Penny Strategist - $4 Vegan Vietnamese Sandwiches

Saigon's $4 vegan lemongrass chicken banh mi Vietnamese sandwich.

This is a sandwich that makes those $2.50 falafels you get seem like a total rip-off.

Across from Wild Ginger in Manhattan on the border of Chinatown and Nolita, Saigon serves famous Vietnamese sandwiches called banh mi in four varieties for $3 to $4.50: lemongrass chicken, curry chicken, house special vegetarian, and plain veggies. (Make sure to say "no mayo" for the ones that come with mayo.)

Each large sandwich makes a full lunch or a light supper and is served warm and made with crusty french bread, delightfully pickled veggies, and a long spear of cool cucumber. The best option is the $4 lemongrass chicken (and say yes when they ask if you want it spicy; you will thank me) - made of grilled firm tofu marinated in a sweet and savory lemongrass sauce. Yum.

It's no secret that it takes more than a few pretty pennies to live in NYC. SuperVegan Penny Strategist serves as a playbook to help all you starving vegans/cheap bastards get by with a satisfied stomach as part of our non-court ordered community service. Check out some past SuperVegan Penny Strategist features.

Permalink

• 1.

  Comment by susie [www] on June 22, 2008 3:13pm:

  The vegan banh mi here is $2.75! Suckerz!
• 2.

  Comment by Patrick Kwan [www] on June 22, 2008 5:06pm:

  Yes, but you also have earthquakes. ;)
• 3.

  Comment by mdhaile [www] on June 22, 2008 9:05pm:

  Where can you get a falafel for $2.50?
• 4.

  Comment by Patrick Kwan [www] on June 23, 2008 11:21am:

  Many falafel places, especially the street vendor ones, sell falafel sandwiches for $2.50 to $3. My favorite though is Mamoun's on St. Mark's Place.
• 5.

  Comment by blahblah on June 23, 2008 2:41pm:

  God, I miss good, cheap vietnamese food. In Seattle they can go for under 2$
• 6.

  Comment by birdgherl on June 30, 2008 5:08pm:

  I just came back from LA and found something similar in Silverlake. It was really amazing!! For anyone planning any travels out west and jonesing for good vegan fare at cheap prices, here's an overview:
  http://eatdrinknbmerry.blogspot.com/2007/11/viet-soy-cafe-silver-lake-hot-soy-on.html
• 7.

  Comment by Veganne on July 7, 2008 2:12pm:

  Ah, this is just blocks away from my office. So looking forward to trying these. They better be good dammit.