It's Alive!

Dear Readers,

It's been nearly five years since I started the blog here at Blogspot, but it's time I moved on to a bigger, better website to keep track of my sandwich exploits.

And one with an even easier address to remember.

Head on over to TheDangerSandwich.com for all of the past blog posts, and posts from now and into the future.

Video posts are coming soon and so much more.

I'd like to thank all of you for coming to this blog on the regular, because without your support, I would not have decided to take this writing exploit further, and strive to make it even better.

Thank you, this truly could not have been done without you.

So what are you waiting for? Head on over to TheDangerSandwich.com to continue this sandwich adventure with me.

The Art of Sandwiching

Greetings, Dear Readers!

This week I took a break from the summer burger hunt and decided to enjoy a warm Sunday afternoon at the LA County Museum of Art.

As if the sandwiches are stalking me, I was greeted with a line of food trucks in front of the museum, each one beckoning me with their delicious works of sandwich art.

After pacing the line for a few moments, I settled upon the Cali Banh Mi Truck (@CaliBanhMi).

Banh Mi is a type of sandwich that I have missed for quite some time now, as my last one was from the time I ran into the Nom Nom Truck in Studio City.

The Banh Mi is such a simple sandwich, sliced pork, cilantro, pickled carrots, cucumbers and jalapenos, but it's flavor is incredible. The pork on this particular version was very tender with a smooth, smoky flavor. The accompanying vegetables all threw in their competing flavors. In one bite you'd get sensations of smoky, hot, sweet, and tangy. It was a full of flavor experience with every bite.

The baguette was delicious, golden, and even was allowed to have its sweet, bready flavor join the flavor parade with all of the other ingredients.

My only complaint, and it's a small one, was that the cilantro stalks were a bit hard to chew occasionally. A minor annoyance, and not something that should turn you away from this truck if you happen to see it around Los Angeles.

Overall, this Banh Mi definitely is sitting pretty near the top as one of the best I've ever tried. There are still many more Banh Mi shops in LA to sample, but I have a feeling that this one will continually place near the top of the pack.

As a side note this week, please head over to LA Weekly's Best of Web poll and vote for The Danger Sandwich in spaces #20 and #21. You don't have to fill in any other categories if you don't want to, but I'd appreciate you taking the time to fill in those two quick entries.

Until next week, Readers!


Cali Banh Mi Truck
**** Stars
https://twitter.com/CaliBanhMi
Los Angeles, CA

Nom Nom Nom

Welcome back Seekers of DANGER!

The time we spend apart not discussing sandwiches feels like an eternity!

And here we are again! Wednesday and more sandwiches for our pleasure.

This time around, I visited the Nom Nom Truck, which serves Vietnamese food, specifically the Banh Mi Sandwich.

If you've been reading for awhile, you may remember that I trekked far from the Valley out to Alhambra to sample one of these delicacies (A Five Freeway Adventure, 9/8/10).

But now, I find that I can have those sandwiches closer to me, and on wheels?

Sign me up.

Waiting in line outside of my work (Nom Nom Truck is very popular in LA), I decided I would get the same Banh Mi I ordered before, in order to compare the sandwiches. Receiving my sandwich, I quickly opened it to sample the goodness.

I was greeted with a flaked french roll. Perfectly baked, light and fluffy on the inside, it is such a great choice for this sandwich, and this roll shined through with excellence.

The pork was subtly sweet and very flavorful. It was very delicious, and my only problem with the shredded pork is that a few bites were a little more chewy than is necessary. Maybe cooking for a longer period would reduce the fat content a bit more and allow the meat to fall apart easier, but as it stands, is ot as good as the pork from Banh Mi My-Tho.

The part of the sandwich that I was most disappointed with was the salad on the sandwich. Carrots, lettuce, onions and cucumber, the vegetable I missed the most was the sliced jalapenos.

As I discussed before with my last Banh Mi, the jalapenos had their spicy parts removed, leaving a smoky, mildly spicy flavor behind instead of piercing heat. This flavor is a great contrast to the sweet pork, but sadly was missing here.

The cucumbers on the other had added a great refreshing flavor to the sandwich. And while I didn't enjoy them as much as I would have jalapenos, they were a great choice to partner with the pork.

The competition between Nom Nom and Banh Mi My-Tho was stiff, but in the end I believe Banh Mi My-Tho has the better sandwich.

And so you may be sitting there at work, or at home, dear Reader and imagining yourself sampling one of these delicious sandwiches.

And I ask, why haven't you?

Google Banh Mi in your area and head to a local place to order one today for lunch.

Go ahead. I'll wait for you.

Until next week...D-A-N-G-E-R!

Pork Banh Mi Sandwich

**** Stars

Nom Nom Truck

Los Angeles, CA

A Five Freeway Adventure

Welcome back DANGER fans for another exciting adventure.

Lately, as you may know, I have not had much good luck with sandwiches.

They've been subpar at best, and for this I apologize to both you and my tastebuds.

While deciding on my next entry for this most delicious of blogs, I felt the best way to get back on track would be to again sample something from LA Magazine's 17 Best Sandwiches of Los Angeles.

It just so happens that one of these sandwiches was recommended to me awhile ago, and now I know why.

This week, I tried a Pork Banh Mi sandwich from Banh Mi My-Tho in Alhambra.

Truly an adventure into the dark recesses of Los Angeles, it took my five different freeways to reach the tiny corner strip mall that housed this mecca of Vietnamese sandwiches. Starting on the 405s, I traversed the 101s, 134e, 5s, and finally the 10e. It may sound like a lot there dear readers, but continue reading because I think you may be interested in taking this pilgrimage into the San Gabriel valley as well.

One thing I've learned since moving to Los Angeles is that food made in strip malls tends to be quite excellent. Tacos, falafel, sushi, whatever. It all provides a delicious dose of DANGER, and this Pork Banh Mi sandwich was no different.

For those that don't know, Banh Mi is a Vietnamese sandwich on a french baguette, with roasted pork, and pickled vegetables, typically cilantro, shredded carrots, onions, and jalapenos.

Let's start with the bread, shall we DANGERites?

Flaky. Slightly crisp. Delicious. It's deliciously golden and almost melts in your mouth with each bite. A terrific match for the enticing insides.

The pork is served hot, and is slightly sweet, as if it were slow roasted in honey. Not only is it sweet, it's incredibly tender. The meat easily pulls apart and is really one of the best pieces of pork I have ever tasted.

The pickled vegetables add a nice crunch to the sandwich. Even though they've been pickled in vinegar, the flavor isn't as pungent as one would think. In fact, the pickled crunch is a nice complement to the sweet pork and soft bread.

The jalapenos were the final piece to this delicious puzzle.

Jalapenos are one of my favorite peppers, and for two reasons: 1.) they have one heck of a kick. I love them when they're hot. 2.) remove the white membrane inside and they're not so hot anymore, just smoky and delicious. The Pork Banh Mi's jalapenos fall into category two. Crunchy, slightly smoky, and just a slight bit of heat, these peppers perfectly counterbalances the sweet roasted pork, while adding more crunch to the sandwich.

Despite its relative distance to most of Los Angeles, this sandwich is definitely worth the trip. Even better, the sandwich and a drink only costs $4 total! I couldn't believe it when I was rung up. That is truly an unheard of price for such a delicious sandwich.

If you're in the Los Angeles area, and up for trying out a well hidden Vietnamese sandwich, you'd definitely be in store for some serious DANGER.

Lastly, with the past weekend being a holiday weekend, I of course attended a BBQ. And I wanted to give a shoutout to Chris Reiser, who crafted this delicious smoked brisket sandwich (smoked for 10 hours, topped with barbecue sauce and a soft hamburger bun). Tender and full of flavor, this is truly a DANGERous treat.

Until next week, DANGERites.

Pork Banh Mi Sandwich

**** 1/2 Stars
Banh Mi My-Tho

304 W. Valley Blvd

Alhambra, CA 91803