Phở Bắc

So what's the story with Banh Mi in Queens? Nothing great, gentle reader, nothing great. And I say this after a 14-month research mission using the latest G.I.S. technology, two Stealth Bombers, a hound dog named "Big Red," and a gaggle of super-hungry fat kids.

I could go on about our exciting missions filled with exotic locales, rat-infested alleys and pirates—man, do fat kids love pirates. But it all boils down to one thing: there are only two NYC neighborhoods where The Porkchop Express has found terrific Banh Mi: Sunset Park, Brooklyn and Downtown Manhattan.

Notice that Queens did not make the list. I'll spare you the tedium and cut to the chase: nothing remotely tempting in Flushing, so we headed to Elmhurst. We started at Pho Bang. They have pretty decent food for cheap, but don't make Banh Mi. However, in the same shopping center Pho Bac (no relation) advertised Banh Mi in the window. Had our fortunes finally turned?

Unfortunatley not; the place was astoundingly lackluster. Everyone seemed bored with everything. And not "La Dolce Vita" or "ennui" or "chasing the dragon" glazed, but completely dead-to-the-world. Which bodes not-so-hot in a restaurant.

This dull-witted vibe also colored the sandwich selection: there was only one, the Banh Mi Thịt. Even the name–"meat sandwich"–was lazy. This Banh Mi is usually given an extra adjective (Thịt Nguội, meaning something along the lines of "cold cuts," or Thịt Nủớng, delicious grilled meat) that clues you in on the sandwich's intent. But here, we just weren't sure what to expect.

Still, I was all kinds of hungry and for what they were charging ($2.75) they could have served chipmunk on rye. As it turns out, their meat selection was pretty unusual.

The Thịt in question was a homemade concoction, slices of ham and flavorful mushrooms suspended in a gelatinous loaf. And it was actually better than it sounds. Not bacon good, but not chitlins bad either. Tho a little went a long way, I appreciated the taste of "new." Standard pork roll, very salty ham, cucumber, cilantro, chilies, and a ridiculously dry baguette rounded this one out.

There isn't much to say about Pho Bac's sandwich; it was hardly the stuff of sonnet. Nor was this odd, unispired Banh Mi worth a butt-haul around Queens. Live and learn, patient reader, live and learn.




Phở Bắc
82-78 Broadway
Elmhurst, Queens, NY (718) 639-0000
Banh Mi Thịt: $2.75