There’s nothing wrong with old-fashioned banh mi sandwiches.
There’s usually some kind of pork—grilled, barbecued, shredded, or processed into lunch meat—paired with leafy cilantro stems, pickled carrots and daikon, and jalapenos inside a thin baguette.
The whole sandwich isn’t just filling, it’s also texturally satisfying. Most of the cheap banh mi I’ve eaten came on bread with more fight than your average pay-per-view. Finishing one feels like an accomplishment.
But for James Nguyen, who started Riviere Modern Banh Mi in Oklahoma City’s Midtown District in 2019, these beloved Vietnamese sandwiches deserved a glow-up.
“I was born in Oklahoma City. I’m as Okie as it gets,” he said.
“So I wanted to do something that reflects my Vietnamese heritage, but also showcases everything Oklahoma has to offer.”
Banh mi—literally Vietnamese for “bread”—are more of a template than a recipe, Nguyen said.
Riviere’s banh mi always start with a fresh baguette. There’s still a bit of chew to this bread, but the exterior is more crisp than tough, and the interior is more tender than dry.
Cilantro, pickled carrots, and cucumbers still play a part, but the proteins are far more diverse than you’ll find in more traditional shops.
“There are pho shops everywhere, but banh mi seems like it wasn’t as popular outside of the Asian District,” Nguyen said. Riviere is his way of showing that these sandwiches have a lot of life left in them and, with a few alterations, can become a favorite for diners who haven’t ever tried Vietnamese cuisine.
With half a decade of business under their belts, the folks at Riviere have listened and learned from their clientele and the menu is a direct reflection.
“We found that some people don’t like eating a sandwich for dinner,” he said. “So we expanded our entrees quite a bit.”
That’s why diners at Riviere can now get yellow curry, pho, noodles, and fried rice alongside a cornucopia of sandwich variations.
To start, the karaage at Riviere is pretty tasty, especially as it comes with a few different dipping sauces. Karaage are Japanese fried chicken bites—a common snack that goes well with beer or cocktails (both of which you can find at Riviere.)
I wish there was a bit more ginger in the marinade for the chicken, which helps elevate the dish and makes it feel lighter, but if I’ve got a beer in my hand, I’m just happy to have some hot chicken chunks to throw back.
A better option still is the fried calamari and tofu appetizer. The squid comes in strips, rather than rings, and the breading on them is thick and crunchy. For those who don’t see a point in tofu, this is the dish to try. Tofu is kind of like swordfish—the flavor is so mild, it’s more of a medium for other flavors than its own thing. Here, the fried tofu has a wonderful, lightly chewy texture, and each cube works well as a delivery system for sweet chili sauce or a spiced aioli.
But the real draw are the sandwiches. Of course, there are classics, like the Miss Saigon with lemongrass-marinated pork, or the James Banh, stuffed full of Vietnamese charcuterie and pate, but there are also some very non-traditional twists, like Nguyen’s favorite Banh Fire.
His love for Buffalo wings comes through clearly with a sandwich packed full of fried chicken bites tossed in a Sriracha Buffalo sauce and surrounded by the classic veggies.
The Banh Jovi is a play on a cheesesteak, with thinly sliced beef and grilled onion smothered in beer cheese fondue, while the K*Pop is a fairly faithful classic banh mi, except with barbecue pork replaced by sweet-and-savory bulgogi beef.
The Churricane is a bit of Vietnamese-Mexican fusion with carne asada for the meat and an Asian chimichurri sauce for a bright, herbaceous flavor.
But probably the most popular of the sandwiches is the Pho’rench Dip (in the feature photo.) The baguette is stuffed with thinly sliced beef, grilled onions, cilantro, a sriracha aioli, hoisin, and basil, but it also comes with a cup of small-batch pho for dipping. These rolls are perfect for this, because the pho doesn’t make the bread soggy, but it clings to the meat.
That said, if you’re truly craving a French Dip, this version might not hit hard enough. The pho doesn’t have the same punch as the usual beefy au jus. Still tasty, but don’t expect it to be all things to all people.
If you’re not a fan of gluten, the banh mi tacos are a great choice. The fillings are identical to a classic banh mi, but the option of a corn tortilla makes for something a little lighter and less likely to bother folks with gluten sensitivity. It’s a slight upcharge, but the pork belly is the way to go for protein, here. It’s tender and fatty with a nice glaze on it that makes slowing down between bites difficult.
The garlic fried rice with chicken was a nice non-sandwich option. While I wanted a bit more garlic flavor, I was very impressed with the chicken, which has a gorgeous smoky char on it.
All too often, when people talk about restaurants aging, they’re talking about “when it used to be good.” But most restaurants do not arrive in the world fully formed. They are babies. They need time to grow and mature.
Riviere was never bad, at least in my estimation, but it had some kinks that needed to be worked out and a concept that needed to find its feet. These days it hasn’t just found those feet—it’s running full tilt on them.
And as proof of that success, Nguyen shared that a second location is coming soon to Edmond later this year.
- Riviere Modern Banh Mi
- 905 North Hudson Avenue in Oklahoma City
- (405) 604-3446
- riviereokc.com
Long-time food enjoyer Greg Elwell writes about food, restaurants, and trends. He has his own blog "I Ate Oklahoma" and has written for The Oklahoman, The Oklahoma Gazette, and others.
