"Where do you wanna go?" "I dunno. Where do you wanna go?" "Banh Mi?" "Oh, yeah. That sound good".

Of all the places my wife and I frequent for lunch, there is no doubt that there is one restaurant that easily holds the record for the "most games played". True, it is only around the corner from the office, but so are 10 or so other restaurants.
No, there is something addictive about the food over at Banh Mi and Co. Let's start with the menu. It's simple, designed to be like a Chipotle. Pick your protein - tofu, chicken, pork or beef. Then pick your delivery method - Bowl of soup, sandwich, salad, or spring roll. However, within those selections, you can find a different way to satisfy your palette each time you are there. I would say we average 2-3 visits a week. We're trying to cut down, but it is so hard sometimes to resist the urge for the flavor.
Today for example was a Pho' (pronounces pha) day. Sort of misty outside. Chicago yet again not knowing if it wants to head full on into winter or pretend to be Seattle or San Francisco weather (without the mountains) or something for a bit. The broth of the Pho is rich without being heavy or too oily. When it is served you immediately say, "Oh, that's a big bowl, I could never . . . " and then you do.
I tend to get the beef. The key to eating it is not to rush into it. I always ask to have the lime and jalapeno on the side. Do this. Otherwise you'll burn your fingers in the hot soup.  Squeeze the lime over the top of the soup. Get as much as you can out of the lime. DO NOT forget to add the lime.  It's important as a balance to the salty sweetness of the soup and onions. Then mix slowly, separating the noodles with either a fork or your chopsticks. This technique will both mix the soup flavors and cool the broth till you can eat it.  Then just wait. Check your phone, email, facebook, twitter, instagram, email, text, whatever. Just wait. After maybe a couple tweets and liking a few photos of friend's kids being adorable on Facebook, the soup should be ready. The key to all of this is to let that fresh sweet onion and green onion meld with the meat and broth. It's incredible what a difference this will make to the richness of the broth and in turn, your experience with the Pho'.

Beef Pho at Banh Mi and Co. after Mixing and patiently
waiting for all the ingredients to start really developing.

What we eat:

1. Pho. Yes, we talked about that. The chicken pho can be a bit drier so I stick with the beef this days. The pork looks quite good as well.

The Pho' before adding the components in and stirring. 

2. The Banh Mi: I order the Lemongrass Chicken. A mayo spread on the bun takes care of the potential dryness of the meat and if you get the bread on a good day, it's fabulous. Warm and toasty. Nice crunch, but not enough to like cut the roof of your mouth or anything. The tangy pickled carrots and cucumber are so perfect in this sandwich. Wow, Pavlov. I am actually salivating. I've seen people come as a pair and order three different sandwiches to share so they can try the different flavors.

Lemongrass Chicken Banh Mi. Simple and delicious.

3. The tofu spring roll. A good way to get your Banh Mi and Co in without overdoing it and passing out after lunch. It's a much lighter meal than the Pho or the Sandwich. I pair it with a small chicken and rice noodle soup, but the wonton is also very tasty although sometimes a little oily.

My wife gets this one. Lemongrass Chicken in a noodle salad. The noodles are buried below because she orders a "special" of course. That is, her usual of "less noddles, more salad". They have it pretty much already in the computer when they see her coming. 

We go to the Banh Mi at Briar and Broadway, but there are other locations. One in downtown Roscoe Village, one at Clark and Belmont, and a couple downtown. Note, the Banh Mi at Roscoe and Broadway is not of this small chain of restaurants and is not, in our opinion of the same quality of food. If you run into Lee, the owner, tell em' we sent ya. He may be moving so fast you can't catch him though. Enjoy. If you go enough, I can pretty much guarantee any of these may become your "Usual".