If you are not worried about your waist line this one is a must try. So delicious.
DISHES: Five-spice pork belly banh mi and Kimchi fries
PRICE: $5.99 each
RESTAURANT: Banh Mi Boys Sandwich Shop
LOCATION: 392 Queen St. W., one of two Toronto locations
In 2012, the Toronto Star declared the Chinese five-spicepork belly banh mi the Toronto sandwich of the year.
Food writer Jennifer Bain cleverly dubbed it the T-Wich 2012 for short.
Bain is not alone in her adoration for this Vietnamese-style sub from Banh Mi Boys Sandwich Shop. Online, the reaction from food bloggers, critics and savvy eaters has been rapturous.
The shops themselves (one near the corner of Queen St. W. and Spadina Ave.; the other, newly opened, at 399 Yonge St.) have also been getting a lot of love.
It’s no surprise, then, that several readers have asked The Dish to investigate the nutrition numbers for the now-famous pork belly sub.
Fans of Banh Mi Boys are also curious about the number of calories in an order of kimchi fries. This poutine-like concoction — labelled a side by the resto — is a mound of thick-cut fries topped with pulled pork, kimchi, a scattering of green onions and a generous squirt of house mayo.
To satisfy inquiring readers — and likely to the dismay of diners who would rather devour their Banh Mi Boys meal in blissful ignorance — I sent the pork belly banh mi and an order of kimchi fries to the laboratory for analysis.
Kimchi fries
Joanne Wang finds the kimchi fries addictive, calling the dish a “perfect combination of hot and cold, crispy and creamy, spicy and savoury.”
Fellow enthusiasts will agree with Wang when she says she’s terrified to learn the fat and calorie count.
Still, when I tell her the kimchi fries ring in with 1,183 calories and 86 grams of fat, Wang isn’t all that surprised.
“It is French fries, pulled pork and mayonnaise,” she says with a laugh. “It’s a good dish to share.”
Registered dietitian agrees: “Definitely split it — and not just with one person.”
Reza points out the 1,499 milligrams of sodium in the fries is as much as our bodies require in one day. The 86 grams of fat is about 10 grams more than the average woman’s maximum recommended daily allotment.
As a comparison, Burger King’s poutine with bacon has 750 calories and 41 grams of fat.
At first glance, the BK fries, made with bacon, cheese curds and gravy, appears to have a better nutrition profile. But the poutine weighs less (it’s 64 grams lighter) than the kimchi fries — and is much saltier with 2,430 milligrams of sodium.
Wang says she’ll continue to order the kimchi fries when she visits Banh Mi Boys, even though they are a bit of a calorie bomb.
“I go every couple of months as a treat,” she says. “It’s definitely an indulgence and I treat it as such.”
Five-spice pork belly banh mi
She has read the rave reviews and regularly walks by both outlets, but Grainne Murphy has never eaten at Banh Mi Boys.
“I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve passed that place and wondered,” she wrote in an email. “I mean, it’s a sandwich ... but would I be getting half my day’s calories from it or is it OK?”
Murphy says she wants to know how many calories are in her meals because “I’m small so I don’t get that many every day.”
The lab results reveal the pork belly banh mi — a lovely creation of spiced, fatty pork belly and both fresh and pickled crispy veg served on a baguette — has 740 calories and 34 grams of fat.
Those numbers — along with its 1,812 milligrams of sodium — render it an occasional splurge for Murphy.
“I could have a lot more food for those calories!”
https://www.thestar.com/life/health..._belly_banh_mi_and_kimchi_fries_the_dish.html
DISHES: Five-spice pork belly banh mi and Kimchi fries
PRICE: $5.99 each
RESTAURANT: Banh Mi Boys Sandwich Shop
LOCATION: 392 Queen St. W., one of two Toronto locations
In 2012, the Toronto Star declared the Chinese five-spicepork belly banh mi the Toronto sandwich of the year.
Food writer Jennifer Bain cleverly dubbed it the T-Wich 2012 for short.
Bain is not alone in her adoration for this Vietnamese-style sub from Banh Mi Boys Sandwich Shop. Online, the reaction from food bloggers, critics and savvy eaters has been rapturous.
The shops themselves (one near the corner of Queen St. W. and Spadina Ave.; the other, newly opened, at 399 Yonge St.) have also been getting a lot of love.
It’s no surprise, then, that several readers have asked The Dish to investigate the nutrition numbers for the now-famous pork belly sub.
Fans of Banh Mi Boys are also curious about the number of calories in an order of kimchi fries. This poutine-like concoction — labelled a side by the resto — is a mound of thick-cut fries topped with pulled pork, kimchi, a scattering of green onions and a generous squirt of house mayo.
To satisfy inquiring readers — and likely to the dismay of diners who would rather devour their Banh Mi Boys meal in blissful ignorance — I sent the pork belly banh mi and an order of kimchi fries to the laboratory for analysis.
Kimchi fries
Joanne Wang finds the kimchi fries addictive, calling the dish a “perfect combination of hot and cold, crispy and creamy, spicy and savoury.”
Fellow enthusiasts will agree with Wang when she says she’s terrified to learn the fat and calorie count.
Still, when I tell her the kimchi fries ring in with 1,183 calories and 86 grams of fat, Wang isn’t all that surprised.
“It is French fries, pulled pork and mayonnaise,” she says with a laugh. “It’s a good dish to share.”
Registered dietitian agrees: “Definitely split it — and not just with one person.”
Reza points out the 1,499 milligrams of sodium in the fries is as much as our bodies require in one day. The 86 grams of fat is about 10 grams more than the average woman’s maximum recommended daily allotment.
As a comparison, Burger King’s poutine with bacon has 750 calories and 41 grams of fat.
At first glance, the BK fries, made with bacon, cheese curds and gravy, appears to have a better nutrition profile. But the poutine weighs less (it’s 64 grams lighter) than the kimchi fries — and is much saltier with 2,430 milligrams of sodium.
Wang says she’ll continue to order the kimchi fries when she visits Banh Mi Boys, even though they are a bit of a calorie bomb.
“I go every couple of months as a treat,” she says. “It’s definitely an indulgence and I treat it as such.”
Five-spice pork belly banh mi
She has read the rave reviews and regularly walks by both outlets, but Grainne Murphy has never eaten at Banh Mi Boys.
“I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve passed that place and wondered,” she wrote in an email. “I mean, it’s a sandwich ... but would I be getting half my day’s calories from it or is it OK?”
Murphy says she wants to know how many calories are in her meals because “I’m small so I don’t get that many every day.”
The lab results reveal the pork belly banh mi — a lovely creation of spiced, fatty pork belly and both fresh and pickled crispy veg served on a baguette — has 740 calories and 34 grams of fat.
Those numbers — along with its 1,812 milligrams of sodium — render it an occasional splurge for Murphy.
“I could have a lot more food for those calories!”
https://www.thestar.com/life/health..._belly_banh_mi_and_kimchi_fries_the_dish.html
