Cà Phê

Quick glance:
+ delicious bánh mì (Vietnamese baguettes)
+ low-​priced hot sandwiches
+ decent sized bánh mì
— waiting time
— small menus (physically!)
When I first moved to London seven years ago, I remember wandering along Kingsland Road in London looking at the menus of every Vietnamese restaurant, disappointed I couldn’t find one that served Vietnamese sandwiches (as it was called in California).
Fast forward all these years, Londoners seem to have picked it up as a new craze. (I mean, sandwich chain Eat is offering chicken bánh mì these days!). A colleague said she read that Cà Phê was listed as one of the best coffee shops in passing, so I thought I would give it a go today.
The shop itself is intimate and the counter looked quite bare when I entered. There were blackboards everywhere — on the walls and under the counter — but I couldn’t seem to find a menu! In the end I asked for a Vietnamese sandwich hesitantly, thinking that surely, they must do it if there are French baguettes on display.
The guy behind the counter helpfully pointed to one of the four A4 pieces of paper plastered on blackboard behind his head, on which were the choices of sandwich filling available. Ah ha, just what I was after, although it also made me think maybe I need new glasses… (Why didn’t they just write it on the blackboard???)
I had the BBQ pork with pâté, which amounted to £4.50. I then had to wait about 5 minutes for my bread to toast, filling to heat up, and sandwich assembled (oh, plus two other sandwiches to be meticulously put together for the two patrons before me). I was slightly disappointed by the wait time since I was hoping to take it back to the office fairly soon to join my colleagues for lunch. But perhaps I was also spoiled by the volume of Vietnamese sandwiches sold in California, where the turnaround of an order can come in at, impressively, under 30 seconds.
When the bánh mì was complete, it did look and smell scrumptious. I took a couple of bites while it was hot, and took the rest back to the office and joined my colleagues for lunch. By then, after the five-​minute walk, my sandwich was getting cold but the deliciousness remained. It was very filling too, for £4.50, representing great value for ‘hot’ food on a cold, spring day.

Meat, hot sauce and coriander in a roll!
Let it be known that I am not a bread eater, but I was advised that the bánh mì was worth breaking my bread fast for. I went with the roasted cow, but nothing was to prepare me for what was to happen next.
With my first bite came the the firing off of a number of my pleasure sensors. Sweet, sour, spicy and salty! The roll was so big and stuffed full of goddies, that I had to tear pieces off in order to fit it into my mouth. Good problem to have — Oh yea!
With every mouth full, I fell deeper into this new relationship. Who am I kidding, this was no relationship, this was a love affair! For a very reason £4.50 I was transported to a food pleasure experience that shouldn’t be legal.
Needless to say that I will be back, and I’m a little scared about what this may mean for my waistline. Maybe I could ditch the roll, hmmm but It’s just so good!

I went for the very first time on Monday and went back again today because it was sooooo good!
On Monday I had the pork bahn mi, I believe it was pork belly and some kind of pâté with pickles, chilli and I could also taste a sweet sauce, like plum or something, in a baguette. Vietnamese sarnies officially rock!
Popped back in today and in a bid to avoid the bread and still my ever-​expanding belly I opted for the Vietnamese pork noodle salad while my friend got the chicken. They were both very tasty and surprisingly filling!
I’m not a coffee fan but hear the coffee here is tasty, potent stuff that will keep you bouncing off the walls in a caffeine-​fueled craze!
The staff are lovely, friendly, quick and efficient, there isn’t much seating as it’s a tiny space so just a couple of high bar-​stools by the window but that’s ok as I often prefer to take away.
Cà Phê you are my new fave quick-​grab lunch spot! See you again very soon!

Oh Schreck! I just realised that I checked in already 3 times at Cà Phê in Clerkenwell, but have not posted my verdict on Unilocal yet! Consider this negligence rectified with this review:
Just like one of my predecessors, what stands out most for me is the Vietnamese iced coffee they serve here… boy, am I glad I don’t suffer from high blood pressure, because my heart was beating so fast from it — unreal! But good…
As for the food, I’m also a great fan: first and foremost of their Bánh Mì (Vietnames sandwich), but during my last two visits I tried out their rice-​dishes as well, and they also really agreed with me. Today I had some kind of anis-​flavoured beef-​stew and that first my taste buds and then my tummy really happy!

Newest addition to the Bahn Mi train in Clerkenwell, Rob and his fabulous family team have set up shop just a stones throw from Giant Robot. Not only will you be able to enjoy all his great food and coffee as you do at Broadway Market and at his Angel shop but… they even have a little seating area and a selection of new stuff that they don’t serve up in his other locations.
The coffee is, as always, strong and sweet (just how I like my men — wow I sound like Joan Collins) and the mini Bahn Mi they served up when I went in there for the second time this week were very tasty. I would now that that there is full saturation of Veitnamese lunch spots in Clerkenwell and if you are looking for some tasty take out, or even a little sit in the sunshine on their deck chairs outside, then Cà Phê is the place for you.