Banh Mi Ba Le

Looking for a quick vietnamese sub… Thats cheap and tasty. This is the place I’ve been coming here since I was a kid with my family. My whole entire family loves this place. Not perfect English but they get by. They are very nice people and really good Banh Mi Thit (vietnamese sub).

I’ve spent loads of time in Vietnam (north and south) and this place is the place in Toronto that comes closest to the Banh Mi in Vietnam. If you like smears of pâté laying it down with cilantro and pickled carrots/​daikon — COME AND GET IT.
Also grab a che for dessert.

Be sure to try the weekend special! Sandwiches also excellent, and the Viet iced coffee is top notch. Ladies working behind counter are very sweet and welcoming, must try for authentic Viet Sandwiches and Toronto Chinatown experience

I misread the sign and thought it said «SALE» Vietnamese subs. They are already cheap I thought, but what if they were «on sale»?
Anyhow, the sub I got was great. I like the fact that you can sit down and eat it. In contrast to the other banh-​mi places in the area which are busy and crowded.

this is one of my favorite restaurants in the whole world. the food is so cheap and its pretty ok! the bbq pork gave me diarrhea once but lots of things give me diarrhea so dont blame the ba le. the tofu tomato sandwich is a ¹⁰⁄₁₀. get it srs. stay tooned to the end for the biggest best most fun thing btw, the most important thing for u to read is towards the end so jsut bear with me
the ladies who work there, are grouchy as hell. there are two older chinese women i see everytime i go there and theyre never nice to me. i love them. i like to drop them some change into their 1foot translucent pink piggy bank.
the restaurant is like «french» themed so they have 3 eiffel tower things in there. the seating is probably some of my favorite seating in any restaurant ever. its hilarious, cute. the atmosphere is comforting. there are mirrrors and plants that REAlly liven the place up. they really make all the difference.
today for the first time i experienced the bathroom. one of the best and worst experiences of my life. the stairway was dark and narrow. very halloweeny. the lights were off and i had to search for them myself. entry into the basement. something out of a horror movie very sparse large kitchen supplies placed sporadically around the expansive basement. half of basement hidden from the human eye by sheets. not sure whats could be aroudn there truly scary. walk toward the bathroom door. its the tiniest door in the world– and enter into a paradise of luxury, paranoia, splendor, serenity. this is my favorite place in all of the universe. the bathroom at ba le. it’s phenominal, majestic. as you enter you wont be able to stand up straight because the ceilings are so short. its a very psychadelic experience inside this bathroom let me tell you. the floor has a massive slant to it so your spacial perception is really being fricked with and it feels lik ur turnt. all. the. way. up. there are two red and silver stools in htere that are sooooo cool. the toilet is like inset into the wall like half the tank is inside the wall i LOVEe it gorgeous. strips of drywall are hanging from teh ceiling. there is a soft buzz from teh AC. two tiny paintings of cherry blossoms. there was a no smoking thing on the door and i really understand why bc i never want to be anyway that isnt this bathroom but i alos know if i spend more than 10 mins in here i will slip into severe paranoia and fear for the rest of all time. i hit my head on the way out.

I was around Kensington Market a couple days ago and at the end of a café study session, began craving something to eat that’s not too pricey and wanted to keep to my personal mantra of not exceeding $ 10 a day — especially in downtown where I often splurge on something yummy — and often mantra-​damaging (chit ching).
I revisited the nostalgic Banh Mi Ba Le, a modest-​looking-​Parisian-​inspired diner on 538 Dundas St West where I was first brought here by a Vietnamese friend of mine who swears by their subs.
My few moments of brave but unauthentic demonstration of the Vietnamese language failed to register any understanding with the sweet-​old lady behind the counter and I quickly retreated back to plain English to place my order for the shredded chicken sub. Good try.
My order began. It’s a joy watching experienced hands manœuvre around a freshly toasted baguette putting together a medley of fresh cilantro, cucumber and pickled julienne carrots onto a bed of lightly seasoned shredded chicken.
No one ingredient was standing out, but rather, all made up a rapport of texture, flavor and color — very much how Toronto is, and according to the Economist, our city is the best one to live in the world.
Interestingly, it’s not number 1 in all areas, but, all major areas of life are ranked favorably and this consistency contributes to the greater picture of city liveability — or, «flavor-​bility» in the curious case of the Banh Mi sandwiches — where there’s a nice harmony of crunch, flavour and yums all wrapped up in this delicious $ 3.75 treat.
I would highly recommend their subs if you’re into a freshly toasted, nicely-​crunched banh mi.

Delish sandwiches for cheap and they open early on Sundays.
Bread is soft and meat isn’t too thinly sliced where you can’t taste or see it. Just the right amount of veggies to go w/​it.
Can’t customize the coffee since the machine pre-​makes it. Hubs likes his coffee milkier and they said no.
Cash only.

Hot is freaking hot! Be careful! I had to open ‘er up and take out the chilli peppers because my mouth was on fire. Hubby had the same but felt hot wasn’t that hot. I’m convinced I got his peppers in my sandwich.
Cheap and tasty, made to order, next time I’ll order more so that we can eat one fresh on the spot and then more for a midnight snack later.
Definitely a gem in Chinatown.

Not a bad bagette. The server was not that interested in explaining any of the good choices etc. Spicy sauce was good but the food was not as good as I was hoping. Colleagues from work recommend it and raved about how nice the server was. Didn’t really live up to the hype. Still not bad for $ 3.50. Asked what some of the other food was. Kind of got a rolled eye answer.

Finally! They have released all 10 banh mis to the white man! For some reason, they used to only offer 7 of the 10 subs on the English menu. But now, the final 3 have been relinquished!
Best snack for under $ 4 is right here folks. My main choice is the BBQ pork, but my veggie friends enjoy the tofu sub big time.
The cilantro is just right, they don’t skimp on the pickled veg, and the buns are always fresh. If you’re looking for a quick snack that’s great value, look no further!
The hot meals, made to order look pretty sick too.

My review is for the Tofu Bahn Mi.
They use the right bread, toast it just right, and season the tofu perfectly. I paid $ 2.50. I would have paid twice that much. Some of the places in the area don’t toast the bread and that drives me CRAZY! And what’s nice is that they add a little bit of mayo and she asked me if I wanted it on my sandwich before she spread that shit. I’m not sure if she asked to be conscious of my veggie diet or just because mayo sounds kinda gross on a bahn mi. I don’t expect this on my sandwich, but I agreed to it here. It worked well. I came back the next day and had it without the mayo and liked it just the same.
Eat a tofu bahn mi here. You’ll love it.

I haven’t been to Ba Le for years since their health code violation years ago but since I was in the area and looking for a quick snack I decided to drop in as long as they had the green pass sign on their window.
I decided to order a few cold cut banh mi sandwiches ($ 2.60). I always liked the fact that Ba Le used the baguette style bread which was good but the quality of meats used was not too good, even though it’s only $ 2.60, they should be using meats that aren’t so fatty and meats that haven’t been defrosted which affects the flavour.
For the downtown core, my first preference for traditional Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches would be Rose’s café but overall Que Huong on Finch Ave West in the west end makes the best traditional Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches in the city.
FYI: They also offer Vietnamese food other than banh mi sandwiches but the selection is limited.

My favourite *cheap* banh mi place in the city thusfar. The bread is an actual baguette (thin & long) — it’s lightly toasted and it’s crunchy and flaky on the outside and soft on the inside. The filling is bit less than what you’ll get at Nguyen Huong, but no real complaints — I’ve had their cold cuts and their BBQ pork and I like them both. The bread is much better and that clinches it for me.
In addition, there are a few seats inside and you can eat your baguette or order their noodles/​soup. That’s a nice plus.
However, this place is relatively expensive. Compared to the $ 2.50 ‘large’ banh mi at Nguyen Huong, the regular-​sized banh mi here is $ 2.75 tax included. Yup — I’m balling out of control.
If you can afford the finer things in life and the extra quarter, I recommend Banh Mi Ba Le over Nguyen Huong. Until next time, champagne wishes and caviar dreams.

A BBQ pork bahn mi for $ 2.90 including tax. There are a few other places in Chinatown to get this trending food. Nguyen Huong Food is probably my go to place (
). NHF can get busy although not so many people notice the extensive seating in back.
Banh Mi Ba Le brings their Banh Mi in at a good price but their Banh Mi lacks the flavor of NHF.

This place is pretty sketchy but it’s CHEAP! Oh yeah. $ 2.50 for a bahn mi sandwich, it’s hard to complain. Sure, you might find a rat carcass in your sub but at that price who cares. (I’m kidding — it’s not THAT sketchy, but you know what I’m saying)
The roast pork bahn mi is the only one I’ve tried. Ask for it spicy. Very nice, I like.
They also have tofu, meatloaf and shredded chicken. But who the hell wants a tofu sandwich (wtf?)
Nothing else noteworthy here beyond the sandwiches.
Engrish spoken.

As a vietnamese sub lover, I had to check this place out.
I don’t think the place lives up to the hype. My tomato and tofu sandy was a little dry, but it was filling and cheap (they recently hiked the price to 2.50, still a good deal).
Overall, it was a good cheap lunch but I like my viet sub from ginger’s better (even if it’s an additional dollar).

Very tasty, inexpensive ($ 2.25) subs at Dundas/​Spadina. If you have a TTC pass and are by the area, worth jumping off to grab one, or if you’re super hungry, two. To second Susan’s rec: try the BBQ Pork Banh Mi (get it spicy).
I’ll give it four stars strictly as a sub takeout (you will not want to stick around).
ETA — ask them not to put on too much mayo if its not your thing, there was quite a bit on mine…

Forget Subway’s $ 5 footlong. The Vietnamese sandwiches here are twice as delicious and they’re only $ 2.25. No, that’s not a typo. Each banh mi costs a twoonie and a quarter. No other food offers that much deliciousness for so little coin.
I’ve tried the roast pork banh mi and shredded chicken banh mi. Both are good but the pork was more flavorful. The lady at the till will ask, «You want spicy?» The correct answer is yes. Then let the sandwich elves behind the counter work their magic.
When you get your sub, you can park yourself on one of the five tacky chairs in the rather charmless joint. Then brace yourself for the explosion of flavors and textures you’re about to encounter: crisp-​airy baguette slathered with buttery mayo and filled (but never overstuffed) with savory meat, cool cukes, crunchy shreds of pickled carrots, refreshing cilantro sprigs, and a few chili slices to keep it sassy.
Oh, man. Banh mi are so good I lie in bed at night thinking about eating these sandwiches. (Er…oops, was that an overshare?)

I don’t care if this place has been shut down in the past for rodent violations. Anyone who thinks any restaurant in Chinatown is cleaner than the next is really fooling themselves.
Banh mi is a very cheap and traditional Vietnamese sub that was brought to Vietnam by the French, arguably the good legacy they left in that country.
All this being said, Ba Le is a nice alternative to the other banh mi shops around the corner on Spadina. Starting with the bread. The bread here is more true to the baguette style — longer and crisper than the more common shorter, stubbier, chewier versions found at most Vietnamese bread shops. The long subs are better fresh, but don’t toast as well as the others, so if you are looking at eating it later, you may want to walk around the corner.
A standard sub is $ 2.25, but is bigger than the ones around the corner that go for $ 1.75. This gets 3.5 stars for me but I rounded down to 3 because 4 just didn’t seem right.
A TOONIE & A LOONIE RECOMMENDATION: banh mi ($ 2.25)

The banh mi selection is major here — fillings range from the typical cold cuts to tofu, meatloaf, or shredded chicken. I stuck to the cold cut version, and it was fine.
But the best thing about this place? Nothing’s pre-​made (as done in places around the corner). Aside from the pre-​layering of the cold cuts on the baguette, everything’s slathered on fresh. Plus, the ladies here are clean (the cleanest work counter I’ve seen in Chinatown) and offer the option to toast your sandwich. It’s like a Vietnamese version of Quizno’s. Yes, please!
NOTE: chili lovers, the chili mix has been traditionally tame every time I’ve had it, so either pick up a loose chili from a vendor down the street or ask them to load it up for you big time.