and not very flavorful overall. The sauce kind of tasted like straight mayo, which wasn’t ideal.
Service was quick and courteous; the sandwich was just a pretty big letdown.

Had the noodle soup which was tasty, but won’t return because the restaurant is just too filthy. Not sure how this place passes SF Health Inspection. Seriously, there are numerous health code violations in this restaurant.

Pat is super friendly! Loved their Bun Rieu, crab meat paste in tomato soup!

If you came here expecting a place for its décor, great taste, and environment. You came to the wrong place. This place is great for a quick bite to eat, the sandwiches and noodles are made and brought to the tables very quickly!

Poor quality food, and the rolls are fried in old grease. Saw a cockroach marching across the floor. Phở was bland, and Bun was dull as well. Neither of us could finish our lunch. Ugh.

Horrible Outside Lands recovery choice…
1 block away from home.
Environment: old, smelly, sticky tables
Food: had to wait for noodles to fully cook and separate & lettuce in fresh spring rolls were spoiled and brown… UGH
PHOckMyLife.

Small mom and pop place. Decent selection of food at an affordable price. Portions are decent. Had the vermicelli and the chicken was seasoned well.
They take credit card!

The broth in their phở is pretty tasty, but the noodles are a little chewy. If this place was cleaner I might come back, but for now, I don’t even want to know what the health score is. Anywho the best phở ever (Turtle Tower) is just a few blocks away.

One word: DIRTY!
I was going to turn my back when I walked in but it was too late my bf was already heading to one of the table and the lady already handed him a menu.
I had chicken porridge and he had Vietnamese Chicken Sandwich. My porridge was good but the lady handed me in-​washed spoon with food marked all over it. The table was sticky and the floor was filthy. Not returning! I didn’t finish my porridge.

This is a small, simple, kinda hole-​in-​the-​wall café serving standard Vietnamese fare.
Came here to get some banh mi because Ilana’s Coffee down the street had sold out. We got 3 sandwiches to go but then decided to just sit and eat since the restaurant was pretty much empty and we were too hungry. But then the owner came to us and sneered that next time we decide to eat there we need to pay extra for eat-​in tax. We immediately felt so unwelcomed so we hurried up and finished up the sandwiches and took off. I think the same message could have been conveyed in a more friendly manner, BUT I know cultural/​language barrier differences probably made her appear colder and perhaps she didn’t mean it. In any case, we put down an extra dollar to make up for the eat-​in taxes and swore to never return.
Also, their banh mis are ‘okay’ at best. Ilana down the street has way better baguette and delicious combo and pâté sandos.

My wife had the well done steak phở and I had the seafood phở. Neither broth was that good, the noodles were clumped up in the center, the basil leaves were wilted, there wasn’t much seafood in the seafood phở and the meat was inadequate in the other. There were garbage bins in the bathroom. We definitely will not be going back.

Came here a few times craving for a quick fix for either noodles, rice, or their banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich). If I can recall, I ordered something along the line of a chicken banh mi which costed around $ 3.25. It was definitely good. The chicken has the flavor and all the other good stuff in the sandwich. The only thing I’m not quite use to is the bread. I’m more use to the ones I get from CT where the bread isn’t too overly hard on the outside. Whenever I can’t go to CT for banh mi, this place will do. The fried rice was ok, nothing too special. It costed around $ 6ish.
Also, the service here is great. Once you enter, you’re always prompted by the owner and will be on his way to take care of you either at the table or the counter. I can tell the man working here tries his best to make his customers feel comfortable. So +1 for that. I can tell this is a family owned café which is nice since I like supporting the small businesses. Looked like a hole-​in-​the-​wall place from the outside but it’s not even that bad. Overall, great place to grab quick food to eat or to-​go!
I also heard there’s Americanized breakfast, so you can go in grab a toast with hashbrowns and/​or eggs? Of course, thets coffee and tea as well and other items. Will give breakfast a try in the future.

When I don’t feel like going all the way to the TL for saigon sandwiches or even to chinatown to little paris, this is my go-​to spot in my neighborhood for banh mi. Its nothing fancy, but it does the job and it satisfies my craving.
combination banh mi: 3.5÷5: Bread is always toasted and crispy, but its also very bready. Theres a good amount of pâté on it, theres also a good amount of meat to pickled vegetables ratio. Sometimes I wish they added more meat just because it never feels like enough. Their banh mi is smaller than most places but it still tastes pretty good and its still pretty cheap.
Total for one: $ 3.75

Good phở for a cold San Franciscan day. Ate there after the Nike marathon and it hit the spot. Good phở and we’re picky given we eat phở in Little Saigon in Westminster all the time.

My only spot for banh mi… there bbq pork sandwiches are a perfect portion size, extremely affordable and is run by a husband and wife.
Which only means its made with love.

Sandwiches, BBQ chicken, pork, and tofu, are all good in size and taste. Only for $ 3.50, which is quite amazing.

This is your typical neighborhood hole-​in-​the-​wall spot! I love it!
I come here all the time and it never disappoints! I’ve had bun rieu, bun bo hue, bun, phở and the tomato egg stirfry over lai fun (rice noodle) here. They also give out this shrimp paste which is really great, but it might be too salty or fishy for people who are not used to it. All of the above tastes delicious and the best part is… IT’S DIRT CHEAP!
My friend who brought me here basically grew up eating at this restaurant, he said their food has been consistent for years! I especially love their Tomato-​egg stirfry over lai fun! Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Kind of like a neighborhood greasy spoon diner and deli. Had the Vietnamese BBQ Pork sandwich $ 3.75 after tax. Minced pork seasoned with Asian BBQ sauce filled a an appropriately toasted french roll and topped with cucumber, carrots and cilantro. Not the best banh mi sandwich I’ve ever had, but definitely hit the spot in terms of my tummy and pocketbook.

Accessibility (Parking /​Wait Time)
¹⁄₁ Star: lots of meters when I went
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Service (Waiter /​Cleanness /​Ambiance)
⁰⁄₁ Star: dirty
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Taste (0=Not Edible /​1=Edible /​2=Good (average) /​3=Must Try!)
¹⁄₃ Stars: it wasn’t that good. I didn’t feel to good after.
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Overall Experience
²⁄₅ Stars
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Pictures
BBQ Chicken Vietnamese Sandwich:
Bun Bo Hue:
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Last Words

Sure you could go for their cheap and AWESOME Banh Mi Thit Nuong. But, you could also just sit down and relax and grub-​out on the greatest bowl of Bun Cha Gio Thit Nuong. When placed in front of me, I just stare into this dish and want to cry– it’s that good.

Hot and crispy fresh fried imperial rolls, chopped-​up and spread out over a heaping mound of cold vermicelli rice noodles– with bean sprouts, cucumber slices, roasted peanuts — all nestled on top of shredded lettuce. Then I get to pour the perfect amount of fish sauce.

Yes, the front windows look like they need a little windex and the bathroom is scary, but the service is QUICK and friendly. Bonus: never any weird parts in my food. They also serve traditional Vietnamese/​American breakfast, from Phở to Pancakes! The one thing I haven’t tried yet is the Chao, but luckily there are 3 meals in a day– there’s still time.
I LOVE Thanh Thanh. I just recently moved back to SF and am so lucky that this is my new *homebase* café.