Bun Mi Express (& Mr. Taco, sort of)

I've been closely following (on another site) the reviews of two "fast casual" places that opened in my Lakeview neighborhood recently: Mr. Taco and Bun Mi Express.

In the case of the latter, I dared to hope--dream--that I might be able to buy a banh mi without having to drive to Broadway & Argyle. In the case of the former, there's some morbid curiosity to watching a place seem to fail so spectacularly. (11 Yelp reviews and the place is averaging only 2 stars. In all fairness, that excludes a number of reviews from one-hit posters who apparently thought the food was so spectacular that they joined Yelp, gave Mr. Taco a 5-star rating & each wrote a single sentence praising the place.)

Bun Mi, on the other hand, has actually been getting some love on that other site, so yesterday I finally broke down and decided to give it a try.

In all fairness, this place is trying. Lovely, clean space, a lot of exposed wood, seating in the front window & back area, open kitchen and a small (very small) selection of French & Vietnamese groceries for sale in addition to a selection of banh mi, Vietnamese salads and spring rolls.

Near the register they were offering samples of their pork roll sandwich (pork roll & pate, plus cucumber, cilantro, jalapeno, daikon radish, carrot and mayo). I tried a piece and my reaction was a bit "eh." As generic sandwiches go, it was perfectly serviceable. My complaint? The piece I had (about 3 bites) didn't taste distinctively Vietnamese. I will admit, however, that slicing a foot-long sandwich into a dozen pieces that had probably been sitting there for half an hour doesn't necessarily present even the best sandwich in the best light.

My standard order at Ba Le is the chicken banh mi with jalapenos on the side. (I like to control the heat myself.) Wanting to do an apples-to-apples comparison, that's what I ordered.

On the plus side:
1. I suspect I arrived before the evening rush (about 6 pm on a Sunday), but the bread was obviously fresh.
2. The sandwich is probably 2-3" longer than a Ba Le banh mi (and costs $4.85).

Unfortunately:
1. The bread lacks that rice flour crunchy crust + pillowy inside. This had a crunchy crust, but wasn't as yeasty/fluffy.
2. The garnishes were lacking. Once I got mine unwrapped & looked inside, I realized why the pork roll didn't taste very Vietnamese-y. When you skimp on the cilantro, daikon & carrot, you're going to lose some of that great flavor.
3. There wasn't much chicken on the sandwich either.
4. The weirdest part: Have you ever noticed that grocery stores which cater to certain ethnicities often have their own distinct odor, but one that often doesn't smell like any specific dish you've ever eat? Vietnamese grocers, in particular, seem to have a funk that seems to be a combination of dried mushrooms + soy sauce and fish sauce that has probably spilled & evaporated over the years. But I've never eaten a Vietnamese dish that tastes like Vietnamese grocery stores smell. Well, until last night. My chicken banh mi tasted like a Vietnamese grocery store. And not in a particularly good way. Very salty. I noticed Maggi seasoning offered as a condiment at Bun Mi Express, and wonder if that's the primary flavoring for the chicken. If not, I suspect it's cooked with a pre-mixed package of spices. (I was originally going to call this post "What's that smell?")

(Let me say that I'm sure a chicken banh mi gets dismissed as boring. Done well, it's sublime. Ba Le does a fantastic job with theirs. I never order chicken sandwiches because they're dull and often the chicken is dry/overcooked. Ba Le's is tender, moist and flavorful.)

Bottom line: I have no plans to rush back, though I might be willing to give Bun Mi Express another try with a different sandwich. The pork roll & chicken sandwiches were each unacceptable for different reasons--one too boring and the other too heavy-handed. Is it possible they have another that is a compromise between those two extremes? Possibly.

Bun Mi Express
3409 N Broadway St
Chicago, IL 60657

Mr. Taco
3332 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60657

Ah, Chicago magazine, you disappoint me.

chgoeditor wrote:4. The weirdest part: Have you ever noticed that grocery stores which cater to certain ethnicities often have their own distinct odor, but one that often doesn't smell like any specific dish you've ever eat? Vietnamese grocers, in particular, seem to have a funk that seems to be a combination of dried mushrooms + soy sauce and fish sauce that has probably spilled & evaporated over the years. But I've never eaten a Vietnamese dish that tastes like Vietnamese grocery stores smell. Well, until last night. My chicken banh mi tasted like a Vietnamese grocery store. And not in a particularly good way. Very salty. I noticed Maggi seasoning offered as a condiment at Bun Mi Express, and wonder if that's the primary flavoring for the chicken. If not, I suspect it's cooked with a pre-mixed package of spices. (I was originally going to call this post "What's that smell?")

That sounds very unappetizing. Ba Le sandwiches also smell really funny if you do not eat them immediately.

theskinnyduck wrote:
That sounds very unappetizing. IMOM, Ba Le sandwiches also smell really funny if you do not eat them immediately.

all-acronyms.com wrote:4 IMOM definitions

Improved Many on Many
Improved Many-on-Many
Integrated Many Radars On Many Targets
Intelligence Many-on-Many

incite wrote:

theskinnyduck wrote:
That sounds very unappetizing. IMOM, Ba Le sandwiches also smell really funny if you do not eat them immediately.

all-acronyms.com wrote:4 IMOM definitions

Improved Many on Many
Improved Many-on-Many
Integrated Many Radars On Many Targets
Intelligence Many-on-Many

Really??

theskinnyduck wrote:

chgoeditor wrote:4. The weirdest part: Have you ever noticed that grocery stores which cater to certain ethnicities often have their own distinct odor, but one that often doesn't smell like any specific dish you've ever eat? Vietnamese grocers, in particular, seem to have a funk that seems to be a combination of dried mushrooms + soy sauce and fish sauce that has probably spilled & evaporated over the years. But I've never eaten a Vietnamese dish that tastes like Vietnamese grocery stores smell. Well, until last night. My chicken banh mi tasted like a Vietnamese grocery store. And not in a particularly good way. Very salty. I noticed Maggi seasoning offered as a condiment at Bun Mi Express, and wonder if that's the primary flavoring for the chicken. If not, I suspect it's cooked with a pre-mixed package of spices. (I was originally going to call this post "What's that smell?")

That sounds very unappetizing. Ba Le sandwiches also smell really funny if you do not eat them immediately.

"If you don't eat them immediately..."? Are there really people who are capable of showing such restraint?

(FWIW, I started eating my Bun Mi sandwich approximately 8 minutes after it was handed to me. In other words, it took me to walk home.)

incite wrote:

theskinnyduck wrote:
That sounds very unappetizing. IMOM, Ba Le sandwiches also smell really funny if you do not eat them immediately.

all-acronyms.com wrote:4 IMOM definitions

Improved Many on Many
Improved Many-on-Many
Integrated Many Radars On Many Targets
Intelligence Many-on-Many

urban dictionary:

"IMOM stands for International Man Of Mystery. Used to describe a person who is attempting to keep their activities a secret despite the fact that everyone else knowing."

my favorite.