Ba-Le Sandwich Shop

Best Bale of all. Most authentic banh mi dac biet with headcheese if desired, the best of any restaurant. Lady is so nice and asks exactly you want the food. Both ladies are sweet.

Service is quick and friendly. Shop is kind of small but there are tables outside. Food is great love the sandwiches. Summer rolls are small but the peanut sauce is the best.

So, I love the sandwiches here very much. But I am thinking of calling the health inspector to this location. This one seems to be very nasty as the workers wear the gloves to make sandwiches but then handle money and open the refrigerator doors while using the same gloves. I ask them to change the gloves and I get a strange look I then tell them the only thing clean are your hands and as the clients that go into this location are sometimes homeless and others are professionals but they dont know what they are doing with their hands. I know lots of people are not very sanitary and its so grose that the workers make our sandwiches and touch everything and we have to eat meat with whatever germs they have on the gloves. All im saying is if you go in pay close attention to how they operate and how they dont change the gloves. I walked past it the other day to see two of my coworkers in there I said check them out they are making your sandwich and touching everything with the same gloves. So, they noticed this and they refused to eat the sandwiches they had already purchased rather they gave to homeless people outside the store. THE HEALTH CODE DEPT NEEDS TO BE CALLED ON THIS FORT STREET MALL LOCATION.

I’ve eaten at different locations for Ba-​Le, and I have to say that this one is probably my favorite. OR maybe at least on my top 3 locations =)
This is my favorite spot to go to during lunch! I love to order the tofu sandwich! Super delish! I love the French bread they serve too for the sandwiches =) although, I find it difficult to eat sometimes cause the French bread tends to tear the roof of my mouth a lot. –_​– I do not like that, but it does taste AMAZING!
The Ba-​Le sandwich shop is located inside the Pacific Liquor and Grocery Store on Fort Street Mall. This is a Vietnamese sandwich shop.

Muahahaha, after seeing Ariana M.‘s review I had to stop in and get my Ba-​Le Sandwich fix. I’ve only been in this store once before when I was a freshman and haven’t been in it since.
At first I didn’t know where to go, it confused me but after walking all the way to the back I found the workers of the store.
It took them a while to realize I was there since they were talking to each other and prepping other foods. It’s really small, for the food they were making.
Looking around, I didn’t see a menu. I wanted to refer to something so I would know they had the certain ingredients for their sandwiches.
Once they saw me, I ordered a chicken sandwich. She asked me whether I wanted Lemongrass or Teriyaki. I chose Lemongrass. ($ 5.00)
Lemongrass Chicken Sandwich
It was quite big than other places I’ve had before. They sliced their pickle /​cucumbers really thin that it was difficult to remove them so I just ate that. Another interesting addition that I hadn’t had before was tomatoes and cabbages. It added a different taste to it. As usual, it’s a messy sandwich, so the insides kept dropping out which annoyed me and I wished I had chopsticks to help me eat.
As I ate I figured I would enjoy the insides of the sandwich by itself. It really tasted good, though I miss my BBQ chicken. I’m going to drop in again, maybe for other foods /​dishes to try.

It’s kind of hard to find this place, since it’s kind of tucked away in the back end of Fort Street Mall. This Ba-​Le location used to be a stand alone place, but I guess something happened where they have to move somewhere where they share space with another business. So you have this Pizza Hut /​Taco Bell type of marriage situation. I’m cool with that. All about sharing, I guess. Ba-​Le is like any other Ba-​Le on the island, I guess. I normally try to go for their plate lunch affairs, but they are known for their pickled, meaty french roll sandwiches. Some locations have better items, but you know it may not happen for all locations.
This place is basically ho hum, even at the Kahala outlet. Nothing to really say praises about, other than the fact that they are quick and friendly. The food offerings are decent, but not above average. I do like the lemon grass chicken plate they serve. The french bread sandwiches are pretty pricey, especially when you can compare them to Subway. Then again, what’s not to love about french bread. They’re good, I must admit, but yeah, the price can get to you a bit. Overall, it’s a good place to grab a fast bite to eat, but do not expect too much from this place. Parking is hard, since it is located on Fort Street Mall. Best bet is to just catch bus or park somewhere in Chinatown and walk on over. Then again, why would you come here, when there are plenty of other opportunities out there in downtown Honolulu and Chinatown?
I used to like Ba-​Le, but I guess I just have grown out of it. The desserts they have are not real good, but people seem to dig them.
C–

To clear up any confusion, there used to be a Ba-​Le on Fort Street in its own space. Then that Ba-​Le closed and Mandarin Express took over the location. NOW this Ba-​Le is located in a split store along with a convenience store (that used to sell banh mi and spring rolls on its own).
Since Ba-​Le is a franchise, all the different spots have their own quirks. If you’re a big fan of the banh mi, as I am, this location fills your sandwich with a little bit of the pickled daikon/​carrot, slices of cucumber, slices of tomato, shredded cabbage and cilantro. While I prefer other locations, there is no arguing with those cold veggies on a warm french bread smeared in sriracha. If food were sex, sriracha would be lube… you don’t need it, but DAMN is it fun!
Alright, enough of the PG-​13 food talk. If you’ve never eaten at Ba-​Le, definitely try it, but perhaps try another location first. I suggest Kam shopping center, Kahala Mall or Ala Moana. If you’re a Ba-​Le vet. then you know what you’re in for.
Now be free and BANH MI!

Much, much cleaner than the Ward location which I have vowed to never go back to. I’ve been coming to this place since I was a kid but convenience forced me to the other locations. (Downtown isn’t the easiest place to find parking) I know better now and will walk here if I have to, to get my Combination sandwich fix.

i like the tuna rolls here… it’s filled with tuna and lots of avocados… and the peanut sauce is yummy!

after all the stuff in the newspaper lately about how dirty chinatown is. i see downtown with new eyes. this place is dirtrrry. plus they get their produce from the rat infested chinatown venders.

This Ba-​Le location far surpasses the counterpart I’ve been to in Philadelphia. Tasty sandwiches on fragrant french bread, creamy taro tapioca (other flavors available, too) and fresh salads. None of the other cafes on Fort Street are crazily furnished, and this is of like mind: there’s a tiny and dark seating area, and that’s about it.
I still have pleasant memories of this place and their pickled vegetable sandwiches. Ooh, that and banana tapioca. Mmmmm.

We found black crap floating in all of the fountain drink selections. Double check your soda before you drink it!

If you GPS this place, you would get to an one way alley and it’ll be a pain to turn back. So I basically parked by the UPS store and walked over. I have to say tho, I’ve never paid anything more than $ 3 for a banh mi sandwich here in LA. So it was a sticker shock for me getting a #19 pork sandwich for $ 4.75. On top of that, the sandwich was smaller than usual.
Upon biting into it, I noticed the bread is fresh, crunchy and was warm and soft on the inside. The pickles and dressing they use is also none I’ve ever tasted before, it was kind of minty, citrusy, maybe a hint of coriander, mayo based? I couldn’t tell but 3 bites and half a sandwich later, I was a bit disappointed in how small this sandwich was. Canned sodas here are $ 0.80. Thank you for the quick snack, but I had to go elsewhere afterward for an actual meal.

One of the places I missed most when my family moved to the mainland. Over a decade later, I finally find time to head back and everything was as I remembered it. The bread is perfect, super flaky and soft on the inside. After more than a decade eating Vietnamese sandwiches on the mainland, I’ll have to say Ba-​le is loads better but that could be because I had like a million ba-​le sandwiches during my formative years.

Hands down! I think Bale has the most yummy vietnamese sandwiches! their vegetable pickle is sooooo goood! and they are not cheap about putting a lot on their sandwiches either! And mostly, you can opt the baguette with croissant! That is awesome! The croissant is also very good by itself and it’s only $ 1 of a big one!!! My fave sandwich is pastrami. Yummm!!! Another good Bale shop is the one at Don Coyote in Waipahu. Man, can’t find an awesome Bahn Mi sandwich other than this one! Oh! and if you don’t like the sandwiches, you can also order any plate. which are also yummy! including the phở.

Of all the Vietnamese sandwich shops in town (even the other Bale’s), this is by far the best one. You’ve got a little dingy eating area and a group of the sweetest ladies bolting around getting everything ready. What more could you ask for?
P. S. The avocado sandwiches are the best and hard to find anywhere else!

Thanks for the free chopsticks! I even offered you a quarter for a pair, but you graciously GAVE them to me!
Your taro coconut tapioca is really good! YUM! I only wish you were open just an hour or 2 later. I know, I know, not enough business and too many weirdos around.

It’s cheap. That’s the four star part. But here’s the rub… you have to go to the right one. There are many, many Ba-​Le Sandwich Shops. There’s even one hidden away in the Ala Moana Shopping Center. But the one I go to is little place in Chinatown. They’ve got the best tasting sandwiches. I always get the lemon grass chicken, but the veggie is good, too. The desserts are pretty tasty as well. If you’re broke and you need sustenance, this may suit you just fine.

Vietnamese sandwich chain similar to Lee’s Sandwiches in the Bay Area. You can get a decent Vietnamese sandwich for close to nothing on a French roll, great for lunch, great for a morning snack.