Chau's Bakery

I’ve been coming to this location since 2006, 19 years and counting! I’ve had countless bánh mì sandwiches over the years, but none have ever come close to how good this spot is.. The owner is such a warm, kind, and wonderful woman, and her grandson, who also works here is just as friendly and genuine. They make you feel like family every time you stop by. I absolutely love this place and will always come back. It’s a true gem that’s stood the test of time!

“The signature bánh mì was fantastic – fresh, crispy bread with flavorful fillings and great balance in every bite. Highly recommend!

Dude let's go. This cash only bakery slings fire fire bahn mi sandwiches for 5 dollars. Small but sweet selection of sandwiches. I got a cold cut and a cha siu pork- both fire. They come in "spicy or no spicy," meaning this green pepper they add and cilantro; some people feel some type of way about cilantro-I like me the spicy. Also, get there before 3 pm.

Came in here asked for a beef bahn mi guys starts to prepare hands me the sandwich I pay and as I’m walking out I feel the sandwich and it’s cold. I turned and asked if they warm the meat or bread at all he told me that’s how they come. I was extremely upset at the worker because not once did he even offer to warm the sandwich up understanding that was my gripe. I’ve been eating bahn mis for 20 years and this was the first time Ive ever had a cold one. Never again will I ever eat here. This place is horrible

Best banh mi in this area, and the competition is significant! I've tried every place in the neighborhood and this is by far my favorite. Yes, the sandwiches are cold -- this is how they should be, and they're an absolute dream on a hot day. Also, super affordable. Just remember to bring cash, no cards!

Great place to buy bánh mì, the baguette taste great with different fillings. They do not have a lot of options for food but good place to get food.

This is the BEST Vietnamese Banh Mi I have had. For 5 years, we have stopped by the store every weeks and the staffs are always gorgeous. My favorite order is Beef Banh Mi, which brings me the best value and quality. My American and Vietnamese families like it a lot. We also order about 10 breads per week and eat throughout the week ( For your reference - 50 cents per bread). You just need to put eggs and cucumber, it will become a Breakfast sandwich. Make sure to close the bag tight to keep Banh Mi fresh throughout the week. It's so convenient for those people that are busy like me, who have to leave early every morning but also have to have early, quick and easy breakfast.

Well. I don't know what kind of bread these are. I paid for breads, not improperly baked dough. Money is still money. No one wants junks!

For convenience, I often come here to buy some food. However, I decided not to come here anymore as I noticed when the old man and the old woman making the food, they never used anything to protect customers' food, they even used bare hands to get the onions then put them in banh mi, the same hands they took cash, that's awful. That same day, when I noticed that I was anxious when eating my food, and honestly, I got stomachache seriously after eating that one, how sad and how bad. I hope that they could read this review then stop doing like that to other customers. The younger man whom I believe is the owner is much better, he did use gloves and tools all the time to protect customers' food.

Came for the Banh mi! They're $5-$7 each. It's a good tasting, large sandwich, especially after I toasted it in the oven at home. However, I only noticed halfway that the staff making the sandwich was NOT WEARING A MASK during COVID in Nov 2020. The female staff who took care of the bill was wearing a mask. For this reason, my friend did not feel comfortable at this establishment. I hope they reinforce the mask policy better! Misc: very casual atmosphere. Street parking available.

Got a beef banh mi and a cold cut banh mi a few days ago and haven't stopped thinking about how good they were. 10/10

Delicious French bread. Very affordable as well. Iced coffee is best I've had in dorchester

Turns out Chau Bakery is just down the street from Coco Leaf by Fields Corner T station. It is a small storefront along Dorchester Avenue, and I lucked out finding a parking spot just across the street. Inside the deep narrow space there were two tables along the right in the front area. Very utilitarian. Not gussied up at all. Fridges on the left held some drink options and other chilled items. I walked up to the Vietnamese sub station where a gloved lady was restocking some cold cuts and waited to order my lunch for $4.50. A sign posted informed me that if I had the appetite, I could have gotten one of Chau's sandwiches free if I were to order 10. The crisp roll seemed a tad larger than what I was used to. It wasn't toasted, but was spread with lots of the creamy white spread, before a generous portion of the beef I requested was added. The sub was also well filled with a sauce, scallions, pickled carrots and daikon, and cucumber. I had asked them to omit the spicy and cilantro, and to go heavy on the veggies. A second lady behind the counter took my $5 and gave me my change. My order was handed to me in a bag complete with a couple of napkins. Turns out the beef was cool as well, so that's something that New Saigon in Chinatown offers that tops Chau - that and the toasted bread. But still, my sub was tasty and well filled, and my stomach full for $4.50. So I was content.

I've been eating Banh Mi bread and sandwiches since the 1990's in Vietnam and in Boston since 2000 when it used to cost $1 in Chinatown. I love Banh Mi, you cannot understand how much. I used to go to different hoods and eat 2-4 different Banh Mi's within an hour just for fun. This is the best Banh Mi bread and sandwich in Boston, no one in Boston knows except the Dorchester locals apparently. The idiots who put together listicles routinely ignore this historic establishment, likely the first and still best Banh Mi bakery and sandwich purveyor in the Boston area. Sorry, Ba Le, no disrespect. There are actually more Banh Mi and Num Pang places in Lowell than in Dorchester, some were equally as good, when they used Chau's bread. (If you want a work of art, try Le Petit Cafe.) Chau Bakery deserves a hall of fame in Boston food, I'm serious. Chau's bread is a dream, huge Nerf footballs with the perfect crust, it will never get better than this, you just know when you see it, smell it, touch it and finally eat it. When you get the sandwich it is just sensory overload, you'll ask yourself, "Am I in a food porn shoot?, because something feels wet, not sure what." I love this place and so does everyone who steps in it. It's just criminally unknown.

The people who work there are not friendly. We bought banh mi from there three times, and with different type of banh mi every time. The recent time experience, he made the wrong banh mi, even though he asked us three times what Banh mi we wanted. The Banh mi were all cold and it tasted like a day old meat. We also got very little meat in our banh mi. You can just say the entire banh mi was just the bread itself.

A definite hidden location for banh mi, you could only tell of its existence by the smell of the bread. Going in, you know there's only one thing they sell: banh mi and the bread that quintessentially define the sandwich. There are stacks and trays of rolls. No one speaks English (or at least willing to speak it), so pointing and body language may be your only modes of communication. The bread is generally good, though I've had occasions where the texture was varied. The sandwich is huge is fully loaded with ingredients. The ingredients are fresher than some of the other places I've been around. For $4, it's a decent deal.

I figured I'd grab some Banh Mi before leaving the city. It's not too often I get the chance to go to Dorchester and experience Vietnamese authenticity... This place is definitely hidden. I only stumbled upon it as I was walking back towards my vehicle. Be warned! They do not speak any English. I was only able to order correctly since I knew what each individual sandwich is called in Vietnamese. But, I presume they know they basics if you were to state cold cut, beef, or pork, etc...... They do bake their bread themselves. I witnessed one of the employees bringing out a piping hot batch. So 5 stars for the freshness! And FYI, all Banh Mi's are well priced at $4.

Prices have gone up but that expected with inflation. Makes sense that if the cost of groceries go up the prices here would too. Still the same great amazing quality.

This is the best Vietnamese Banh Mi I have had. For 5 years, we have stopped by the store every week and the staffs are always gorgeous. Good hygiene is a bonus. Bread can be kept for up to 5 days if you store them in a tight bag under room temperature. My favorite order is Beef Banh Mi, which brings me the best value and quality. It's delicious , my American and Vietnamese families like it a lot. We also order about 10 breads per week and eat throughout the week ( For your reference - 50 cents per bread). You just need to put eggs and cucumber, it will become a Breakfast sandwich. Make sure to close the bag tight to keep Banh Mi fresh throughout the week. It's so convenient for those people that are busy like me, who have to leave early every morning but also have to have early, quick and easy breakfast.

There are only 2 banh mi sandwiches I think are worth eating in the Boston area, and both are in Dorchester: Banh Mi Ba Le and Chau Bakery. Both have really delicious banh mi and whenever I'm in the area, I make a point of stopping at one or the other to have a sandwich and likely take one for the road to Providence. Where Chau Bakery gets the edge over Banh Mi Ba Le is the sandwich bread. Both places have fresh bread baked the same day but at Chau Bakery it is a little fatter in the middle, crisper on the outside, and fluffier in the inside. Also, most times the bread is still warm from being freshly baked, not being reheated in an oven to crisp. The way Chau Bakery makes its bread is why if I choose to take a sandwich home rather than eat it in house, 2 out of 3 times I'll choose Chau. The freshness of the bread is key to banh mi and having the bread even be just a couple hours fresher makes a big difference in taste when I do take out. Other notes: the workers speak English, they're just soft spoken. The wall has the sandwich choices and right now it costs $4, a steal for the level of quality and detail that goes into making banh mi. Worth the 40 minute hike from Providence, RI when I get a craving for banh mi.

Omg!!! I have been so skeptical with trying a banh mi sandwich. I absolutely love Pho noodles and this Vietnamese sandwich was highly recommended by one of my good friends from this location. I am so glad that I went with their recommendation for my first-ever Vietnamese banh mi sandwich. I opted for the beef selection the sauce and gravy on the bread was a delicious combination of sweet, tangy, and spicy. The meat was tender and the vegetables were very fresh. I give this location my seal of approval

This place baked bread for most of the Vietnamese market and stores in the area. So every morning the bread is warm and fresh never stale. The only other place that make fresh bread daily is Ba Le near Umass - Savin Hill. These 2 are my goto bang mi. Now the one I like the most is grill beef or pork with Soy sauce not fish sauce. They always put fish sauce with grill meat unless you ask like myself. The flavor of soy sauce is lighter and less fishy. If you like a more creamy taste then ask for extra butter. It's not really butter, but more of a mayonnaise minus the vinegar. I gave it 1 star less because the place need a bit of work on cleaning up.

Pros: The bread and price were fair Cons: Facilities need significant work. Limited seating space combined with beaten up chairs, tables, faded interior signage and cash only makes this place seem sketchy at best. Beef bahn mi had significantly more fish sauce than I've had before, giving the sandwich an unsavory tang hard to ignore. TLDR; wouldn't venture out of my way for this place.

this is for the $4 beef banh mi. i liked it cuz its served hot and lots of meat. she actually filled the sandwich with a lot. i dont like spicy pepper. but ask for it if u do go here rather than dot cafe cuz its $4 not $5 and u get more for your money. dot cafe serves it cold meat

Fresh and yummy banh mi , it's worth for your money, I stop by bought two and :35 minutes later 5 peoples asked me go back buy for them 15 banh mi for each , I went back bought 60 banh mi wow all yummy, all my friends happy with it's

One of the best places for vietnamese bread. To me it's vietnamese bread, it could have originated from france or whatever but it's not french bread. It's crunchy, crispy and flaky on the outside and soft on the inside. French bread tends to be the hard crunchy and not as soft on the inside, plus it gets all hard after a day. The bread lasts awhile, you just have to pop it in the oven and it's pretty similar to when you just bought it. I got the viet coffee here once and it was pretty good. Hmm love viet coffee. My mom said something about this place being some kind of famous viet bread chain or something? I don't really recall any price list or anything, so it's a bit confusing. And sometimes they sell out of bread, boo. I'm pretty sure they sell it in the standard viet sub size and a longer version. Also, I think they might have one dinky table with two chairs? Definitely not a place to dine, most of the space is reserved for the back and the front counter. So yeah come for the bread, I've never had one of their subs though.

This place is amazing -- they have Vietnamese sandwiches here that I'd compare to the ones I had from food carts in the streets of Vietnam. My parents and I were in the area last year and we were craving banh mi, so my mom asked a Vietnamese guy in Vietnamese where she could find the best Vietnamese sandwiches. He pointed us toward Chau Bakery and said it's the best in the area. He also made sure to tell us that the place across the street couldn't compare.. Good thing my mom asked that guy -- he knew what he was talking about!! The bread was dead on -- airy, light, crisp, with no need for them to toast the loaves before they fill it up with sandwich goodies. I'm pretty sure that they make all their own bread on the premises considering that I took a peek in the back and saw the guys taking the fresh loaves out of the oven. It's a good sign! The fillings are fresh and tasty, with a good balance of sweet/sour/salty/spicy/savory goodness. The sandwiches are really cheap, too, at around $2.75! One issue with this place is that they speak about zero English, but if you tell them you want a sandwich, just point at the items over the counter that you want included and they will get it. Too bad that they aren't actually in Boston, because it's a real trek to get all the way to Dorchester, even for a sandwich this good...

This place has pretty good banh mi in a pinch but I wouldn't go out of my way to come here. The bread can sometimes be more on the stale side and the bbq beef is just way. too. sweet. and it has a sort of gloppy sauce on it. I do love that they use fresh jalepenos in the sandwiches though. It isn't horrible by any means, it's just that there's so many other options in the area. I'll stick to Le's and Ba Le for the time being.

My parents, who are straight up Vietnamese, raised in Vietnam, loved the sandwiches I got here for them. The bread is freshly baked. Walking in, you can tell this place is authentically Vietnamese--a Buddhist monk was delivering packages while I was waiting for my sandwiches.

Tried something new,inspired by my wife who watched the food network "food truck challenge" she wanted to try Bahn Mi.. a Vietnamese style sandwich. From a friend she was recommended to Chau Bakery,mostly because of the bread. Great Choice.. tried two different versions,pork and beef. My favorite is the beef, fresh roll filled with fresh veggies and a sweet sliced beef .Excellent with a little spice from hot peppers Can't beat the prices anywhere for both freshness and flavor.

We have family and friends that come from Quincy and Worcester just to come to this place for their fresh in-house baked bread. I grew up eating banh mi (vietnamese sub/sandwich) from this place. Before my mom would drive me and my two brothers to school, she would stop by Chau's Bakery to buy us a banh mi each (and this is like at 6:30 in the morning). The bread is so good that my mom would just buy plain bread and eat it as is. A few years ago, banh mi used to be $2 each for grilled beef or cold cut. But now it's $3 and I see that all of the other ba le places in Boston are charging that price too. There are definitely a lot of newer banh mi places that don't seem too authentic and charge $5+ for a viet sub...I think I'll stick with this small shop for my bread.

Hot Boston summer day. Imagine biting into fresh , cool and crisp vegetables , spicy pork ( " thit nuang" ) on fresh bread with cold drink for $4.50. Chau's Bakery is definitely the place!

Every morning, the smell of the fresh bread would slowly take me there for a single plan bread for 50cents and sometimes when I want to be fancy, I get the bbq beef with extra butter. I been going here for 8 years now, and its the only place I enjoy my sandwiches from.

I used to go here all the time on the way to work and grab a banh mi. There is something about paying just $3 for a nice freshly made sandwich that makes my toes curl. Unfortunately they started adding entirely too much fish sauce to my sandwiches rendering them salty as hell and inedible. It seems no matter how much I pleaded they just did it anyway until I just started going across the street and getting them from Ba Le instead.

I bought three 8-inch loaves of freshly baked bread and a Vietnamese sandwich (bahn mi) here and spent a total of $3! the people working here are very nice but hardly speak a word of English. There's no menu, so you just have to point at what you want on your sandwich or just say "everything!" which they seem to understand. I'm pretty sure they close before 5pm on weekdays, so best to head there on the weekend or during the day.

The drive through Dorchester always scares me...I'm a country girl, but always on a quest for food, so I forge on. Here's my confession...I have never had or heard of Bahn Mi?! Why?! These are AMAZING sandwiches...blending my two favorite food regions, Asian and French! The bread was crunchy yet subtle on the inside (not rip your gums off, but crunchy), the pate was creamy and the mayo was just enough decadence. I had the pork and turkey Bahn Mi with picked carrots, daikon and cucumbers...topped with chilis and cilatro...OMG! This is my new favorite thing. Thank you Chau Bakery for being my first! I'll be back...oh and BTW...$3.00, yes $3.00! Super inexpensive...worth the drive folks! Enjoy:)

This establishment is only well-suited for Vietnamese-speaking folks, it seems, as the worker-owners' English skills are quite limited - food-wise, the sandwich was great, but there's something about Banh Mi Ba Le's (across the street) that grabs me just a bit more.... Hrm.

The banh mi's here at A Chau Bakery are freshly baked at the shop daily and the sandwiches are always fresh and delicious..

Best restaurant ever. The bread never gets stale, stays nice and crispy for at least a day or two. Very asian, does have tables where you can eat at with your friends. Staff are very nice and polite, I go here every one or two days to get my Banh Mi. The stuff they have in the fridge available for purchase are amazing. They also have a lot of other goods in on Saturdays. I definately would recommend this restaurant. Its hard to find parking, though. They used to own some land on the parking lot but they've built it into apartments or something now. So its best if you take the red line to fields corner or stop by for some delicious banh mi. For the people who haven't went there, go there - you won't regret anything. Their price is fairly moderate. :)