· 2 min read

Crunchy Pork at Cay Cafe

Pork Belly, Mayonnaise, Cilantro, Jalapeño on banh mi. Sandwich Score 75, very good. At Cay Cafe, Fremont.

A sandwich at Cay Cafe, a bánh mì shop in Fremont, California.

Bánh Mì Baguette (r…JalapeñoCilantroMayonnaisePork BellyBánh Mì Baguette (r…
75
Sandwich Score
out of 100 · very good

Very good, with one move worth +14.

Reads as a banh mi, five of six roles on the board.

Holding the summit: balance 0.80 or better

Balance
68
Harmony
90
Contrast
86
Structure
89
Focus
90
Composition
95
Quality
100
Envelope
100

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.

banh mi, served cold: Pork Belly; Mayonnaise; Cilantro; Jalapeño.

Balance

salt0.9 · 51stacid0.7 · 57thfat3.1 · 82ndsweet0.5 · 61stumami1.6 · 54thheat0.4 · 80thbitter0.4 · 82nd
Flavor axes
AxisValueCatalog percentile
salt0.951st
acid0.757th
fat3.182nd
sweet0.561st
umami1.654th
heat0.480th
bitter0.482nd

84 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

LayerRoleFlavor and texturePoints
banh miscored as Bánh Mì Baguette (rice-flour blend)breadcrispy soft flakythe frame
Pork Bellyproteinfat 5 umami 4 salt 2 soft juicy tender+6
Mayonnaisesaucefat 5 acid 2 creamy saucy+4
Cilantroaromaticbitter 2 soft fresh herbal+18
Jalapeñotextureheat 4 crunchy fresh raw+19

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

How to raise it

Build this sandwich

Load its stack into the Sandwich Builder. Swap a layer, watch the score move.

Open in the builder

Read next

Veggie at Diablo Foods

Lettuce, onions, tomatoes, pickles, peppers, sprouts, cucumbers, avocados, roasted red peppers, sunflower seeds, oil and vinegar, cheese on unstated bread. Sandwich Score 74, very good. At Diablo Foods, Lafayette.

Andrew Lekashman
Andrew Lekashman
· 2 min read

The Explosion at Diablo Foods

Roast beef, pepper jack, lettuce, tomato, onion, pepperoncini, jalapeños, biyn mustard, horseradish sauce, oil and vinegar on sourdough roll. Sandwich Score 76, excellent. At Diablo Foods, Lafayette.

Andrew Lekashman
Andrew Lekashman
· 2 min read