Vancouver’s authentic, gourmet Vietnamese coffee brand Hanoi Drip has expanded into yet another Ba Le location. The Broadway location now offers their phin-dripped, bold robusta brews, egg coffees, and more.
This was reason enough to visit for lunch with a friend, not once, but twice in two weeks. This is one of their larger locations with multiple tables indoors, and a couple on their side patio when its a clear day.
We grabbed a couple of Hanoi Drips, but with so many unique flavours and bright colours catching your eye, it is a difficult choice.
The three I typically gravitate towards is the pandan, ube, and egg cream lattes. The former has but a faint hint of pandan, it adds its greenery to the mix, but does not sweeten.
For something sugary the Ube Coconut Coffee is a lovely drink with the distinct flavour of the purple root vegetable.
And their Famous Egg Coffee adds a layer of salted cream to sweeten up the brew.
Much like the drinks, when I visit Ba Le I tend to order the same sandwiches. My favourite and go-to is the Special cold cut for its pate alongside ham, head cheese, sausage, and mayo. I like the amount and variety of meat, and how its salt contrasts well against the pickled vegetable.
The Vietnamese Bacon sandwich also has pate so it is my backup option. Pork belly, sausage, pate, and mayo. Although the pork belly is more like a cold cut, the only difference is that it has a trim of neon red as its identifier.
My guest ordered the Grilled Pork Lemongrass, as recommended to her as a first timer. This made for a great introduction to Vietnamese cuisine and the banh mi.
New to the Ba Le menu are rice and/or noodle bowls. I liked how they were diversifying, but I didn’t find the ingredients here comparable to their sandwiches. We tried the Grilled Lemongrass Chicken bowl with vermicelli, fish sauce, and added on a fried egg.
The meat was dry and I noticed the use of a microwave behind the counter. Once again I liked the option of a more fulsome meal from them, but would stick to their banh mi. Plus, you’d want to save room for dessert.
As a part of the Hanoi Drip menu they now have a Vietnamese Coffee Tiramisu. Bold Vietnamese phin-brewed coffee soaked into soft lady fingers, layered with mascarpone cream. This was a smooth and creamy, modern take on a timeless classic and a lovely way to end our meal and time at the cafe.
Ba Le Deli & Bakery (Mt.Pleasant)
691 E Broadway, Vancouver, BC V5T 0E5
(604) 559-9566
balebanhmi.com
