Ao Sen Express

Hidden gem! Serving bahn mi sandwiches and other hot food take out items. Cheap sandwiches and their vietnamese ice coffee is good and strong. Different style from the bahn mi’s that I’m used to, but meatball and egg is good for anytime.
Bread is light and flaky. Curry chicken and rice for $ 6 and is pretty great.

Solid, really well-​decorated sandwich place in East Oakland. Wish I could have sampled their menu more, but it was cheap, good, and quick. Service was great, interior was clean. Very happy with my choice here.

The Banh Mi Thit Nguoi (which the proprietor was kindly enough to help me pronounce) is a fantastic sandwich and about $ 3. I dont think you can beat that.

HORRIBLE BUSINESS PRACTICES! Do not eat here!
A family friend of mine went on a visit to the Segway place near by and was going to have lunch before at Ao Sen. The owner saw that the people getting out of the car were not asian so he proceeded to YELL AND SCREAM at 2 70 year old ladys that were going to eat some sandwiches at his establishment.
I am in the area all the time, and I have personally seen this HORROR STORY OF AN OWNER do this to many many people.
He IS VERY RUDE AND SEEMS RACIST! DO NOT EAT HERE ABUSIVE OWNER!

We were next door at «Segway of Oakland» taking a fun tour going from Jack London through downtown to uptown and then around the lake back to where we started… will write a separate review in praise of that. (And surprising, I’ve always judged people I’ve seen on Segways, why not walk? now I know).
ANYWAY… the tour went from 1pm to 3:30pm and we were famished afterwards. Since we loooove us some Bahn Mi – usually Cam Huong is our go-​to place — we figured, why not try Ao Sen since it was right there?
So glad we did! The lemongrass beef sandwiches are to die for… that’s pretty much all we had, but they were uniquely yummy. Makes me want to add lemongrass to everything I eat. And the guy who served us (maybe the owner?) was really sweet.
I told him that he should partner with the Segway folks and get more of us post-​tour-​ists into his shop. I have the sense that maybe not all folks on that block are thrilled to share space with a bunch of grinning idiots rolling around the neighborhood, but maybe if it brings them some business??? Just a thought.
All in all, a delightful day and a great combination.

Oh man oh manohman… After a harrowing morning of Jury Duty (and a narrow escape) I decided to reward my civic responsibility with a bahn mi. Just a few blocks from the couthouse down the new Lakeshore bike lane is Ao Sen. I’ve been eating Bahn mi in the Bay Area and Vietnam for 25 years, and these guys have a contender for my favorite ever in the grilled lemongrass beef. Oh manohman… It was a FOOT LONG people! And juicy and yummy and just 3.95 with a soft drink! What?! The beef was ground, not slices, but that made it pick up the awesome marinade perfectly. I’m a true believer, and will now be bringing my friends on bike rides around the lake with a stop to Ao Sen for lunch!

I’ve had plenty of Bahn Mi’s in my years, but this place is really outstanding and deserves the ultimate 5 stars in my book. First of, it has a parking lot so you won’t need to cruise around endlessly or fear getting a ticket. Second, the bread they use is simply a step above the competition. Crisp and crunchy on the outside without razor shards ripping your mouth apart and soft supple interior to pillow your filling.
In addition to the sandwiches, get the Rice crepes with Minced Pork. Super good in the hood!

They’ve expanded their Banh Mi selections from 3 to 8 (
). $ 3 each or $ 3.95 /​$ 5.95 combos with soda /​other beverages like smoothies.
1 Shredded Chicken
2 – 4 Grilled Marinaded (Beef, Chicken, or Pork)
5 Combo (pâté, pork roll, ham)
6 Meatball & Fried Egg
7 Sardines in Tomato Sauce
8 Fried Tofu
They also have Banh Cuon, Goi Cuon (summer rolls), Papaya Salad, and some rice plates with the grilled meats.
The baguettes are longer and thinner than what you usually see and have a nice crackly toasted crust (
).
I got the combo with no cilantro. In addition to the meat and mayo, there’s jalapenos, cucumber spears, julienned scallions, and pickled radish & carrots. (
). They forgot the no cilantro and there were a bunch of chopped stems which were a pain to remove.
The cold cuts tasted fresh and the scallions added a different flavor. The jalapenos are seeded so on the milder side. I would have liked more of the pickled veggies. They also appeared to have forgotten the pâté as I couldn’t taste or visually see it.
A-​OK, but Cam Huong a few blocks down is cheaper and tastier.

Love this place friendly staff great service prices are really affordable n the food is great

Came here a BUNCH of times already and the owner is really friendly! I fell in love with their lemon grass vietnamese sandwich and it is delicious. You can order a combo meal with the sandwich AND a choice of beverage for only $ 6.95. Great deal for such a filling meal!
Their thai iced tea and vietnamese iced coffee are also GOOD. but beware, the iced-​coffee might be a bit strong if you’re not used to vietnamese ice-​coffee.
Interior Design:
SUPER comfortable and relaxing! The interior of this café is just amazing and definitely have the authentic Asian feel to it. (you’ll have to go in to know what I mean)
They have an outdoor seating and parking lot as well!
I highly recommend this place!

I come here often for the smoothies and the mini rice dishes. The smoothies are fresh and can be custom ordered. I always order a smoothie with both strawberry and mango after running around lake merritt.
I typically order the lemongrass chicken and it is top notch. It’s not too big and overpriced like the other places so you don’t spend too much $$ and waste food OR overeat. I believe their takeout dish is under $ 5.
The staff is very friendly as well. I order a custom dish every once in a while and they make it to order without charging a high premium!

Ao Sen Express has the best sandwiches and papaya salad. Everything is very fresh. Their carrot and radish pickle don’t have the unpleasant smell. They have parking and the owner is very friendly. Thank you for opening this restaurant for us!

I’m too tired to use eloquent words, but Ao Sen was a-​ok. I love anything lemongrass beef so a banh mi with that as an option makes me happy. The sandwich was entirely edible, had all the required elements you crave but wasn’t amazing. I’m no baguette expert, but compared to Paris boulangeries and Vietnamese bakeries I’ve been to in the past, the bagtt at Ao Sen is no where near the melt in your mouth ecstasy of a true baguette combined with explosive Vietnamese flavors. The beef patty was overly sweet like they were trying to cover something up, which makes me suspicious but I still ate the whole thing.

My parents bought bahn mi at Ao Sen mistakenly thinking it was the far superior Bahn Mi Ba Le. I’m really not sure how they confused the two places. I politely ate the shredded chicken sandwich they bought but it was just awful. The chicken was dry dry dry. The meat was so stringy I’m still pulling it out of my teeth. Something in the sandwich was sweet; I’m not sure if it was the mayo or some sort of sauce put on the chicken. It was just awful, avoid it.

Yikes, the most nastiest Vietnamese sandwich I’ve ever had. I could only finished half and threw away half. It was yucky.

Stumbled upon this place after doing the breathtaking Segway tour next door, and have gone back twice since. WOW! Admittedly I don’t know a lot about Vietnamese food, but everything I and my companion have tried here was interesting, tasty, and nourishing. I especially love the sliced beef liver and green papaya salad. Plus everything is incredibly cheap.

the old Ao Sen has been converted into a fast food take out place. limited inside seating. limited menu: banh mi, desserts, drinks items on steamtable
eats: lemongrass banh mi (3.95)
–lots of tender lemongrass flavored beef, with hot spicies, carrot, radish, cilantro, and jalenpeno.
–baquette not crunchy, more soggy llike, long, thin baguette
–4 kinds offered: schredded chicken, lemongrass beef, cold cuts, and tofu? all 3.95
take outs:
–cook is the cashier too
–large parking lot
–didn’t see the usual pigeons. guess they couldn’t wait for the reopening.
–cash only?

came here the other day and ordered a café su da and a lemongrass banh mi sando.
the banh mi was HELLA GOOD.
crisp, light roll stuffed with lots of peppers, pickled turnips and carrots, fresh cilantro, and the most fragrant lemongrass meatballs ive ever had.
savory, sweet, herby, spicy, crispy, sour all mixed into every single bite.
one of the better vietnamese sandwiches ive had.
the café su da was hella strong.
i watered it down like 4 or 5 times and finally got it down to drinkable. either way it was pretty damn good.
price is hella cheap.
the only negative was that i asked for them to cut my sandwich in half. i asked for a plastic knife and instead one of the ladies came out with her machete-​like knife and cut it for me at the table… any vietnamese woman wielding a knife and walking towards me scares the crap out of me, but i guess it wasnt so bad because she had a kind smile.
this place is awesome.

Disclosure — I did not actually eat anything here. This review is based on overall atmosphere, pricing, menu selection.
I’ve been a fan of Ao Sen (with phở) restaurant. Since this «Express» café opened up, I was excited to try the Banh Mi sandwiches, as it is just around the corner from where I live.
Sadly, I was not impressed by the selection – there are only 3 sandwiches offered. Shredded chicken, beef, or a cold meat alternative. I was willing to try the chicken (shared with mom), but there wasn’t much else on the menu for us. We were hoping for a bun salad, or rolls, SOMETHING. They had green papaya salad, with prawns on the menu. It sounded decent, so we ordered that. After speaking with the kitchen staff, the cashier told us that they were out of prawns. This was at the height of lunch, and there were only 2 customers eating, so it seemed that they just didn’t have it to begin with. We said, «fine» and she took a salad that was already premade, and in styrofoam and plastic on the counter. No thanks. Then we asked what were the red slivers on the salad. «Beef livers,» she responded. Hmmm… I wasn’t really in the mood for salad with livers.
We weren’t interested at that point. Banh mi down the street are $ 3, with more selection, salads, rolls, and other options. We thanked them, retracted our order, and left.
I don’t know if what we experienced is just the ‘Grand Opening’ pains, but I hope that they figure it out soon. The menu needs more, the pricing competitive, and the food, FRESH.

No phở offered for takeout here. not much seating in this establishment, only for waiting on your order.
you’ll find vietnamese sandwiches, desserts, pastry, and drinks at ao sen express.
«gourmet» sandwiches are priced at $ 3.95. 3 different types of sandwiches are offered — chicken, beef, and cold meat combo. the beef and cold meat combo sandwiches i tried were packed with flavor. I also tried the meat filled pastry they had that day, which was like a savory croissant. i would recommend trying the sandwiches and skipping the pastry.
bring green, because they still dont take plastic after all their remodeling and expansion.