YumMi Banh Mi Food Truck taken by Dave Glad
This food truck is now permanently closed.
The newest truck to hit the street in Minneapolis, opening only yesterday, is YumMi Banh Mi. Located at the furthest reaches of ‘Food Truck Alley’ at 11th and Nicollet downtown. this truck sports a custom built trailer offering all the amenities they need to push out their take on the traditional Vietnamese banh mi.
The first thing that surprised me about YumMi is the size of their truck trailer. However when I thought about how much room they really needed to push out pulled pork, chicken and beef banh mi it dawned on me that perhaps smaller may just be better when it comes to the local food truck/trailer scene. Appearing to be slightly smaller than Dandelion Kitchen‘s trailer, YumMi was able to pack quite a bit of punch into their sandwiches. The second thing that surprised me was their late start into the 2011 season. With most trucks closing up shop for the winter in the next few weeks (usually when the first snow falls), YumMi’s insistence on getting out there in mid-October seemed almost like a lost cause. However the owners are convinced that they will be able to do catering and lunch box meals from that location all winter long and seemed genuinely positive that it will work. I noted that they definitely would have less competition in the scene for those willing to brave the bitter cold to grab a sandwich from them!
YumMi food truck’s menu offers few options, with some to be available only on certain days–if at all. However, their mainstays are their Moo Mi, Oink Mi, Peck Mi, and Bean Mi. While they’re somewhat cute I have to admit that ordering an “Oink Mi” provided me an opportunity to be a little childish and giggle at the inappropriate play on words possible.
My coworker ordered the ‘Moo Mi’ listed as, “Korean-style marinated beef, spicy cucumber carrot slaw, cilantro, Sriracha aiolo (sic),” which was priced fairly steeply at $7.50 and a $1.50 homemade lemonade. MSPD and I ordered their ‘Oink Mi’ sandwiches noted as including, “Vietnamese-style caramel braised pork belly/shoulder, pickled carrot and daikon, cucumber, cilantro, Sriracha aioli,” for $8.00. With a large bottle of Sriracha available for dousing I poured a little on top of mine and away we went with sprigs of fresh cilantro flying off into the blustery wind along Nicollet.
Sriracha! taken by Dave Glad
At first glance the sandwiches look like any other banh mi I’ve ever had. While the rolls themselves were somewhat less crusty than many I’ve tried, I definitely appreciated the way they held most everything together as I ate. The vegetables were fresh and crisp but I wish I could have tasted more of their pickled goodness. While I loved the idea of a nice Sriracha aioli it was definitely toned down to match Minnesota tastes.
I took a bite of my ‘Oink Mi’ first. The meat wasn’t as plentiful as I would prefer but the quality of both the meat, being that they braise pork belly and shoulder, and the cooking process surpasses what you’re likely to find elsewhere around town. The pork was quite tasty and when taken with the whole, it was one very tasty sandwich. The ‘Moo Mi’ on the other hand, while still decent, lacked the meat flavor of the ‘Oink Mi’ and definitely was not up to par with the rest of the downtown food truck competition in this category.
The homemade lemonade was in a class all by itself however. Not too sweet, not too sour, and what seemed to include something I just couldn’t put a finger on that made it taste like it was loaded with liquor, I really enjoyed their offering–especially at $1.50. But while I thought it was excellent my coworker drank only a small bit before passing it along while noting it wasn’t enjoyable for her. My sole complaint about the drink was that it was lukewarm. While the truck owners mentioned they forgot straws, and that was definitely not a problem, it seemed they also forgot ice too which was more of a problem even on a day which was 10 degrees cooler than the weather report promised.
Overall I liked what we tried at YumMi but I definitely believe they need to seriously rethink either the amounts they’re serving or the prices they’re charging in order to compete with the other downtown food truck offerings. If you’re heading out that way be sure to pick up some lemonade and an ‘Oink Mi’ and let us know what you think!
Have you tried YumMi’s banh mi yet? If so which one(s) have you tried? Did you like their lemonade? What other places which serve banh mi do you usually frequent? Do you agree that $7.50+ for a banh mi, even in the food truck scene (with World Street Kitchen generally charging $1.50 less–although not serving a true banh mi), is a bit much? Whatever you have to say go ahead and comment on below!
Address:
YumMi
S 11th St and Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Hours:
Monday – Friday 10:30AM – 2:00PM
See all the pictures from YumMi Food Truck on Flickr here.
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October 14th, 2011 at 7:24 am
Wow, Bill, way to be on top of things! I was curious about this when I saw it on the HT yesterday and it’s good to have a report. I love the idea of a banh mi truck.
My favorite banh mi is served at the Blackbird Cafe in Minneapolis. Not exactly traditional, but so good.
October 14th, 2011 at 9:31 am
Funny. The one at Blackbird is the only one I’ve had. I liked it.
October 14th, 2011 at 12:10 pm
Summary: Really good sandwich.
The typical banh mi around these parts is usually VERY cheap (I’ve even had some as low as $2 for a 6-8 inch long sandwich). They also are very light on meat. This sort of goes with the territory in my mind when I’m after a banh mi.
I’m not a banh mi expert by any means, but I’ve had them at the supposed “best” places in the Cities (e.g. Jasmine Deli, Trung Nam, etc). These were as good as any I’ve had around town. I wouldn’t hesitate to go back and have the “oink mi” again.
The plusses were the flavor of the meat, the texture of the crunchy vegetables and the evident care taken in preparing the meat/vegetables. I thought the meat was actually more generously portioned than the typical banh mi.
The bread was a little bit of a drawback. It wasn’t bad at all, but a lot of the banh mi I’ve had around town have been served on bread that was clearly baked that morning/day. This was good bread (which I later found out was from a bakery off of Franklin Ave in Mpls) but was somewhere in between “baked several hours ago” and from the prior day. It was a little dry and the inside didn’t have that stretchy/chewiness that a fresh baguette has.
The biggest flaw is that, like Bill said, it’s $6.50 – $8 for just the sandwich alone. This is consistent with the a la carte (no sides) sandwiches at all of the other food trucks, but the difference is that the ones from other trucks seem a little heartier. Most of the other trucks also offer sides for $1-3.
Anyway, I was still a little hungry afterwards and had to go track down a bag of mini donuts from the Chef Shack. (And somehow one of the “frosting shots” from the Cupcake truck ended up in my hand…it was “peanut butter” flavor and was crazy good). Buyer beware at yumMi, if you tend towards a larger lunch like Bill and myself, you might end up spending another $5ish to feel sated.
Probably the best part of the lunch was witnessing Bill’s poor coworker taking vegetable shrapnel while he was mowing through his sandwich like a sawmill apparatus. I told Bill it was a miracle she didn’t lose an eye to a flying carrot. How such a nice, pleasant person can work with Bill every day AND voluntarily go out to lunch with him is beyond me. But if you’ve never witnessed Bill eating, you need to. Just bring a riot police shield or some other impermeable shelter and some shoes you don’t really care about. Things can get ugly real fast.
October 14th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
Thank you for reviewing this food truck so quickly after it opened. I hope the owners are able to take your suggestions into consideration as they tweak their approach. I have only had bahn mi at World Street Kitchen and at a Bridgeport Brew Pub & Ale House in Portland so I am eager to try them at the restaurants mentioned by MSPD. I hope to try Yummi on Monday and will report back to you!
October 14th, 2011 at 4:46 pm
Janelle, according to a recent tweet due to problems with their truck they won’t be open on Monday.
October 15th, 2011 at 8:43 pm
I got a banh mi thit dac biet (regular sandwich plus meatballs) at Saigon today for $2.75 loaded with all the fixings.
World Street Kichen’s curry chicken banh mi is worth every penny ($6) since it’s a unique sandwich that has never been done before. If YumMi isn’t offering anything innovative, I don’t see myself paying a premium price for regular sandwiches that have been done many times before for half the price. I’ll stick with WSK’s meaty banh mi’s which I know won’t disappoint or leave me hungry.
October 16th, 2011 at 9:10 pm
I recently had my first ever banh mi at YumMi. Though the oink mi was calling out to me, I went with the Moo Mi because I felt like I’ve been eating more than my fair share of oinkers lately. I’m not sure why, but pork products have been my favorite of late.
After reading this post, I now see that I should have gone with my gut and picked the pig. Perhaps I would have enjoyed it more. I found the bread to be overwhelming, and not in a good way. The meat was good as was the sriracha aioli. The vegetables were only okay for me and I wasn’t greatly disappointed when a few of them fell out onto the floor. No 5 second rule for me in downtown Mpls, unless the food is really, really good.
October 17th, 2011 at 8:20 am
Something that drives me bonkers and that I see no mention of here, is the frequent omission of chicken liver pate on banh mi (especially in Minneapolis)…it is such an essential flavor to the best I’ve had, and yet so many places in town seem to forgo it in favor of more mayonnaise.
My question is thus: Is a schmear of pate even an option at YumMi?
October 17th, 2011 at 8:23 am
If it’s still around try to check out Velee Deli’s Food Truck and let me know what you think.. They have Bahn Mi’s and a few other Vietnamese/mexican combos like burritos, etc.. There always seems to be a line.. I thought their Bahn Mi was pretty good..
October 17th, 2011 at 8:28 am
DF, it didn’t appear as an option on their menu but I didn’t ask either.
BY, my coworker and I have talked briefly about trying it out. I am mostly interested in their hot sauces which some have claimed are quite spicy but I dunno when (if at all this year) we’ll make it over there.
October 17th, 2011 at 11:09 am
[...] menu at In Season, a little more back-and-forth on the City Pages v. Guy Fieri front, Bill Roehl likes banh mi food truck YumMi’s flavors but questions their prices, and a look at some intriguing botanical art on the walls at Birchwood. [...]
October 17th, 2011 at 7:00 pm
Haven’t been yet. But it is now on my “to oink” list.
October 18th, 2011 at 10:08 am
Quang rocks for banh mi! Under $3 for most, delicious bread, pate available. Will still try YumMi but they’ll get just one shot from me before I hoof it back to Eat St.
October 18th, 2011 at 10:24 am
Stacy, I’m also a big fan of Quang’s sandwiches. Let us know how you like YumMi compared to Quang’s.
October 21st, 2011 at 7:01 am
[...] were that they were quite large for the prices charged. While I felt that our recent trip to YumMi was a bit underwhelming in the size to cost department, Vellee Deli had definitely delivered there. [...]
January 25th, 2012 at 7:27 am
[...] Andale Taqueria and Mercado 14. Shamrock’s 15. Joey Nova’s 16. Dandelion Kitchen 17. YumMi 18. Krungthep Thai 19. The Blue Door Pub 20. The Lexington 21. Taste of Thailand 22. Dakota Jazz [...]
January 15th, 2013 at 3:04 pm
http://blogs.citypages.com/food/2013/01/street_eats_food_truck_sale_trailer.php
January 15th, 2013 at 4:37 pm
Oddly, it does not come right out and say they are out of business. It at least made me wonder if they are getting a new truck. Sadly, the lack of either piece of info makes me wonder if they just are short on cash.
I thought they were just ok sandwiches overall. It took about a week for the roof of my mouth to heal from the bread as I recall, but the flavors were pretty good overall.