At the "Woks and Lox" Chinese-Jewish Christmas Eve party, I won a raffle prize which included a meal for two at Jo Ju, which bills itself as offering "modern" Vietnamese sandwiches. I did a little digging and found that this 6-month-old place has gotten some good ink from Queens food bloggers, including Jeff Orlick and Joe DiStefano. Its small menu has a few appetizers, 7 different banh mi, and lots of different coffee/bubble tea/other Asian drink options.
Our prize included a large order of spring rolls (4), 2 lemongrass chicken and 2 beef bulgogi banh mi, an iced Vietnamese coffee, and a hot Vietnamese coffee mocha with whipped cream. The spring rolls were crisp and not greasy, and were filled with mostly pork rather than just vegetables. They come with either a sweet and sour or fish dipping sauce. The banh mi I didn't think were quite up to the Ba Xuyen standard, though in fairness we didn't get the classic to make a comparison. The vegetables and herbs were fresh, but the bread seemed to be a standard French bread roll. The bulgogi I thought had a lot more flavor than the chicken. Besides the classic and the two we had, the other varieties they have are BBQ pork, grilled pork chop, Kakuni slow-braised pork belly, and vegetarian ham. They use Cafe du Monde coffee to make the coffee drinks. This kept the iced coffee from being too sweet, even with the addition of condensed milk, and gave it an interesting intensity. The hot coffee was essentially dessert for us.
I would like to go back and try the classic and pork belly banh mi and one of the tea-based drinks. N is intrigued by the iced pickled lemon soda, which is actually made with pickled limes plus salt and sugar. The prices are very cheap--the most expensive sandwich is $5.25, and you can get basic small coffees and teas for just $1. One note: they offer patrons free WiFi.
Jo Ju
83-25 Broadway
(near the Elmhurst Avenue station and right by Whitney Avenue)
Jo Ju
Started by StephanieL, Jan 08 2012 12:24 AM
6 replies to this topic
#1
StephanieL
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Posted 08 January 2012 - 12:24 AM
"Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires." --John Steinbeck
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#2
megc
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Posted 01 April 2012 - 02:56 AM
This gets me more excited about Jo Ju, which is on my list to check out this week. Really looking forward to having one of their sandwiches (but no "vegetarian ham" for me, if I can help it.)
#3
StephanieL
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Posted 01 April 2012 - 06:18 PM
Hey meg, if you're the Meg from my 'hood, welcome!
"Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires." --John Steinbeck
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#4
megc
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Posted 02 April 2012 - 02:11 AM
Hey meg, if you're the Meg from my 'hood, welcome!
Thanks, Stephanie! I recognize your avatar from another forum, too. And yes, I'm the same Meg you know in Astoria!
#5
Sneakeater
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Posted 02 April 2012 - 06:29 AM
Meg, this is exciting. I hope you'll post a lot here.
Bar Loser
#6
megc
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Posted 02 April 2012 - 02:47 PM
Meg, this is exciting. I hope you'll post a lot here.
Thanks, Sneakeater! I hope so, too!
#7
megc
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Posted 03 April 2012 - 07:57 PM
So, I just got back from Elmhurst after lunch at JoJu and some exploring (loving the iced coconut milk tea made with pandan I bought just inside Hong Kong Supermarket). I am in love with JoJu's sandwiches! I have no idea how they get the bread so perfectly crisped but it was a delight to eat it - I've had banh mi with softer bread, and some with bread that is so hard it scrapes the top of your mouth (not fun), but this was just awesome. I loved how the ends of the bread sort of shattered as I bit into them, while keeping their integrity.
I opted for the #3 sandwich with roast pork, and added an egg (very much recommended). I had them add spicy mayo and a little bit of fresh jalepeņo - it was just the right level of spicy for me. I loved the pickled flavor of the daikon/carrot mix, and the nice big leaves of cilantro were a delight (I am a HUGE fan of cilantro). Everything melded into one delicious sandwich. With my sandwich I had an iced Vietnamese coffee, which I sucked down way too fast. I could have had three of them, they were that tasty.
After that I got a ginger flan, which was very nice. Along with it, I got an iced green tea infused with lychee and mango, with bubbles and mango stars added. I also loved how this drink was fruity, sweet, and tangy - all three elements were well balanced. I love tapioca pearls and bubble teas, so the bubbles were good with me, plus the mango stars were so fun! They took mango flesh and cut little stars out of them, enough to fit up a bubble tea straw.
I will be back for sure. I'd love to try the "Linsanity", the Classic #1 and the Chicken #2. I'll try another one of their drinks with bubbles and such next time.
(Yes, it appears I've had three drinks in only a few hours!
)
I opted for the #3 sandwich with roast pork, and added an egg (very much recommended). I had them add spicy mayo and a little bit of fresh jalepeņo - it was just the right level of spicy for me. I loved the pickled flavor of the daikon/carrot mix, and the nice big leaves of cilantro were a delight (I am a HUGE fan of cilantro). Everything melded into one delicious sandwich. With my sandwich I had an iced Vietnamese coffee, which I sucked down way too fast. I could have had three of them, they were that tasty.
After that I got a ginger flan, which was very nice. Along with it, I got an iced green tea infused with lychee and mango, with bubbles and mango stars added. I also loved how this drink was fruity, sweet, and tangy - all three elements were well balanced. I love tapioca pearls and bubble teas, so the bubbles were good with me, plus the mango stars were so fun! They took mango flesh and cut little stars out of them, enough to fit up a bubble tea straw.
I will be back for sure. I'd love to try the "Linsanity", the Classic #1 and the Chicken #2. I'll try another one of their drinks with bubbles and such next time.
(Yes, it appears I've had three drinks in only a few hours!
)
