These days, you can get almost anything off a food truck. Progressive-sounding ice cream, Asian hot dogs, cow feet, you name it.
However, as I’ve lamented before, what New York really needs is a banh mi truck. Say you are really craving a banh mi, but happen to be lunching outside Chinatown or the East Village. Say you’re in, for example, the East 50′s. I’m sure many office workers on these Asian-sandwich-deprived blocks would flock to something different from the usual halal vendors (as addictive as white/red sauce is.) Whoever starts driving such a truck would make a killing.
Likewise, someone should also start a pork belly sandwich truck. Gua bao (刮包) is a Taiwanese “burger” that consists of a slab of pork belly in a mantou, or steamed Chinese bun. In Taiwan, at least, the toppings usually include caramelized onions, cilantro, and crushed peauts.
In New York outside of Chinatown and Flushing, variations have sprung up at places like Momofuku and Baohaus. But again, they are nowhere in Manhattan north of 14th, at least for take-out.
Mantao Chinese Sandwiches on East 53rd St. may be the closest such place. The restaurant name is actually a misnomer. First of all, the food is as Korean-influenced as it is Chinese. Second, instead of steamed fluffy white mantou, the buns used seem closer to Chinese shaobing, baked bread with sesame on top. But no matter. Despite the buns’ lack of mantou qualities, the eatery is still worth a visit.
Notes on selected sandwiches:
Braised pork belly – I had been craving pork belly for weeks, and was looking forward to this one. Mistake. The pork belly was very dry, as though not enough braising liquid was used. The burger was bland overall, and the pickled cucumbers and cilantro didn’t help. A little Sriracha from the squeeze bottle, however, did slightly improve the texture and taste. Next time I would skip this entirely for one of the other sandwiches.
Sliced Beef with Kimchi (pictured up top) - This was my favorite of the bunch. The sliced beef was juicy, bulgogi-like, with equal parts lean meat and fat. The kimchi topping added just the right amount of kick.
Angus Beef Burger with Spicy Sambal Sauce (pictured left, half-eaten) – This is very, very spicy. The burger meat was a teeny bit dry, but hard to notice under the amount of sambal sauce. My lunch date drank a lot of water.
Spicy Pork (left, about to be eaten) – Like the Sliced Beef, the chili-tinged pork here was also juicy with equal parts lean meat and fat. It wasn’t nearly as spicy as the Angus Beef. Topped with pickled daikon, this was another winner.
We didn’t try the dumplings or cold noodles on the menu, but here’s another tip: get the lunch combo that comes with shrimp chips. Unlike the generic shrimp chips from Chinatown, dyed Easter colors and crackly enough to suck all the moisture from your tongue after a few bites, these are thick and substantive and not too greasy.
Note to the restaurant: if the shrimp chips are housemade, please sell them to-go by the bagful.
Mantao Chinese Sandwiches
235 East 53rd St. (btwen 2nd and 3rd Aves.)
New York, NY
212-888-2490
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More Chinese and Korean eateries in New York:
Grand Sichuan International – Chelsea
Hi Diane, great post as usual.
Do you know the Cravings truck? Maybe you can convince them to add Gua Bao to their roster: http://www.nyccravings.com/
Ma Peche, the uptown Momofuku, has a very limited takeout lunch menu, but it does include banh mi: http://www.momofuku.com/ma-peche/menu/midtown-lunch/
Shouldn’t it be Mantou? Looks tasty.
…that I had one of those in San Francisco. It sounds wonderful. (especially since I heart banh mi)
You’re right. I got so used to googling the restaurant name that I forgot about the Pinyin of the actual item. Thanks for the reminder.
Peter – Thanks for the Cravings truck suggestion. I really do need to check them out soon.
Normally I’d be reluctant to pay $10 for a banh mi, but judging by the photos on Midtown Lunch it does seem fully loaded and oozing with paté and head cheese. I’m sold.
One thing about those expensive banh mi’s is they use amazing ingredients. I love my regular $3.75 banh mi at Ba Xuyen, but I also don’t mind the occasional $10 one at An Choi, for example, with the beautiful meat they use. If you want banh mi uptown, it’s going to be more expensive anyway just because of the overhead.
Which banh mi’s at An Choi do you recommend?
I’ve tried a couple of different ones, but the only one I remember is the pork belly. It’s very rich. Maybe the hangar steak.
the pickled veggies (in the Taiwanese variety!). It’s the combination of sweet from the peanut flour, sour from the greens, and salty from the pork broth that makes these sandwiches so phenomenal. I don’t think I’ve ever had one with caramelized onions though, holy crap that’d be another level of incredible :D
Wow- that looks totally delicious! Have you ever tried a muffaletta? It’s a New Orleans style sandwich and it’s my absolute favorite!
Hi, I was born and grew up in Taipei and Gua Bao is very familiar for me. It’s basically something I’ve eaten often all of my life but I’ve never seen Gua Bao with caramelized onions?
Is Gua Bao with caramelized onions an American version of Gua Bao?
Liv – It might be the mainland China adaptation of gua bao that I’m used to. I’ve seen it with either caramelized onions or caramelized shallots, like in this photo I look at Bellagio, a Taiwanese restaurant in Beijing.
http://appetiteforchina.com/taiwanese-cuisine-bellagio-beijing