Today, it conjures up something even better. The lockout is over and the dreaded Vietnamese bug has bitten me. Unlike the swarming mosquitoes of summer, there isn’t a readily available repellant. Even though we just checked out the newer Pho Orchid in its unnatural suburban setting Saturday in Metairie, my craving for Vietnamese struck again. The bun salad and spring roll fix had already been satisfied by Pho Orchid’s lemongrass beef, and I had to run to Lake Catherine for work. Almost instantly, I knew exactly who was going to feed me for lunch- the little old ladies behind the banh mi (Vietnamese po-boy) counter at Dung Phuong Bakery.
Even though I had been down this stretch of Chef Menteur Highway from Paris Road to U.S. Highway 11 numerous times, I became somewhat intimidated as I drove past deserted theme parks and Vietnamese signage. While pulling into the parking lot, I began to wonder why restaurants, including Green Goddess, source their bread from this unassuming building. I was about as confused as Hank when he first met Kahn, but trust me, the lunch from this Laotian neighbor is worth it. Once inside, I quickly realized that one slight whiff of the fresh mounds of French bread wafting up from the red box at the front of the store is enough to hook anyone (that’s actually probably the smell of the lard they baste the top of the loaves with). Knowing I would want more bread within the next 2 hours, I grabbed 3 loaves. Why 3? Because they’re 3 for $1.25.
After bagging up my bread in plastic grocery sacks, I immediately dashed to the back counter where two old Vietnamese ladies were stationed. No, not for a massage, but for the best banh mi in the metro area. Ordering was simple- I just picked a number between 1 and 17 (the number of protein choices). I decided on #7. One of the ladies slapped some pate on their fresh bread and then passed it off to the next lady. Once she slathered my bread with an obscene amount of the yellow-tinted, house-made mayonnaise, and loaded up my sandwich with a large crunchy cucumber spear, a few jalapenos, a handful of cilantro, and a heap of crisp pickled daikon and carrot, my liver pate banh mi was complete.
My lunch, however, was not. I’ve made the mistake of only getting one sandwich before and by 3:30, I was hungry enough to eat a whole box of Asian trix. I’ve also gotten two sandwiches and by the time I finished the second one, I was on the verge of exploding. I scoured the store’s assorted pastries and eccentric Asian desserts, but didn’t find anything that would appease my Vietnamese fix. I reluctantly decided to go ahead and check out. Right before she rang up my total for the loaves and banh mi, I noticed a few cases abutting the counter. The assorted meat pies and turnovers that filled the heat-lamp-lit cases caught my eye just in time. Filled with savory meats and a hardboiled egg, one of these flaky pastries would complete my lunch.
With lunch finalized, and enough bread for 3 more large sandwiches, I paid the cashier my $4.28 (remember, that’s for 3 loaves, a banh mi, and a meat pie). Besides the attached restaurant, there weren’t any tables or chairs on the premises to enjoy the fruits of the bakery. Luckily, Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge has a few picturesque pavilions and picnic tables within a 2 minute drive of this truly amazing Vietnamese bakery.
No comments:
Post a Comment