Favorite banh mi place on Dorchester Ave?

[newhound]

My friend loves a good cheap sandwich so I've promised him a great banh mi close to where we work. What recommendations do you have for the Vietnamese stretch of Dot Ave?

[keith]

I'm a big fan on Bahn Mi Ba Le. Not only are their sandwiches good, but they have a lot of other packaged Vietnamese candies and sweets, along with some other solid Vietnamese take out dishes.

[MC Slim JB]

I don't know them all, but I I'm a big fan of the sandwiches at Ba Le Bakery, Lee's Store & Bakery, and La Baguette (fka King Do).

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

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Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[suzysue2]

I need to branch out from Ba Le, but I love that place so much I can't stop going there. In addition to the Bahn Mi their coconut macaroons are awesome and my family goes nuts over these coconut and yucca 'cakes' they have there. Also for a nice hors d'oeuvres I buy a bunch of summer rolls and slice them up and put a bowl of peanut sauce on the side and I am an instant hero. The BBQ beef and chicken Bahn Mi are my favorite.

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Ba Le Cafe
1449 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[lipoff]

+1 on Ba Le Bakery!

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Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[galleygirl]

+2 for Ba Le Bakery, Ba Le Cafe a close second....

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Ba Le Cafe
1449 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[galangatron]

banh mi ba le and la baguette

[grant.cook]

I'll second Ba Le and La Baguette.. Ba Le allows you the opportunity to get some summer rolls as well. If you hit the area a lot, Brothers Crawfish down the road a bit if fun as well..

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Ba Le Cafe
1449 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[newhound]

Thanks, all. Sounds like we'll try Ba Le Bakery. Still, can someone give me a quick rundown of the difference between Ba Le Bakery, Ba Le Cafe, and Banh Mi Ba Le? Are they related?

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Banh Mi Ba Le
1052 Dorchester Ave, Dorchester, MA 02125

Ba Le Cafe
1449 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[grant.cook]

Same place.. its on the left heading away from Boston on Dot Ave... I just look for the words "Ba Le" on the signage.... I can barely order in there, everyone is speaking Vietnamese. I mostly just point.

[lipoff]

No, they are not the same --- there are two different places. Bánh mì Ba Le, also called Ba Le Bakery, is at 1052 Dorchester Ave, not far from the Savin Hill T-stop. That's the one I like the best. The other Ba Le is called Ba Le Cafe, and is located at 1449 Dorchester Ave, or right at the Fields Corner T-stop. I'm not sure if they are actually related, because "Ba Le" just means "Paris" in Vietnamese, and it's a common name for bánh mì shops, since the foundation of bánh mì is French bread!

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Ba Le Cafe
1449 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[threedogs]

Thanks so much for the info, lipoff! Interesting - I didn't know any of this. I still need to get over there - can't wait to try for myself.

[MC Slim JB]

The mayonnaise, pâté and other charcuterie in the sandwiches and the coffee on the drinks menu are also borrowings from French cuisine.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[newhound]

Had a good trip to Ba Le Bakery yesterday-- thanks for all the guidance. Language differences and the fact that the sandwiches can be ordered by number led to a hilarious Seinfeldian moment where they made me seven sandwiches instead of two. I thought I said "one number six" and she heard "six number ones" but at three bucks each, this was no hardship and made for some happy "second lunch" colleagues back at work.

The chicken, and special combo (essentially pig-four-ways) were what I ended up with, plus some summer rolls (good, though not great) and a container of pickled radish and carrot. Definitely will return, and also branch out into some other neighborhood spots. Maybe even do a banh mi and Speed's double lunch day.

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Ba Le Bakery
1025 Dorchester Avenue, Boston, MA

[lipoff]

Absolutely --- borrowings with a Vietnamese twist! I love the (French) salted butter one can buy in Vietnamese supermarkets.