The bánh mì at Le Bleu in North Shoal Creek is pretty much the same one that you can get at Saigon Le Vendeur (it’s from the same team), but it just means that you have another access point to one of the best sandwiches in town. The biggest difference at Le Bleu is that in addition to more classic bánh mì fillings—like grilled pork, cold cuts, and tofu—here you also unlock access to a few less-conventional ones, like garlic butter prawns or marinated and cubed ribeye.

Fresh Bowl in North Austin is perhaps one of the only spots in town that makes their own rice noodles for phở—which should definitely be part of your order—but our absolute favorite thing here is the bánh mì. The baguette comes out toasted and puffy, resulting in an audible crunch and a small shower of crumbs after each bite, and there are enough pickled veggies and cilantro to brighten up the savory fillings it all holds.

After spending a few years hopping around the Austin area in a little red food trailer, B’s Kitchen eventually settled down with a permanent space on Anderson Mill Road. The meats here get tossed in a bit of sweet and savory sauce before hitting the grill, resulting in some great crispy edges on thick cuts of pork belly, pork shoulder, and chicken, but that doesn’t mean the classic cold cut version is any less deserving of your attention.

Up in Austin’s original “Chinatown,” Bep Co Tham is a Vietnamese restaurant from the people behind Texas Bakery, located in the same shopping center. That means that this spot also comes with fresh-baked bread around all of its bánh mì options, which serve as great fluffy and crunchy vessels for a thick layer of pâté, fresh and pickled vegetables, housemade butter, and a variety of meats. We like the pork patty or the combo, but there are enough options to keep things fresh for repeat visits.

Just a few short blocks north of UT, Sip Pho takes the prize for the prettiest dining room in the UT area (there’s also a patio). But it takes more than a beautiful, minimalist space to draw the crowds that Sip Pho does. Don’t be surprised to find a line out the door on weekends—half of them are here for pho and bún bò Huế, and the rest are here for the massive bánh mì. Show up during the summer when school is out, and you can skip the wait entirely.

The baguettes at Pho Van are small, with pointy tips that feel like little torpedoes—it helps with aerodynamics when you’re trying to launch these at your face as quickly as possible. Our go-to here is the grilled pork banh mi, packed full of smoky, savory chunks of char-grilled pork, and doused in just enough of a semi-sweet glaze to keep the whole sandwich incredibly juicy.

We usually go with the grilled pork banh mi at Saigon Le Vendeur, in which the pork is cut fairly thick, so each piece is crispy on the outside with a juicy interior. But you can also keep it classic with the cold-cut and pate version. A few years back they opened a sister restaurant Le Bleu, near 183 and Burnet, and from our experiences, the banh mi at the two were nearly identical—a big plus when there’s not much to improve on.

Pho Phong Lu'u might be best known for their pho, but they also make some great sandwiches. There’s only one meat option—with cold cuts and pâté—served warm, with crusty bread, a generous portion of meat, and enough pâté to make its presence known in every bite. And, of course, plenty of pickled veggies to balance it all together.

Baguette House has been serving quality banh mi in Austin’s Chinatown for years. They have a variety of traditional options, from the cold-cut classic—made with house-made mayonnaise and pickled vegetables, pate, cilantro, and jalapeño—to the super-savory grilled pork. We can’t really pick a favorite, but at around $6 each, you can probably grab a couple and save one for later.

The banh mi at Pho Please might be our winner in the bargain category, based on size alone. The sandwiches here are big enough to fill us up for a couple of meals. The bread tends to be a little softer and sweeter than other baguettes in town, but no less tasty. And we could eat their house-made mayo on just about anything, but it’s especially good on the lemongrass beef or the pork belly banh mi.

We’re fans of the Banh Mi Dac Biet at Lily’s—aka the Lily Gourmet sandwich—which has a bunch of different cold cuts, including head cheese, roast pork, ham, and pate. The baguette is crisp on the outside and tender in the middle, but still slightly dense. At around $6, it’s one of the more filling banh mi we’ve had. If you order one to go, they’ll offer to pack the vegetables separately so the sandwich doesn’t get soggy.

Banh Mi Galang doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside you’ll find a menu of banh mi about as classic as they come. And while you can get tasty versions of grilled pork, beef, and shrimp, it’s the Combo Sandwich you should be ordering here. It’s packed with Vietnamese pork, pate, and head cheese, with just the right amount of fatty bits to balance out each bite.

Tam Deli is probably most well known for their banh mi served on crisp yet doughy homemade baguette. There are a lot of tasty options for banh mi fillings, including fried butter garlic shrimp and chargrilled pork. Our go-to is the #10 combination sandwich that brings together paté, roast pork, and roasted chicken alongside mayonnaise and banh mi vegetables, making for a very delicious ersatz-Vietnamese chicken salad sandwich.