Nicky's Banh Mi vietnamese sandwiches

[Suzanne F]

Just opened on Nassau Street, between Ann and Fulton. Already in the East Village and Brooklyn; some prices are slightly higher here than listed on the website.

 

We enjoyed the pork chop sandwich (strips of grilled meat, with good grill flavor, $5.75) and the "classic" ($5.50) which had some slightly funky, livery pâté and very, very thin slices of Vietnamese mystery rubber processed meat, among other things. The bread is just eh, but I don't mind that so much since the other ingredients have flavor. I didn't see the sandwiches being made, so I don't know how the make the spicy version spicy, but I suspect from the unevenness that they just add some sliced jalapeño. In any case, spicy is hot enough, not overpowering.

 

Fresh lemonade was excellent. Summer rolls were pretty basic -- could have used herbs on the inside, too. But the dipping sauce was pleasant, just fish saucy enough but not too much. Maybe could have used a little chile; slices of jalapeño came alongside, with cilantro sprigs.

 

Next we have to do a head-to-head tasteoff with the sandwiches from Mangez Express over on West Broadway, formerly the closest source for banh mi in the vicinity.

[Sneakeater]

Thanks. This is sort of major.

[Daniel]

I have only been to the NIcky's in Brooklyn however ,I feel the sandwiches are just ok.. The best thing I have eaten there is the Pho.. Which is very enjoyable.

[alice]

Ooh thanks for sharing. Practically around the corner from me! Will have to go soon.

[Sneakeater]

I have only been to the NIcky's in Brooklyn however ,I feel the sandwiches are just ok.. The best thing I have eaten there is the Pho.. Which is very enjoyable.

 

The difference between Brooklyn and the FiDi is that there are a lot of good places to eat in Brooklyn.

[Suzanne F]

The handout menu says Pho coming soon (to Nassau Street location), so if it's good elsewhere, that's great to know.

 

I also hope they bring the portobello banh mi at some point; I do like to have a vegetarian option beyond tofu.

 

Sneak is right on the money about our needing good eating options here; you can't always schlep to Tribeca or put out the $$$$ for Sho. And the places on Stone Street aren't always all they're cracked up to be.

[Suzanne F]

They are now serving pho. We got the beef (they also have pork chop, chicken, and tofu versions) -- about 3/4 quart of broth with a separate container of rice noodles, sliced raw beef, sliced cooked beef (with some proper gristle), bean sprouts, cilantro, sliced jalapeños, slivered scallion, and a lime wedge and a separate little cup with hoisin and hot sauce. The broth was on the mild side, but it did have some of the flavorings I expected. Overall, it was just okay -- not terrible and not terrific -- but seemed kind of overpriced at $8.00, especially since I just had a much better version (with more beefy items and more herbs) at Saigon Pho in Pasadena for a lot less.

 

But the tofu banh mi is not good. Could be it was just the late hour (around 4 pm), but the tofu in the sandwich tasted way too strongly of frying oil, almost as though I was eating a cheap doughnut. Downright unpleasant. But I'll still try the other versions.

 

The fresh lemonade remains one of the best versions available anywhere.

[Suzanne F]

We just did a head-to-head (comb-to-comb?) comparison of Nicky's against Mangez Express, over on West Broadway between Murray and Warren. The test sandwich was chicken on regular white baguette, no extra spice. (We added our own sriracha about halfway through.)

 

Bread: a draw. Was cheap for both, nothing special. ME was slightly bigger than Nicky's. The bread held up better for Nicky's than ME, due to the relative wetness of the sandwiches. Both seemed lightly toasted, and both were served hot.

 

Dressing: ME's was wetter, either from more mayo or wetter vegs, to the point that the hinge of the bread dissolved. But we couldn't tell much difference in the dressing otherwise.

 

Chicken: Nicky's is chunks of dark meat; ME uses a slab of white. We prefer dark in general; ymmv. This white was quite moist, though. Grill flavor was more apparent in Nicky's. Lemongrass marinade came through more on ME's. Much more chicken meat on ME's, maybe twice as much by weight.

 

"Salad": Both had a lot of fine julienne carrot; ME had more cucumber, or at least it was more obvious. Neither had daikon, that we could tell, and both were light on cilantro. It was difficult to tell how much any of the vegs had been pickled. Since we didn't go with spicy, neither had chile slices, although when we've gotten them spicy, both did, as well as sriracha.

 

Cost: ME is $5.99 plus tax; Nicky's is $5.50, tax included. But ME's sandwich was considerably bigger, even enough to split between the two of us, with more chicken. Nicky's would be better just for one eater, and had a lower chicken-to-bread ratio.

[Eatmywords]

Maybe too far from you but there’s a wonderful little Ban Mi cart on Pearl and Hanover Sq. They do a good classic w/pate and ham w/the usual condes; daikon, cucumber, carrots, cilantro and hot sauce on a warm, crunchy decent qlty baguette. There are some 10 other variations including chicken, vegetarian, shrimp and eel. I became addicted to the eel.

[Sneakeater]

OH???????????????

 

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[nuxvomica]

yeah, that's a great tip, Eat! thank you

[Suzanne F]

No, not too far at all. Thanks!!

[Merlin]

No do chua? That's the best part.

[Suzanne F]

No do chua? That's the best part.

Do you mean on the ones we compared? There was plenty of carrot, just no daikon. (I made up for it by cooking some of both for dinner last night -- but now I'm out of them.)

[Eatmywords]

OH???????????????

 

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No problem, I expect a full report this afternoon! Fyi, they are not huge. I kicked my desk a couple times wishing a second was awaiting.

 

While we’re on that area (and nothing to do with Nicky’s or banh mi) there’s another non-descript buttered roll – chicken rice cart just a block north on Gouverneur btwn Water and Front (south side of Duane Reade) that does a fantastic curry white fish w/onions (prob tilapia) over basmati w side salad. Make sure you ask for a healthy topping of his dahl (lentils). One of the best $5 cart meals you’ll have down there. The chick platter is fine too (dahl is a must). I ate off that cart twice a week for 4 months last winter. Even tried to convince the vendor an all Indian cart would be a standout. He was apprehensive.