Neat little sandwiches here. I had their #1 ham banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich) $7. Nothing came across as mind blowing or the inverse, foul tasting. It was not bad. The bread had a nice crunch and left a bunch of crumbs on my lap after I ate it. The sandwich was soft toward the middle and a slight snap from the pickled vegetables. There are better banh mi shops in SJ, but if I'm in Lion Plaza already, Kim's is convenient and a time saver.
Growing up down the street, I've been coming here for 20+ years. Legit vietnamese run by grandma and grandpa, they havent changed the recipe at all and I LOVE IT! Very generous and kind Vietnamese grandparents. If they sound curt to you in English - Do not be afraid, they ABSOLUTELY do not mean it! Remember that their english isn't great (they're in their 50s-70s). I speak to them in Vietnamese and my partner who's cauasian speak to them in English. It's the typical straight to the point "Yes, next! What you want to order? You want this?" They dont intend to sound curt, it's the way they learned their English. They always say Hi and thank you - that's gotta win some points, right?!
I always come here for the combo w/extra pate (dac biet) and bbq pork (thit nuong) which has yummy hints of lemongrass which sets this sandwich apart from all the other places - my partner's favorite! I bought him the same sandwich elsewhere and it doesnt compare. Lees sandwiches is a 2 compared to this place, a 10 in my book. The bread is just perfectly light and fluffy, the butter they use is silky smooth and the heaping amount of veggies. They DO NOT skimp out. Your sandwich will be THICK! So worth $5! I also get the sweet sticky rice: either coconut/corn or the savory chinese sausage & scallions. Also, they sell frozen pork/rice dumplings (banh bot loc) for $25/50pcs and it's PERFECT for those days I dont want to drive south 20mins to pick up some snacks (I live in MTV now). They provide party trays and they present it so well! I had order 20 sandwiches and they were individually wrapped and sliced in half. CASH ONLY, support your mom & pop shop. This is one of my top 10 places that I hope will make it through this pandemic.
If you are on budget this is the place for good sandwich for lunch. This is a family ops store. Wonderful people. The only thing is their deserts need to be kept in cooler temp during summer time.
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