Ba Le Bakery

"Ba Le Bakery is a prepared-food emporium in Little Saigon with a large selection including an iconic banh mi (aka Vietnamese hoagie), meal trays with grilled meats, tropical smoothies, and sugarcane juice. It’s an easy staple for fast lunches, bakery snacks, and road trip-friendly multi-course meals." - Ella Lilja Peterson

"Bánh mì lovers worship at the altar of Ba Le, and with good reason. The Little Saigon sandwich shop and market is an institution, packed to the brim with everything from prepared deli meats and sweet treats to iced coffee and smoothies. But it’s the bánh mì—served on their housemade crispy-on-the-outside, fluffy-on-the-inside baguette—that’s life changing. The warm bread is slathered in rich mayo and layered with things like pate, lemongrass chicken, or prawn patty. There’s no seating and the service is a bit chaotic, but one bite of #4 (stuffed with BBQ char xiu pork, pickled carrots, cucumbers, jalapenos, and cilantro) is worth a little turmoil." - candis mclean, alison kessler

"Bánh mì lovers worship at the altar of Ba Le, and with good reason. The Little Saigon sandwich shop and market is an institution, packed to the brim with everything from prepared deli meats and sweet treats to iced coffee and smoothies. But it’s the bánh mì—served on their housemade crispy-on-the-outside, fluffy-on-the-inside baguette—that’s life changing. The warm bread is slathered in rich mayo and layered with things like pate, lemongrass chicken, or prawn patty. There’s no seating and the service is a bit chaotic, but one bite of #4 (stuffed with BBQ char xiu pork, pickled carrots, cucumbers, jalapeños, and cilantro) is worth a little turmoil. photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo Banh mi #4 and avocado smoothie with boba.photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo" - Alison B. Kessler

"Ba Le Bakery presents Vietnam’s signature sandwich to Philly as a masterclass on taste and affordability (under $10). Here, diners can choose between pork belly, sardines, tofu, or meatballs as their protein of choice along with fresh cilantro, pickled carrots, and mayo or pâté on their flakiest long rolls from Artisan Boulanger Patissier." - Ernest Owens

"A banh mi is a beautiful thing and at Ba Le Bakery on Washington Avenue, diners can order banh mi in more than a dozen ways. Go the traditional route or try something more adventurous like the spicy sardine. Bonus: Ba Le has an epic list of boba teas to go alongside any sandwich order. Order online in advance." - Ernest Owens