‘Nontraditional’ Vietnamese restaurant expands to Modesto from New Orleans
A New Orleans man has traveled over 2,000 miles to help establish a fourth location of his restaurant, and the first franchised location on the West Coast, on Standiford Avenue in Modesto.
Peter Nguyen founded Banh Mi Boys as a small restaurant attached to a New Orleans gas station in 2015, according to a TikTok video he posted introducing himself to the Modesto community. His concept is to blend traditional Vietnamese flavors with a New Orleans classic — the po’ boy.
Banh mi and po’ boy sandwiches are similar, both focusing on bread with a crisp crust and soft texture. What the bread roll is filled is what sets them apart — a banh mi with meat and fresh vegetables, and a po’ boy commonly with fried seafood.
“We take a nontraditional approach,” Nguyen says in the video. “I see a lot of people asking if this is authentic banh mi. It’s very subjective ... This banh mi is authentic to me. These are the flavors that I created.”
How did a Louisiana restaurant land in Modesto?
Sisters LoAnn Huynh and An Bui were searching for franchise opportunities when they came across Banh Mi Boys.
“I came across a few franchises and I looked more into Banh Mi Boys, and they got my attention,” Huynh said. “I made my way (to New Orleans) and it sold me right away.”
Before Banh Mi Boys, the unit at 1320 Standiford Ave. was One Tea House, a boba shop owned by Bui. One Tea House opened in 2020 and closed earlier this year after business slowed.
One Tea House was losing out on business because it did not serve food, Huynh said. Boba drinks are not standard on Banh Mi Boys’ menu, but Huynh and Bui received permission from Nguyen to add them so they could continue making drinks while serving food.
Banh Mi Boys menu has a flavor for everybody
On the menu at Banh Mi Boys are banh mi sandwiches in flavors including bulgogi beef, chicken katsu, smoked brisket, fried lemongrass tofu and bang bang shrimp.
“It still has some of the (Vietnamese) flavors, but it’s not so traditional and cold cut,” Huynh said. “Anybody would like it.”
Bowls are served with rice, noodles or salad and come with choice of meat. Also served are wings (pho, buffalo, honey sriracha, Cajun, Korean, katsu, lemon pepper, Asian and Korean barbecue), loaded fries and starters including spring rolls, fried calamari and popcorn chicken.
Milk teas, fruit teas and coffee drinks come as sweet as you want them, with sweetness levels listed as zero, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%.
Banh Mi Boys has a gluten-friendly menu with wing, bowl, spring roll and salad options.
The restaurant does not yet have a set opening date but is ready to open as soon as it receives a final inspection. It will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
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