Banh Mi Saigon

If there’s anything you take away from this roundup of NYC cheap eats, let it be this. Chinatown is a goldmine of options. One of my favorite spots in the neighborhood is Banh Mi Saigon, famous for (you guessed it) banh mi.

A tour de force, the popular Vietnamese sandwich is made with crisp baguette-style bread, pickled carrots, daikon, chiles, cucumber slices, cilantro, mayo, and a protein (typically marinated pork). The best part? It’s a mere $10 at Banh Mi Saigon.

One of the most reliable cheap eats in New York City hails from Banh Mi Saigon, a no-frills restaurant in Chinatown in Manhattan. Banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich made with a crispy baguette-style bread that’s generously filled with meats and veggies (like a delicious carrot slaw).

The signature BBQ pork sandwich is a fan favorite, clocking in at a mere $10. The baguette is perfectly crisp, the BBQ pork is juicy. And the vegetables offer a refreshing crunch. For a restaurant that doesn’t even have a website, the lines can be hard to believe. But thankfully, lines move quickly because this Chinatown restaurant doesn’t offer seating (you’ll need to grab that bad boy to go).