Banh and Butter, Sydney CBD

Banh and Butter is a new little Vietnamese Asian Fusion Cafe located in Town Hall, right nearby the Galleries. Steph and I are massive fans of Banh Mi and Steph has also been longing for an amazing Vietnamese coffee.

Banh and Butter is located down a little walk-through on 7/250 Pitt St. It's a small venue with a few tables but most of the customers are take away customers.

Steph is very cultured and is a coffee expert. She relays lovely stories of Vietnamese iced coffees she's had in Vietnam made from special coffee beans and condensed milk. So of course - we have to order the Vietnamese Iced Coffee ($5). This Saigon Cafe blend is actually imported from Vietnam because of it's high quality taste. You can't really get this quality of Vietnamese coffee anywhere else in Sydney that I've seen. Steph takes a sip from her Vietnamese coffee and her eyes light up. "It's light and smooth and has a very buttery and velvety finish". Steph's happy. I highly recommend.




I look up at the fresh juice bar in Banh and Butter and settle on a refreshing Add Another one Juice ($6.60) which is made of watermelon, rockmelon, beetroot, carrots, orange and apple. The bright colour of the beetroot catches my eye and as I sip on this refreshing juice - I feel a bit healthier already. I'm trying to convince myself anyway.





Now onto the main event - the Banh Mi. So by chatting to the staff, they tell me that the french baguettes are freshly baked onsite every day and are designed to be crunchy and wholesome compared to the average bread roll you might see in a Vietnamese bread shop.



So while there's a few options of chicken, beef, roast pork, grilled pork or mushroom - today, Steph and I decide to share the classic banh mi ($8.50). You have to go with the classic because nothing beats the original. The classic banh mi has thin layers of ham and pork, pate, radished carrots, spring onion and cucumber. I take my first bite into the crunchy bread and I'm digging it! I really like the extra crunchiness of the bread and I think it holds all the ingredients better. The familiar flavours of soy sauce, pate, carrot all come together like a traditional vietnamese roll. Highly recommend and I'll have to come back and try some of the other dishes.








I also order some rice paper rolls which are my favourite because it comes with this lovely hoi sin satay chilli sauce which has always been a favourite of mine growing up in Vietnamese culture. There's a few choices but I settle on prawn and avocado, chicken and avocado and the tofu vegetarian option. The rolls are freshly made with fresh ingredients. There's a bit of fusion as the salad ingredients are more westernised type lettuce rather than the traditional herbs but it's still pleasant to eat. These rolls are more salad/vermicelli v.s protein so it makes for a lighter lunch or snack. You can get three rolls for $9.

Summary: Banh and Butter is a nice little cafe which serves up really awesome Banh Mi Vietnamese rolls and Vietnamese iced coffees. If you work nearby, you should definitely check it out. 

Price: $9-10 for lunch

Location: 7/250 Pitt St, Sydney (Near Town Hall)

Opening Hours: 7am to 4pm weekdays only. Closed on weekends.




Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of Banh and Butter. All photos, opinions and words are my own.