Best Vegetarian Sandwich

Everyone who's ever tried them loves banh mi, those yummy Vietnamese sandwiches on big French rolls with cilantro and pickled carrots. But since they're invariably made with pork or pork balls or chopped pork or pork with pork sauce, vegetarians haven't been able to sample them -- until now. This tiny little hole in the wall, run by a smiling, sweet-natured woman who used to work the counter at popular Saigon Sandwiches up the block, offers several vegetarian-friendly varieties such as cheese and tofu. We don't care much for the cheese -- the dairy taste melds oddly with the fresh, crunchy vegetables -- but the tofu version, which slicks a deep-fried slice of bean curd with tangy five-spice sauce, is so wonderful we barely miss the meat. Grab a grass-jelly soda to wash it down, and dig in.