Saigon Deli Express

Went to Saigon Deli Express for the first time today. Didn’t know they were there and happened to be walking past and stopped dead in my tracks. I love Vietnamese sandwiches.
I ordered the classic combo sandwich and was not impressed. The bread was really dry and fell apart because it was over toasted, it crumbled with each bite. The cut of pork was pretty bad. I couldn’t bite through it because of the hard fat running through it. I ended up pulling the pork out and eating the sandwich vegetarian style. The flavor and crunch of the veggies was good, but there wasn’t enough of them to moisten the bread or provide much flavor. The price is great, but sadly I will not be going back.
Too bad. The idea of getting a bomb Vietnamese sandwich so close to work makes me so happy.

Hmmm, hhhhmmmhhhh…
Look, it’s tiny. It’s quick. It’s ok. I didn’t fall in love with my sandwich. It was just ok. It filled me up, was pretty decently priced for the area, and it was fast. I’m not sure if I have much else to say about this deli. It’s way better than other banh mi places in the area, FOR SURE! But there are totally better places somewhere out there…

I finally found the place to meet my craving Vietnamese Banh Mi/​Sandwiches. You’d better not miss it!
Recommended!

I found this little Mom & Pop type of place when I started working in the financial district at the beginning of the year. Even though this restaurant is small with no indoor seating, there is plenty of seating outside. It’s very popular during the lunch rush. I suggest to go either around 11a or 1p to avoid the crowd.
You definitely need to try the waffle. It’s the best!!! The last time I was there, there was a guy who was waiting for his order that said that this was the closest he has tasted to a Belgium waffle (not the US ones, the real Belgium ones). The waffles are made to order and they are worth the wait. You may want to toast them when you bring them back to the office because they are warm when put into the paper bag.
If you every been to Northstar ski/​snowboard resort and had their waffles, this is MUCH better.
They also don’t skimp on the veggies in the sandwiches. The bread tastes fresh and not stale which is a plus.
A+ for cleanliness compared to other small Asian businesses I’ve been to.
I like to support restaurant like this because San Francisco is losing it’s small businesses slowly in the financial district. I hope they stick around for a long time.

Love, love Vietnamese food!!! This morning came back after more than a year and ordered Super Combination, first bite felt like, Oh Gosh this isn’t even tasty!!!
Meat is just a B L A H!!!
Bread taste a lot BETTER! !!

I come here often when I’m on lunch break from work. A little surprised to see the overall rating of this place as low as it is? Very tasty and flavorful in my opinion. I usually get the Tofu sandwich and a green coconut waffle, I have never been disappointed in either of them. The waffle especially is fantastic! I must say that I think this is the best banh mi place downtown in financial district.
I will chalk the low rating up to all the «so called foodies» expecting a life changing banh mi experience. If you want a good, no-​nonsense sandwich, friendly/​fast service, and amazingly unique coconut waffles, forget the Unilocal snobs and try the place for yourself!!! :)

Looking at some of the beautiful pictures of others’ banh mi sandwiches, I feel completely ripped off. My tofu sandwich should have been called a carrot sandwich, as carrots made up roughly 80% of my sandwich’s contents.
As others have also stated, the bread is hard and definitely not fresh. Overall, this place is a huge let down considering it is affiliated with Saigon Sandwiches, the place in Civic Center that has become a legend, a place where $ 3 gets you one of the most delicious sandwiches in town. At this place, $ 6 gets you carrots and old bread, apparently.

I ordered the fancy pork. It was nasty. Where the he’ll was the meat. They over loaded my sandwich with way too much of carrots. Wth! Never again.. Yuck…

Quick snack in Financial district. This is a little sandwich stand. Hope they wash hands after receiving money and before making sandwich. Sandwich $ 6 – 7 and drink $ 2.25.

Not surprised by the overall rating of this place.
I ordered a chicken bahn mi and thought the meat was surprisingly flavorful but the flavor of the sandwich did not taste right overall. The pickled carrots tasted a bit odd and overall did not taste fresh. Later in the day I was incredibly parched. I suspect they may use MSG to cook their meat?
Not sure, but what I am certain of is that I will not be returning.

My coworkers recommended this place and it didn’t disappoint.
I have a favorite: Classic Combo. I love the pork, pickled vegetables, and the bread!
But my addiction is the coconut waffle. That green goodness, crispy in the outside, soft, chewy and steaming in the inside.
Definitely worth the walk!

$ 6.00 for a Pork Bahn Mi that is loaded with the ingredients and tastes great and is fresh, you cant go wrong! Especially for the price in the Financial District.

My co-​workers are raving about this place! They go for breakfast waffles there all the time. I just tried it, it’s o.k., nothing super spectacular. I have had better!

Normally I go to Les Croissants for my banh mi, but today I was trying to get Onigilly so I went to the Embarcadero. The line was long so I was settled for this place. The sandwich took too long, the girl making the sandwiches was rude, and my coconut waffle took forever then was thrown in the bag half cooked. if the waffle took long, they could have warned me and they should bag waffles separately from sandwiches. My coworkers thought it was disgusting and I agree. Only one star for the sandwich being so-​so. Les Croissants is so much better in terms of the service and foods. Never coming back here.

In an attempt to show me how real Vietnamese sandwiches are done without being super insanely expensive (I seem to only have the fancy gourmet bahn mi places near my office), we came over here for lunch on Friday. For a little over $ 5 each, we got tasty awesome sandwiches in the pork and fried tofu variety.
A lot simpler, yet just as tasty, as the gourmet places, I loved the fried tofu on my sandwich. I’d been told the pickled veggies weren’t too sour, but they actually were perfect (and I’m the person that believes dill pickles need to be worshiped as food of the gods). If you’re looking for super soft bread, this isn’t the place (as another reviewer commented) but I know I like my rolls to be chewy and crunchy like this (if I want soft bread, I’ll go to Subway).
There’s other options on the menu (green coconut waffles, spring rolls) but just the sandwich was good to keep through the rest of my work day.
It’s a bit of a trek for me to make it to, but it was worth it! Definitely some good sandwiches here!

I passed by this place with my girlfriend, and she exclaimed «oh! this place has green coconut waffles! I’ve had them before, and they’re good!»
Well, despite her previous experiences with these waffles, the one we ordered here was horrendous! It tasted alright, which is a plus, but it was the limpest, mushiest waffle I have seen. Forget cripsy, it didn’t really keep it shape when help, but limped over like wet bread.
Waffles are definitely not their strong point…

Not too sure why the rating for this place is so low. My husband and I love coming here evertime we shop in the area or before we go to a Giants game. It’s a tiny place with lots of outdoor seating. Right across from Coffee Bean and near the Giants Dugout, why wouldn’t you stop by? The sandwiches are good, the bread is amazing. They are priced accordingly and get your food to you ASAP.
Still need to try the waffles!

Great banh mi place in FiDi… not sure why it’s rated so low. It’s one of the cheaper lunch options in the area, and it’s not bad at all! I would definitely go back here. The sandwiches are a great size (not too big, not too small) — perfect for lunch.

I was a little surprised to find that this to be an offshoot of Saigon Sandwich on Larkin, in my mind, the preeminent banh mi purveyors in the city. That place is operated by two ladies, black belt masters of the baguette and the pâté. This one doesn’t have their expertise on the prep board, and you can tell because the sandwich is just not as good. Among their nearly dozen selections (photo:
), I decided to try the $ 5.75 Super Combination Banh Mi, which had all the requisite ingredients — chicken, pork two ways, pickled carrots and daikon, cilantro, cucumber, and jalapeño (photo:
) — but it was hamstrung by the paucity of meat and the hardness of the roll which became a jaw-​unhinging exercise in futility.
The $ 5 pair of Spring Rolls are adequate, no more, considering they’re prepackaged. I noticed they use iceberg lettuce and an excessive amount of vermicelli under the rice paper (photo:
). What saved my experience from being a complete miss was the $ 2.50 Green Vietnamese Coconut Waffle, which takes a Belgian waffle concept but puts the freshness inside the batter (photo:
). Although the color is greenish, the flavor and texture are enticing with a coconut tinge that allows for a lunchtime sweet treat without a lot of sweetness. Since the nearby Les Croissants makes a more satisfying banh mi, the waffle would be the only valid reason for me to return.
FOOD — 3 stars… marginal banh mi, satisfying waffle
AMBIANCE — 2.5 stars… not much to it and then you sit amid the confused tourists in Embarcadero Center
SERVICE — 3 stars… fast…that’s about it
TOTAL — 3 stars… saved by a green waffle

OMG! I just had a «HOW DARE YOU» moment with the food from this place!
HOW DARE YOU call this a Vietnamese sandwich!!! I ordered the combo sandwich ($ 5) and spring rolls ($ 4.50). The sandwich was a little better than the spring rolls but not by much. The little bit of meat they gave was fatty & the sandwich was tasteless & dry. It could’ve definitely used some mayo & maggi sauce to spice it up.
I ate half of the sandwich & was going to throw away the other half so that I can just indulge in the spring rolls. I mean. it’s spring rolls… how do you mess up on that? The spring rolls had 1.5 pieces of shrimp (Six half pieces that you can see through the roll). The remainder of the roll was filled with some rice noodles, lots of lettuce & 5 sprigs of bean sprouts… that’s it. OH. but it gets worse (yes, really). The dipping sauce was literally made out of hoisin sauce & water… LOTS of water so it did not adhere to the roll at all while dipping… not to mention, it was completely tasteless.
SHAME ON ME for wanting to save feel bucks & supporting a small biz. I should’ve stuck with the winner and gone to the over priced, at least satisfying Out The Door across the street!!! I’m sooo sorry, tummy!