The clouds finally cleared on what looked to be a dreary Sunday. My morning had been spent anxiously watching the sky and various teams battle it out on the World Cup stage. My excitement has been high for the games and tends to work up a powerful hunger in me. After the final match of the day, once the sun had appeared, I decided to get out, enjoy the weather and find someplace to sate my appetite. I passed English, German, Irish and Italian restaurants but nixed them all as being too heavy for such a warm and sunny day. No, what I needed was something light and bright, something Asian perhaps. As it turned out I found myself in the International District, outside the restaurant I wanted to present to you last Sunday, Green Leaf Vietnamese.

The restaurant is tiny, more a hallway or closet than what one would think of as an eatery. But despite being small the interior decoration was well executed in bamboo walls, wood & sheer fabric sconces and black marble tables with elaborate living bamboo pots. Instrumental music piped in overhead added a soothing quality to the already tranquil atmosphere. I was pointed to a table; a cup of hot tea and a menu appearing before me in short order. It had been my hope that the service would be equally speedy throughout the entirety of my meal. Alas this was not to be. I ended up waiting fifteen minutes before finally flagging down someone to come take my order. Hopefully the kitchen was faster than the wait staff.

Turns out they are. I started with an order of Fresh Spring Rolls with Shrimp ($3.00) #3 and they arrived within minutes of placing the order. Plump and oversized they arrived wearing translucent rice paper wrappers, they succulent shrimp visible under the wrapping. From each end poked fresh lettuce that wrapped around a rolled, deep fried wonton wrapper that gave the whole roll crunch. As for flavor the rolls were cool and light with a spicy bite from flecks of fresh mint. Interspersed amongst the leafy greens were soft vermicelli noodles, smoky, sweet barbequed pork and juicy medium sized shrimp. All in all the rolls were slightly chewing and meaty with a bright flavor from cool, crisp leafy greens. These are rolls that are filling enough for Winter but still light enough to eat on the warmest of Spring or Summer days.

While I was having at my order of Spring rolls, the noodle bowl I had ordered arrived; Grilled Beef with Lemongrass (5.95) #41. A largish bowl half filled with vermicelli noodles, half filled with fresh vegetables and topped with crisp, grill seared beef begged me to put down the rolls and try it. I mixed together the bean sprouts, lettuce, cucumber and carrot with the noodles. Making sure to get some of the herbal lemongrass, mint and cilantro topping along with a chopstick full of noodle and beef I shoved it all into my mouth. The well-cooked beef was actually a roulade made of thinly sliced meat and a pasty mixture of minced lemongrass and chilies. A beefy burst of flavor hit my palate along with a light lemony and slightly spicy kick. The smooth, creaminess of well cooked vermicelli noodles helped to tame the bold, slightly oily flavors while the fresh vegetables helped to cool the whole bite down. Before I knew it I had finished half the bowl without looking up at anything or anyone around me. While I dabbed on a bit of chili sauce from an available container (I like a bit of a spicy kick) you may not need anything for this dish.

The kitchen at Green Leaf is humming the right tune that’s for sure. Quick and tasty would be the two words I’d use to describe to output of the tiny backroom I saw from my window table vantage point. While I ordered more food than I should have I left not feeling weighed down or bloated at all. And my wallet wasn’t much lighter than when I had walked in. Cheap and delicious, you’ve got to love that. I highly recommend Green Leaf to anyone in the mood for Vietnamese cuisine that isn’t a Bahn Mi. I will say though, as a caveat, you may run into slow service from the wait staff. So be prepared for either a wait or to have to get someone’s attention with a little dance. Either way it will be worth it.

Nothing builds an appetite quite like traffic, or is that ruin an appetite. I can never get that straight. Not that I need a reason to be hungry or want something good to eat. But sometimes fighting traffic on a rainy afternoon starts the gnawing in one’s belly, a hunger that needs to be filled. It was today’s hunger that had me seeking out Baguette Box on Capitol Hill.

You’ll know it when you see it, walking uphill from Pacific Place or down past the stores that line Pine St. Baguette Box is unique for a restaurant in that their signature, a baguette, is firmly in the mouth of their mascot icon Boxer. The sign on the window is big as day and as long as you know to look for that, you’ll always find this tiny little shop. The space is small and narrow and you walk through the dining area with its five or so tables to get to the counter to place your order. A large sign is mounted high above your head listing sandwiches or you can grab a paper menu from the counter and step back while deciding which delight best fits your mood.

Today I choose the Grilled Lemongrass Skirt Steak Baguette ($7.50) and an order of Fries ($2.35). It took a short while for my food to get to me as the steak was cooking in the back. The kitchen is an open-air affair that is located just over the shoulder of the cashier. It was my fries that came out first. Dressed in a paper cup similar to what you’d find at the state fair, they were a dark, golden brown, standing at attention with big flakes of course salt clinging to their surface. The crispy exteriors held fluffy interiors with big potato flavor all without the slightest hint of greasiness.

It was after shoveling a few fries into my mouth that my sandwich arrived. Hot and steamy I could smell the scent of lemon and a hint of the cilantro that was lounging on top of all the toppings. The baguette itself had a soft interior with a crunchy, crackly crust. I pay particular attention to the bread not only because the restaurant is named Baguette Box but also because too many times when one orders a sandwich made on baguette you get a tough, chewy piece of shoe leather. This was not the case here, however, as the bread was very fresh. Piled into it were too large-ish pieces of skirt steak, carrots, onion, lettuce and cilantro. I wasn’t until halfway through the sandwich that I realized what this was, a Bahn Mi. The steak was mildly flavored with lemongrass but sauced with hoisin sauce. Combine the bright lemon flavor with a savory, slightly tart hoisin sauce you get a unique taste. What made this stand out even more was the addition of sweet carrot. While a lot of Vietnamese food is based on Asian and French influences, and the Bahn Mi is a great example of this, this sandwich was most definitely Asian inspired all the way. I wouldn’t quite call it sweet and sour but sweet and savory would not be too far off the mark. My only complaint would be with the meat itself. Flank and skirt steaks, as I’ve said before are decent cuts of beef if treated properly. They should never be served in large chunks, especially if they are presented in a sandwich. I really dislike having to tear at a sandwich only to have a large bit of meat slide out of the bread and hang from my mouth. Smaller pieces of meat, please!

So was it worth fighting traffic? Would I do it again? I most definitely would. Baguette Box is a hole in the wall eatery with an upscale, yet low-key attitude. A relaxed atmosphere and good food make for a regular stop on my list of places to eat.

I love sandwiches. Call it my comfort food if you must but there’s something about great bread cradling wonderful fillings that warms my heart. I’ve tried many types of sandwiches over the years; from subs to hoagies, grinders and po’ boys I’ve developed a taste for what’s good between two pieces of bread. What I had never tried though, was a Bahn Mi.

A Vietnamese sandwich that combines Asian heritage with French colonial influence, the Bahn Mi I tried was simply called “sandwich”. The person who called it this was a little bit of a man, wearing sunglasses, behind the counter of Broadway Cafe. Being a neophyte of ordering a Bahn Mi I didn’t know that it’s simply ordered as an “insert filling name here” sandwich. Well, obviously out of my element, I order what I think would be the hardest kind of sandwich to mess-up, a Beef Bahn Mi ($4.45)

The sandwich that arrived at my table was a crusty French loaf over stuffed with a beef mixture that contained sautéed onion and a tangy, beefy brown sauce. The sauce tasted soy based with garlic, thyme and hints of tamarind. Not too much and not too little the sauce gave the star of the sandwich, the beef, the right juiciness and flavor. To accompany the meat were fresh lettuce and tomato along with what I thought was mint. Very interesting flavor combinations and ones that I quickly put away.

If you find yourself on Capitol Hill, take some time to stop into the little out of the way restaurant called Broadway Cafe. Order a sandwich and expand your thinking of what two pieces of bread can hold. With offerings of pork and chicken, I know I’m sure to be back.