Oakland: Chinatown Walking Tour
We'll visit some of the most popular eateries and landmarks in the Oakland Chinatown neighborhood - one of the oldest Chinatowns in the United States!
Oakland's banh mi runs through the East Lake International Boulevard corridor. Pho Ao Sen, Banh Mi Ba Le and the Eastlake noodle row anchor the citywide version.
Vietnamese refugees settled in Oakland after 1975, building the San Antonio and Eastlake neighborhoods into a Vietnamese commercial corridor. Banh mi the dish blends French baguette (1880s colonial influence) with Vietnamese fillings: pate, mayonnaise, sliced pork, pickled daikon and carrot, jalapeno and cilantro. The Oakland version is Vietnamese-Cambodian-Lao through influence from the broader corridor.
3 editor picks for Oakland banh mi in Oakland, ranked by editorial score. All Oakland signature dishes · Oakland banh mi across every city.
Banh Mi Ba Le ★ 4.6
san-antonio · 1909 International Boulevard, Oakland, CA 94606
Banh Mi Ba Le on International Boulevard runs the East Bay's most-loved banh mi counter, Fridays through Sundays only. Two dozen sandwiches under ten.
Tay Ho Restaurant and Bar ★ 4.4
chinatown · 344 12th Street, Oakland, CA 94607
Tay Ho on 12th Street on the edge of Oakland Chinatown cooks Northern Vietnamese plates with a full bar. Bun cha Hanoi is the lead order at the door.
Pho Ao Sen ★ 4.3
eastlake · 1139 East 12th Street, Oakland, CA 94606
Pho Ao Sen on East 12th in Oakland's Eastlake neighborhood runs the city's standard for pho, a Sunday-morning regular for two decades on the corridor.
Learn to cook it, or eat it with a guide
Oakland banh mi makes more sense with someone from Oakland explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
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