Bon Bon Vietnamese Sandwiches

I go here all the time. The roast pork and the chicken curry Bön Bön are fantastic and the prices are super cheap. The chicken wings are amazing and it has a cozy atmosphere.

This place is not good at all. The interior seems cluttered. The pictures on the left side of the wall seems appetizing but from how it looks inside the café, I had already made up my mind this is not authentic Vietnamese nor will it taste good. I’ve never been here before so before stepping out, I had to give it a try.
Bön Bön is Asian fusion, including vietnamese, Japanese, korean, etc. Being Vietnamese, I chose a banh mi sandwich. I tried the lemongrass beef banh mi ($ 8+). OMG, the sandwich was so bland. Vietnamese sandwiches in Chicago are over twice the cost of every other states (90% sure). I could be wrong but I hope you get my point. This particular place stuffs their banh mi with so much pickled daikon and carrots that it’s disgusting. I didn’t taste any lemongrass in the beef at all. Overall, the sandwich was not worth the money at all. The bread itself – most important ingredient – was fine, but when all other ingredients are lacking in flavor = FAIL.
Listen to other 1 or 2 stars. Don’t waste your time or money here. Go to Lotus café and banh mi for better taste and cleaner and more welcoming environment, or any vietnamese restaurants on Broadway and argyle.

In a word, awful. We shared a bowl of bland miso ramen with gluggy noodles and a beef rice bowl that was swimming in a sickly sweet liquid. There was also a side of luke warm miso and an unappetising wilted salad. We left most of the food on our plates and went to Handlebar instead.

I used to be a big fan of their sandwiches but i ordered delivery from here today, i started eating my sandwich and what do you know, i took a bite and to my disappointment there was a piece of human hair on my sandwich, unacceptable. Thinking i might never order from here again. What a shame.

Their Bahn Mi is fantastic and the secondary items are great too. The ginger chicken and minded Pork Bahn Mi are my standard for the city. Also of note: great smoothies and the Japanese curry fries. Yum.

I ordered the Phở from here via delivery. I order 2 orders of the Chicken Phở, and 2 smoothies. The shakes were very good, and tasted fresh, A+ on the shakes. Now the Phở on the other hand… was awful. The broth tasted like boiled water, once combining all the ingredients, there was still barely any flavor… I had to add SALT to a phở… which is insane. I’ve never had to do that with a broth in my life, at any restaurant. Virtually no taste, and not much chicken, wouldn’t recommend buying the Phở here…
Overall, delivery was fast, shakes good, but the Phở was terrible…

I’ve been here once. The cashier is a dummy and the phở leaves much to be desired. I ordered the vegan phở. My companion is a phở enthusiast and she ordered one with beef. We both agreed that it’s the worst excuse for phở we’ve ever had. The broth wasn’t even hot.

This is a small Vietnamese spot on North Ave. It was on Chicago’s best, and claims to be ‘the best egg roll’ in Chicago. The eggrolls are fresh, and have a homemade quality to them. The best in the city, I don’t know about that, but they were pretty good. The Bahn Mi was the star of the show for me though. Its pretty big, and loaded with cilantro, jalapenos and all the great fixings. The menu has alot of options, and they all look great. Will deff come back to try some more!

One of my regular go-​to takeout/​delivery spots. Their bahn mi sandwiches are pretty tasty and I like the option to turn them into rice bowls. The ramen and phở are okay… I’m a little picky when it comes to noodle soups… Especially ramen. The spring rolls are pre made, so sometimes the rice paper wraps get stuck together, which isn’t the best. I really like their Vietnamese egg rolls though. Also, I usually order either the Japanese gyoza or the korrokke, which tend to be pretty good as well.

Atmosphere made my gf and I uncomfortable. Food was bad and took forever. Staff was arguing while the music kept cutting off. This place straight garbage

I cant speak for other’s experiences but my roommate and I biked here for some food and it was well worth it! She ordered a banh mi sandwich and I ordered a vegan chicken wing rice bowl type thing. It was a pretty cool atmosphere and the food came out quickly.
My vegan chicken wing thing was so surprisingly delicious. I was pleasantly surprised. It had all the crispiness and flavors of the traditional korean style chicken wing but was meatless. I must say texturaly, some may find it challenging. It was like a dense stringy type of non-​meat product. I had no problem with it and really enjoyed it. Only thing I might have added was some more brown rice. Overall great dish, but will have to try the regular wings next time.
My roomie got the banh mi sandwich. I had a bite and it was tasty. The bread was nice and fluffy. It was stacked with pickled carrots and daikon. I think it could have used some more meat but nonetheless a good banh mi sandwich.
Can’t wait to come again!

I would give this place another try because the pictures of the other food looks good. However the phở I ordered was completely flavorless. The noodles broke apart in the bowl. If you are looking for phở I wouldn’t recommend this place. We ordered the vegan and beef.

This dining experience couldn’t possibly have been worse. The menu was atypical and confusing even to the experienced diner of pan-​Asian food. The person behind the counter appeared concerned, about our minor dietary restrictions but in reality could’ve cared less, about the outcome of the meal.
Please read on.
My lovely wife, who is an experienced diner in Vietnamese restaurants and other pan Asian venues ordered a simple Chicken Po soup. The soup arrived, with wrinkled and shriveled wads of chicken floating listlessly in a bland, flavorless broth. Being exceptionally hungry, after a long day, my wife lifted her spoon and decided to gut it out; to simply eat whatever was there. She, however, was stopped by a shocking, surprise. When I say surprise I mean a very much alive large winged insect, in her spoon crawling for its life over the noodles and broth, shimmering, irredeemable purple, black and tan; glaring up at her like some hideous apparition of the 1950s classic film «The Fly.» This living creature was flapping its wings and gasping for breath, in the greasy, hot broth.
I immediately took my wife’s bowl and called the owner over, in a polite attempt to not embarrass her in front of her customers. I pointed out quietly that there is a living creature, in my wife’s soup. She feigned surprise and offered that this had «never happened before.» She the stated she would do whatever we wished to make it right. I suggested she refund the money. She said, she would and also offer something else to eat in addition. My wife and I agreed, both were a good idea because we were beyond hunger. I was consuming my ginger chicken sandwich, which was beyond boring but it at least appeared sanitary.
In the end, nothing was given to us for free to compensate us for the floating live insect. In fact, they replaced my lovely wife’s soup, with a spring roll, which looked like it had been in the freezer or the refrigerator, for at least a day. It was served with some horrible thick goo of caramelized peanut sauce that was just simply grotesque.
The owner /​manager or «whatever» had by then had quite literally disappeared. I went looking for her, in this very small establishment, to get my refund and to tell her that we couldn’t eat the food. I also wanted my money back as promised and to tell her that she should take a hard look at her kitchen. BUT SHE WAS LITERALLY NO WHERE TO BE FOUND. Frankly, I think she left to avoid the refund. Again, she was no-​where; not the front or back of house. Evidently, she could simply care less.
We left the establishment nauseated, angry and feeling ripped off. Without any hyperbole what so ever, for example, I love my dogs too much to feed them the food that is served at this impostor of Asian food. The Chicago Board of Health should pay a surprise visit to this place. I can only imagine how nasty the kitchen must really be. I sincerely hope that they are out of business as soon as possible. They are a health risk and conspicuous blight to the neighborhood.
In retrospect, perhaps the «disappeared» owner was out behind, in the alley, scraping the fly strips for more insect protein or checking rat traps for the ingredients to the beef Po soup. I could be wrong but probably not.

Stopped into this hidden gem today to enjoy lunch while my daughter and her friends were next door at the «Kid’s Table.» I had the coconut curry seitan bento — the thai yellow curry was the perfect mixture of savory and spice. And there was plenty of food for the price. There is a wide variety of items on the menu, so I will make a return trip (or at least order in) to see what else this place has to offer. The minced pork banh mi, beef curry fries, korean wings and kimchi fried rice sound amazing.
But what sets this apart from other restaurants is the husband-​wife combo who left the corporate world to invest in a passion of theirs — authentic Korean, Vietnamese and Japanese food (the owners are deep-​rooted in all three cultures). I know this because I spoke at length with both of them, and I gave no indication I was going to take the time to write a review. These two are as devoted to their craft as they are welcoming. And I believe the husband, a graphic artist, is responsible for creating the «Bön Bön» girl animation on the menu and the store’s signage.
I also learned they were going to be featured on WGN in mid November as a «viewer favorite.» That’s no surprise. If you haven’t been — what are you waiting for?! If you have — get back there!
Keep up the good work my friends and hope to see you soon!

BBV proves the age old, time tested reality that service and quality are the two cornerstone’s of a successful business.
The Japanese/​American owner is almost always visible, taking orders, serving food, chatting with customers and answering any questions they might have. His Japanese heritage and Eastern travels influence some of the unique, original items on the menu, fusing flavors of Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea etc.
This visit:
Viet spring rolls w Shrimp were fresh, mintly tasty and a good deal for three large rolls at just over 5 $.
The Katsudon is Japanese comfort food personified and a great recommendation.
Bahn Mi w Ginger Chicken very solid and a staple you gotta get every once in a while.
We were also delivered a Large Viet iced coffee on the house… just because. Nice.

My friends and I love coming here! They have a great variety of food for all tastebuds and a cozy relaxed atmosphere.
Warning: Never order delivery! It takes FOREVER.

Food is good but pickup, delivery, and counter service are atrocious. I’ve ordered delivery or pick up 6 times, and only once was the order correct. My order has been lost, not delivered, or given to the wrong person multiple times. Eating in is a bit better as long as you can tolerate waiting for a person behind the counter to actually acknowldege your existence and take your order.
I like the ramen and bahn mi, but not sure it’s worth putting up with the service.

From the subpar reviews, I didn’t expect the food to be comparable to that of Argyle’s, but I was expecting something somewhat satisfactory. The spread of options especially vegan/​veggie ones is why I gave Bön Bön a shot.
I enjoyed the cozy café feel of the place. You order first at the counter and then seat yourself and they bring the food to you. There was only one other occupied table Friday around 7pm.
We ordered the korokke (veggie croquettes) and vegan wings to start. Our entrees were beef phở, vegan ramen, and a classic banh mi. I also got a thai iced tea. My phở and sister’s ramen came first, very quickly. Annoying that apps didn’t precede but not the biggest deal. The wings and croquettes came shortly after. They gave us the real chicken wings instead of the vegan ones, so we had to inquire and send those back. Surprisingly, the vegan wings still came out before my cousin’s banh mi (you’d think this would be one of the first things to come). My thai iced tea came out some time in the middle of all this.
Despite the haphazard delivery of our items, I wasn’t that disappointed yet. The vegan wings were probably the best thing we’ve had (and I am a meat eater). It was cute that they used bamboo as the bone/​drumstick like that of an actual piece of chicken. The flavor was good. The croquettes were decent and enjoyable. The beef phở and vegan ramen were bland beyond belief (and I usually like things on the blander side). Sriracha and soy sauce barely made it tolerable. The banh mi looked like it had the fluffiest and perfectly toasted bread. Nope, it was very hard and stale.
Overall, food is not even average. Portions are good though. Atmosphere is nice but felt kinda dirty in there as fleas wouldn’t stop bothering us. Staff could have been friendlier. Pass.

Small storefront presence, but generous banh mi on the inside with well-​done iced jasmine tea. I’d come back to try the soup noodles and korean-​fried chicken

I ordered the beef phở and my wife had the chicken phở. We ordered it to go and maybe that was the problem. The flavor for both was very bland and there was so much parsley and basil involved, we only used like a quarter. I mean I wanted to use more but it was all stems and like a salad that I passed.
Much like I will in the future. Pass. Or maybe eat it there and not to go. I really was exceted about the Bhan Mi’s there too, I wanted to try them. But the phở left such a lack-​luster taste that I fear the sandwiches will be the same.
I will update if I decide to go back and eat a Bhan Mi.

We’ve come here a couple times before but the last time my family and I came was on a rainy day. Which was actually perfect! We played Jenga and Mancala. We ordered fries (kids loved it!), spring rolls (by far my favorite!) and 4 bowls of phở. I’m not too crazy about their phở but it wasn’t bad at all… just needed a lot of condiments. I love hoisen sauce so I poured that all up in it! We love the ambiance of Bön Bön. Definitely a spot we will continue to return to!

This place is the besttttt Vietnamese food I’ve had but it hits the spot. It’s cool hip interior is perfect for its area. Prices are very reasonable and the food is delicious. I like the beef phở and their gyozas are insane. Their sandwiches are about 6 – 7 $ and great for a quick bite. Very relaxing atmosphere. And I love all the Asian snacks they have in the corner. They also have a mini library which is great if you’re looking to kill some time while you wait.
I guess they have ramen now too. Which is new to me. I am not sure how it is but I imagine it’s pretty tasty. Oh and the Korean wings… YUM. So check out this place the next time you’re near western and north.

Best dishes so far: vegan chicken wings and cold salad rolls that each come with savory sweet sauce
The taste or combinations of food are not as lacking in umami as oistar or ramen-​San (in terms of cost to flavorless ratio) but do not expect the noodles to hold up or satisfy for savory noodle itch. There’s a «Taiwanese ramen» that looks like normal ramen, I had the vegan ramen and it had half cooked dried shitake in there and some limp kombu that was kind of underwhelming.
I bought my friend the banh sub another time and he couldn’t finish it. He just ate all the beef. Perhaps the banh sub was too stale and there were many wilted pieces of lettuce in there.

I am happy this small Vietnamese place is down the street from my house. We ordered pickup from Bön Bön one night and we were all really happy with our food. In Vietnam, I became obsessed with the Bahn Mi sandwich, which Bön Bön does pretty well. They even have a vegetarian version, so there’s all the flavor and no meats (if that tickles your fancy).
I haven’t been in the actual shop, so I can’t comment on the atmosphere or service. Our pickup order was ready promptly when promised and my husband walked in and out with a bunch of food (ordered from GrubHub). It seems like a fun little place to have lunch or dinner with a date or maybe two friends, no more.
Tasty food, true to the Vietnamese tradition, and very cheap. What more could you want for a neighborhood sandwich joint?