Cafe Thanh Truc

You know a place is banging when you Unilocal from the place itself. Thus it is. Xmas on Philly.
Ever feel bad your vegetarian friends can’t try bun bo hue? They have the vegan version here and just as good.
Great bun bo hue, bun rieu and rice dishes. Sandwiches are better than most places.

best hu tieu nam vang. htnv all dae bae bae

Five stars for consistent and friendly service, quality ingredients, and value. Prices are so reasonable its practically free.
I love this place and would recommend Jared (the Subway guy) to switch his diet to Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches. He could lose more weight eating more delicious sandwiches.
* Get the BBQ pork sandwich. Unlike other shops in Philly that serves fake pork, this place serves BBQ pork sandwiches with yummy marinated pork, that explodes with unique Vietnamese flavors (and hint of lemongrass, garlic etc.). Yum.
* Get the regular cold cut sandwich with pâté, which is the quintessential banh mi.
* I love their coconut drink that comes in packets and has real coconut meat — and their cold ice tea (free) is refreshing.
* The Vietnamese iced coffee is a lot better than most.
* There is free parking at the north corner of the block if you can’t find street parking.

Apparently, this is the latest incarnation of a series of Banh Mi shops at this location, as a quick UnilocalCheck shows this place has had several names over the years, while working with the same people and offering substantially the same menu. As Robert Burns wrote so well, «A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.»
And, so it is for this small store on S. 8^th Street just off Washington. The space is clean, with about 7 tables, and a warm staff that is attentive, yet unobtrusive. I had plenty of time to peruse the double sided laminated menu, but I really knew what I wanted coming in. The rep here is about authentic Vietnamese Sandwiches, Banh Mi, although they also provide Phở, Vermicelli and Broken Rice dishes, along with a long list of VN Coffee and other beverages.
The fresh ingredients are on display in the glass enclosed refrigerator that separated the customers from the food prep area. The work on my meal was in plain view. It arrived a few minutes after ordering on a white plate covered in sandwich paper. The Baguette was fresh with crunchy crust and soft airy inners. The Grilled Pork was plentiful and cut into small pieces at the bottom of the sandwich valley. Daikon Radish, Cucumber, Carrot, and Cilantro were piled on top and overflowing.
I took a bite to start the proceedings, and was met with each of the components as they lustily exploded in my mouth. Really a great first bite! I added a squirt of Hoisin and Sriracha to bring up the volume a bit and to experiment to see how they would change the experience. The Banh Mi was fine as it was, but I can be excessive when it comes to flavor, so the addition of both more BBQ flavor and Chili heat was pleasing.
Café Tranh Truc also has a few HDTVs on the wall, so I was able to enjoy a rewatching of The Hurt Locker during dinner.
The entertainment was free.