Dragon Eats

Dragon Eats is a small chain of casual Vietnamese lunch spots, with a location really close to my house.  I've walked by sooooo many times, and always been a bit curious as I love a good bahn mi, but, I aways go by on the weekend, when they are closed.  The location near me is open only Mon-Fri, lunchtime only, and takeout only.

I became further interested in Dragon Eats during the pandemic, when they managed to reopen partway through, when the rest of my neighborhood was entirely shut down.  They always had a crowd, and most often then not, a sign out saying they were out of duck (this seems to be a very common occurrence!)  Whenever I walked by on weekends, I saw an employee (the owner?) busy stocking things, cleaning, prepping.  I wanted to root for them to make it through the pandemic just because it seemed like they were working so hard.

I only later learned the Dragon Eats has several locations, the others are open on weekends.   I was able to visit recently while on a neighborhood tour (run by my neighborhood community district), and also got a chance to meet the owner.  He verified what I suspected - they care about freshness and roast their own duck, chop veggies and herbs fresh every morning, etc.

Menu.

The menu at Dragon Eats is made up of only a few things: banh mi, fresh bowls, salads, and fresh rolls.  Most are available with several different protein options. Bags of chips and bottled drinks found out the menu. 

We were able to try both a bahn mi and fresh roll on our tour, but alas, I wasn't able to choose the protein.  I'd love to return again and order something I like more.

5 Spices Chicken Bahn Mi (half). $8.50.

"Pate, mayo, carrot + pickled diakon, cucumber, cilantro, jalapeno."

Bahn Mi are available in 7 varieties: classic roast pork with pate and the works, a similar version with 5 spice chicken, a tempting sounding sardine option (no pate, add fried shallots), roast duck (often sold out!  No pate, with sweet and sour sauce), pork meatball (no pate), garlic butter chicken breast (also no pate), or a vegan teriyaki tofu with fried shallots.

If I was ordering myself, I'd be tempted by the classic roast pork with pate as I just love pate, possibly the sardine one because I do love oily little fish, maybe the pork meatball, or the roast duck although I wasn't quite so sure about the sweet and sour sauce.  But alas, for this event, our host picked one of the two I'd never pick: the 5 spices chicken.  I'd even pick tofu over this.  But at least it wasn't the garlic butter chicken breast, as this at least had pate?

I was still able to evaluate the quality of the bread and freshness of ingredients, even if the primary component, the chicken, wasn't for me.

The baguette was nicely crispy on the outside, fluffy inside, seemed fresh enough.  It wasn't remarkable, but it wasn't bad.  I liked the generous portion of pickled carrot + diakon, and it was clear that the cucumber and herbs were quite fresh.  The mayo was pretty minimal - I'll be honest, I really like a significant slather of mayo in my bahn mi, and this left me wanting for more creaminess.  Likewise, the pate, just a tiny tiny amount ... honestly, I wouldn't have known it was there if not listed on the menu.  And then of course, the chicken.  Which was a mix of dark and white meat, mostly dark, and well marinated in the 5 spice blend.  It made me wish it was pork or duck.

So overall ... fresh ingredients, clearly made with care, but I wanted far more pate, and, well, not chicken (the later bit is not their fault in any way though).  The $8.50 price for a full size sandwich seems reasonable.

***.

Chicken Fresh Rolls.  $8.50/each.

"Avocado, rice noodle, red leaf lettuce, mint".

For a lighter option, in addition to bowls, Dragon Eats offers fresh rolls, large spring rolls, in only 3 varieties: shrimp, chicken breast, or teriyaki tofu.  All have rice noodles, lettuce, and mint inside.  I'd normally order shrimp, and would never pick chicken, particularly as it has avocado also and I'm allergic, but alas, I wasn't ordering.

I couldn't really evaluate this, but, it was well wrapped, had very visible fresh large slices of avocado, plenty of minced chicken, and rice noodles.  And, um, some cilantro garnish.

Peanut Sauce.

The fresh rolls come with peanut sauce, which was tasty enough, although I'd prefer something like sweet chili, rather than this heavy sauce. ***.