By Tana Kosiyabong
It has been a while since my previous post. But I have a good excuse. Recently I have adopted a French Bulldog puppy named Angus. He is a real handful. I hardly have time to rest, let alone writing a new blog post. So in the next little while (depending on how well Angus behaves), please be patient with my irregular post schedule.
Now let’s get back to the Cheap Appetite. A couple of weeks ago, I went out for a dim sum lunch. However, on the way there, I realized that I only had five bucks and changes in my pocket. Too lazy to go back for more money, I headed to Ba Le Sandwich Shop in Chinatown instead.
This Bánh mì (Vietnamese Sub Sandwich) shop has been a mainstay in Vancouver’s Chinatown a few decades now. I first heard about it from LotusRapper one of my avid readers a while back.
Ba Le looks old and outdated. They must have spent nothing on their decor for the last couple decades. And that’s probably why they can offer such great valued subs. Most Bánh mì were priced at $3 except the Dặc Biệt (special) which was priced at $3.50. All are tax included. I felt like splurging a bit so I chose the most expensive sub on the menu. A staff, and perhaps the owner, told me that Dặc Biệt has more meat than the others.
My order was ready in a few minutes. Dặc Biệt fillings include Vietnamese ham, cold cut, Vietnamese slaw, pate and cilantro. The French Baguette was fresh, crispy on the crust and soft on the inside. The tartness and crunchiness of the Vietnamese slaw complimented the meaty ham, cold cut and Pâté well. It’s such a classic Vietnamese flavor combo.
After finishing the sub, I still had a little room left in my belly. So I grabbed myself a cup of chilled desserts from the fridge and paid $1.25 at the till. The Vietnamese dessert I chose was made of dry longan, dry jujubes, agar and sugar syrup. It was a bit too sweet but quite refreshing. Perfect for the hot summer days and way cheaper than a Tall Frappuccino.
Ba Le Dac Biet Vietnamese Sub: ©©©©
Vietnamese Dessert: ©©©1/2
Ba Le Sandwich Shop is located at 633 Main Street, Vancouver, BC (T) 604.662.8108
©2011 Tana Kosiyabong and CheapAppetite.com™. All rights reserved.
Share your favorite cheap eats
TANA, Angus is SUPER CUTE, I love Frenchie’s. They have such cute faces and the ears are adorable! Welcome back and def love Ba Le, they are def one of the best Viet sub places in town, another one that’s awesome is Au Petit Cafe on Main Street, if you do go there, try their banh mi with spicy peppers, its almost life changing!
Hey Imkoonta,
Angus and I thank you so much for your kind word. I haven’t been to Au Petit Cafe yet. But spicy pepper with banh mi sounds wonderful. I love spicy stuff
I can never turn down a good banh mi!
Me neither
Tana, miss you a lot! I love both the sweet dessert and burger. REally tempted me to make some right away.
Hope you’re having a great week ahead.
I want to hop over to see your puppy!
Kristy
Hey Kristy,
Miss u and your lovely food too. It’s been a while since I last visited your blog. But I promise to do so very soon! Hope you like Angus!
“Most Bánh mì were priced at $3 except the Dặc Biệt (special) which was priced at $3.50. All are tax included. I felt like splurging a bit so I chose the most expensive sub on the menu. A staff, and perhaps the owner, told me that Dặc Biệt has more meat than the others.”
Hilarious when you said: “I felt like splurging a bit” and got the $3.50 Dac Biet
Hope you liked it.
BTW, “Dac Biet” I know it’s Vietnamese but it’s also a direct translation of the Cantonese phrase “special” (or extra special). I guess over the (hundreds of) years elements of spoken Cantonese worked their way into Vietnamese language since the border between the two regions has always been rather porous.
Good to know about the Dac Biet’s root. Some Chinese words have made their way into Thai language as well
Next time ya gotta trek up Kingsway to Tung Hing …….
http://chowtimes.com/2010/08/11/tiem-banh-dong-khanh-a-k-a-tung-hing-bakery-on-kingsway-vancouver/
http://www.604foodtography.com/2010/06/21/tung-hing-bakery/
I’ll keep this in mind LotusRapper. Also apologize for a very late reply.
Hey Tana – I was starting to be worried about your whereabouts. Good to see you back !!
Thanks LotusRapper.
Still won’t be able to post every week, but I’ll do it more often than the past of couple of months!