Date of Visit: July 4, 2008

Larkin is a dingy street on the western perimeter of The Tenderloin that happens to house some of the most exciting Vietnamese restaurants in the city, including this graffiti strewn sandwich shop. There are only two seats in Saigon Sandwich, so be prepared to take your meal to go, but a visit to this tiny store is always worth the minor inconvenience.

A green board lists 10 varieties of Banh Mi – Vietnamese baguette sandwiches. Options include Thit (Roast Pork), Cha Lua (“Fanci” Pork) and Thit Cha Pate – a “Special Combination” ($3.25) of Steam Pork, Roast Pork and Pate. There’s even the dreaded Chay (Tofu), if you’re so inclined. Saigon Sandwich crams every other square inch of counter and shelf space with packaged Vietnamese snacks, both savory and sweet.

Ga – Roast Chicken ($2.75) – cradles big chunks of peppery dark meat. Every Saigon sandwich contains julienned carrots and daikon for crunch, plus cilantro and mayo. There are also jalapenos that haven’t been de-veined or de-seeded, meaning they’ve got some bite.

Xiu Mai – Meat Ball Pork ($2.75) – featured an identical complement of accompaniments, plus crumbly pork meatballs that are well seasoned and absolutely luscious.

Since the previous two photos look identical, here’s a close-up of the pork meatball sandwich.

San Francisco is known to be an expensive city, but Saigon Sandwich defies the economy by continuing to be a bargain culinary treasure.

Related Posts

1. Little Saigon Banh Mi Bender – Saturday, January 10, 2009
2. Dose of Vitamin P: Banh Mi My Tho Steamed Meatball Sandwich: Filling Sandwiches with Saigon Style
3. Pagolac: Clamoring for Vietnamese Classics in the Tenderloin
4. Dose of Vitamin P: Red Medicine Banh Mi: Delivering Deluxe Vietnamese Sandwiches to a Beverly Hills Bar
5. Tip Top Sandwiches Sets the Bar for Banh Mi in SGV

This entry is filed under Northern California, San Francisco, Sandwich Shop, Vietnamese.