A sandwich at Kim's Cafe & Sandwiches, a bánh mì shop in Albany, California.
out of 100 · very good
Very good, with one move worth +20.
A banh mi with layers outside the form; five of six roles.
Holding the summit: balance 0.80 or better
Each bar is one pillar of the score, 0 to 100. The tick marks what a sandwich at the summit needs; an amber bar is the one holding this sandwich back.
sweet baguette, served cold: chicken breast; yellow curry sauce; turmeric powder; oyster sauce; carrots; daikon; cilantro; jalapeno; cucumber; aioli.
Worth a look: ingredient not in the pantry: Yellow Curry Sauce, Turmeric, Oyster Sauce.
Balance
| Axis | Value | Catalog percentile |
|---|---|---|
| salt | 0.5 | 21st |
| acid | 0.3 | 36th |
| fat | 1.6 | 30th |
| sweet | 0.2 | 27th |
| umami | 1.0 | 28th |
| heat | 0.3 | 74th |
| bitter | 0.3 | 73rd |
61 Balance, out of 100
The seven flavor axes of the whole sandwich, each summed across its layers. The shaded ring is the catalog's middle 80%; the small number under each axis is where this sandwich falls in the catalog. A shape that sits inside the ring is in the range most sandwiches live in; a spike past it is where this one stands apart.
What each layer brings
| Layer | Role | Flavor and texture | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| sweet baguettescored as Bánh Mì Baguette (rice-flour blend) | bread | crispy soft flaky | the frame |
| chicken breastscored as Chicken | protein | umami 3 fat 2 juicy chewy tender | +10 |
| yellow curry sauce | not scored | ||
| turmeric powder | not scored | ||
| oyster sauce | not scored | ||
| carrotsscored as Carrot | texture | crunchy fresh raw | −1 |
| daikon | not scored | ||
| cilantro | aromatic | bitter 2 soft fresh herbal | 0 |
| jalapenoscored as Jalapeño | texture | heat 4 crunchy fresh raw | +2 |
| cucumber | bulk | crunchy juicy fresh | −2 |
| aioli | sauce | fat 5 creamy silky saucy | +10 |
Points: what the Sandwich Score would lose if that one layer were left out, everything else the same. A negative number means the sandwich scores higher without it. Flavor runs 0 to 5 on each axis.
Pairings
- Chicken + Jalapeño: green heat wakes mild chicken
- Chicken + Aioli: garlic aioli on mild chicken
- Cilantro + Jalapeño: banh mi brightwork: green heat and herb
How to raise it
- Between you and 90: balance 0.80 or better (0.19 short).
All the sandwiches at Kim's Cafe & Sandwiches · The menu this was read from · Build your own in the Sandwich Builder