nhu lan's bakery.

chicago's got a few great banh mi (vietnamese sandwiches) places ... but i haven't really ventured out to try them. so when my mom suggested we go to nhu lan's bakery on lawrence ave. in lincoln square, i was quite excited to go.

why is nhu lan's the best? per their website, "everything is FRESH! TASTY! and DELICIOUS!" so there you have it. 

here's what i had ...

vegan lemongrass tofu banh mi :

ok. yum. 

1. this sandwich is sooo big. but i was starving, so it was kind of perfect. but yeah, unusually huge.

2. this sandwich is sooo cheap. $3.50. absurd. 

3. this sandwich is sooo delicious!! if you aren't used to vietnamese flavors, you might take a minute to get used to it. but for anyone who loves vietnamese food (like me!), this is just one tasty bite. besides the tofu being insanely good, the toppings really are so fresh! i love me some jalapeno & cilantro ... so really, this sammie was just banh mi perfection.

baked coconut cassava & coconut rice cake :

top left : khoai mi nuong ... cassava, coconut, sugar & coconut milk. 

 literally, a little tapioca cake. i haven't had tapioca pudding in years. so i was super excited by this delightful little dessert. and again, 2 little cakes for $2.50. so good & cheap.

bottom right : banh bo nuoc dira ... rice flour, coconut, sugar, coconut milk. 

also delish. kind of the same flavor & texture as the cassava, but without the cassava taste. 

but my favorite thing about nhu lan's? their sandwiches are clearly marked as vegan. and many of their other side items have all their ingredients listed. so you can tell what's vegan and what's not. awesome.

my mom also said that the non-vegan meatball banh mi was amazing ... so basically, great all around.

vegans & non-vegans, rejoice! nhu lan's bakery is the place to go for some "FRESH! TASTY! and DELICIOUS!" vietnamese sandwiches. ya hear?