Another favorite lunch place…

Actually this is the first banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich) place I’ve ever been to (I think it was in 2000). The price is a little bit higher than Dackao ($2.50 vs $2.00 all tax inclusive), but the portion is bigger, so for my wife, one would be quite enough (and she likes the taste here better).

This place is much smaller than the other and the selections are smaller. But it’s relatively cheap still. I usually get a shredded pork sandwich ($2.50) and a spring role ($3.00) and that would be more than enough for lunch.

Continuing the lunch place reviews…

This is my favorite “Banh Mi” or Vietnamese sandwich place. If you are not familiar with Vietnamese sandwiches (I am sure a lot of people are familiar with “Pho” or Vietnamese noodle soups), you should. They are usually (always?) made with a baguette (usually about 10″ long), various julienned vegetables and various kinds of meats (“shredded pork”, “barbecued pork”, “chicken”, etc.).

Not only the crunchy baguette and the excellent taste, but the key selling point (for me) is that it’s really cheap! Usually a Vietnamese sandwich will cost you $1.50 – $1.75 (and not more than $2). Well, there are other “fancier” places (such as Lee’s Sandwich) which seem to charge way more.

I usually order two sandwich and I always get “shredded pork”. I also like “Chinese hot dog”, but I think shredded pork is the best. They also have many other small items. So, sometimes, I get one sandwich and spring rolls (3 for $2 or $2.50, I can’t remember). I guess you can consider it as a Vietnamese snack place.

Anyway, one of my Vietnamese co-workers have introduced me to this place many years ago and I don’t think I have found a better place yet (not that I was looking that hard). Recently, my wife was introduced to here, and she also likes it a lot.

Another lunch place in the area. Since I have a lot of Indian coworkers, I’ve been enjoying many great Indian restaurants in the area.

This place, although marketed as “Indian and Pakistani”, is a Pakistani/Muslim restaurant. That is, they serve halal cuisine. They are located near Scott and El Camino Real in Santa Clara off the main streets where you wouldn’t normally expect to find a restaurant. But they seem to be doing quite well.

This affordable lunch buffet ($8 per person including tax) menu is quite simple and vegetarian friendly, I think: pickles and salad, dal, a couple of vegetable curries, lamb curry, tandoori chicken and a dessert. Nans (bread) are brought out by the servers.

For me, the favorite is the nan. Most restaurant nans are quite greasy. Here, they are not. Also, they are always hot.

Other items are less greasy, so they are more like everyday menu. Also, the food goes pretty fast, so every dish is brought out from the kitchen constantly and kept fresh. I usually do not like lamb dishes, but I like it here (although often times you find more bones than meat).

The service is… okay. You need to actively ask for more nans and stuff. And during the peak time, you may need to remind them more than once.

But otherwise, this is a great quick lunch place. I’ve only been here for the lunch buffets, but I’ve heard that non-buffet items are also not bad.

Of course, if you want an authentic Southern Indian (vegetarian) cuisine, you can go to Saravana Bhavan, but that’s another story.

This is probably my favorite (and the best) Greek place in the area that I know. The surprising thing (at least to me) is that this place is hidden among the boxy office buildings where you would not normally find good restaurants.

I would not have been able to find this place if not for the catered lunch on Friday at work. Most of us thought the food was great and prepared fresh. I had to find out where this restaurant was, and since then it’s been one of the favorite place to go for lunch.

Until recently, they were only open during the lunch hours catering to the office workers. They expanded their hours to dinner, but I have not been there for dinner, so I am not sure how crowded it is. I’ve been wanting to take Hyun there but they are not open during weekends. Oh, well.

You can see their menu online, but I tend to order from the daily specials written on a long paper on the wall. Also, they have a very good selection of vegetarian dishes and desserts.

The decor is more like a casual sandwich (?) place. You order at the counter and they bring out the food. Lots of pictures and stuff about Greece.