Midtown Lunch

Vietnamese burritos exist, and they’re in Midtown. That’s what I learned when I stumbled into Boi Sandwich (3rd Ave. btw 44th+45th) looking for a quick lunch the other day. They’re taking Bahn Mi-style ingredients and stuffing them into flour tortillas, and the result is a tasty bit of fusion.

We’ve reviewed Boi’s Bahn Mi sandwiches in the past, finding them to be good, if not entirely authentic. The burritos, in my opinion, are a welcome improvement. They are essentially the protein, sauce, and veggies that you’d find in one of their rice boxes, repurposed into a burrito.

There are plenty of appetizing protein options to choose from, like grilled prok meatballs or shredded honey-glazed beef, but I couldn’t resist the lemongrass barbecued pork. It was tasty. I can’t say for sure that I tasted much lemongrass, but the pork was naturally sweet, juicy, and cooked with a welcome amount of char.

The pork paired well with the crushed peanut hoisin sauce that I chose along with it. Other options, such as lemongrass citrus and sesame ponzu soy, sound good as well.

The veggies were also a nice addition. Shredded carrot, lettuce, and corn might not be the traditional bahn mi ingredients, but they worked well in the burrito. There was cilantro there too, but it must not have been much, because I didn’t taste any.

The one real weakness of the burrito is that, as often happens with burritos, it each ingredients was segregated, making it difficult to get a bite with meat, veggies, and rice all together. It’s sort of like a giant spring roll with rice instead of noodles.

All in all, the burrito makes for a satisfying lunch. For $7.58, it’s Chipotle-big, with a generous amount of meat piled into the tortilla. With all the fusion trucks and restaurants popping up, it’s a wonder no one’s tried this before.

Boi Sandwich, 708 3rd Ave. (btw 44th + 45th), (212) 682-1117