Leona Banh Mi

This place is great for vegetarians and vegans. You can get tofu, or fake ham and other fake meat options which are quite tasty. You can get a good ramen bowl, spring rolls, a noodle bowl, all as vegan. All are fresh and tasty. The boba is good too. The owner is very friendly and caters well to the vegan community. They offer nice specials and participate in the vegan chef challenge yearly. It's a small place with a very casual atmosphere. Good for quick dine in or takeout. Too bad it's on the Westside, though I'm sure they're glad to have it!

Leona Banh Mi a Vietnamese fast-casual counter-serve restaurant on Coors. Their specialties are bánh mì, vermicelli bowls, and pho with a few other assorted options, like bao. Patrons order at the front counter before choosing their own seating. There is both booth and regular table options. There are large signs explaining what bánh mì and pho are for those not familiar or who are trying Vietnamese cuisine for the first time. I had the bánh mì xìu mai (Vietnamese style meatballs), which was a nice foray into Vietnamese meatballs. I enjoyed them because they were flavorful and savory against the veggies. The cucumbers are fresh and not pickled, though I prefer the veggies pickled. That's just personal preference, though, since traditionally the cucumbers aren't pickled in bánh mì. There are no fish selections for the bánh mì (anchovies, sardines, etc.), so don't expect those. Patrons will need to ask for fish sauce, which is brought from the back in a to-go ramekin. As Vietnamese restaurants usually go, it's a casual, inexpensive pick. We both decided we'd be back and that it would be a good to-go option. There are no stairs into the venue and wheelchair users will have no issues at this establishment, including the restroom.

TLDR: do not recommend unless you have a death wishFirst, let me start by saying I love Asian food. I'm Asian and it's my favorite genre of takeout. I wanted to like this place, like every new Asian restaurant I try. Let's start with the appetizers: the spring rolls with shrimp were aight. The usual noodles and a handful of lettuce. Nothing exciting there. The steamed vegan bao was ok. They had it wrapped in plastic wrap so it had gotten rather gooey and sticky on the ride over. If they had let it breathe, maybe it would've been fluffy. We'll never know. Pro tip: there's a paper lining the bottom so don't forget to peel it off and eat it like me. The steam had congealed it to the bun so I couldn't see it. And be careful of the chile/hoisin sauce it comes with. It's THE saltiest condiment I've ever had in my life. Use the TINIEST little smears. I wonder what kind of science experiment they did to pack so much sodium in it. The bun itself was ok tasting- I love baos so I forgave it for being so soggy. The dish that almost killed me was the grilled chicken salad with rice. The chicken was SO DRYYYYYYY and chewy. Look at the photos. There were like 3 pieces that were end pieces? Those end pieces must've been left out to dry in the NM sun for a least a week. I have never in my life experienced such dry chicken. I don't think I could make chicken that dry if I tried! I had to spit one mouthful out because I honesty thought I would choke if I tried to swallow. So if you want to try this dish despite my warnings, get your affairs in order first! Have someone in the room with you making sure you're safe!Suffice it to say- I will never order from here again.

Okay this is just a local place that I've been meaning to try and I'm glad I did. I had a Banh Mi sandwich and tried the Pho. I've said in other reviews that the Vietnamese in this town has stiff competition because there are so many good spots. The Banh Mi was great, the ingredients were fresh and prepared well. The Pho was okay, my only issue is the protein portion in the soup seemed lacking. I've seen other places give a lot more meat. Other than that the size of the Pho is comparable to other places and just as enjoyable. I also had their mint tea which was great. This place is not fancy and can get a little busy. But the service is pretty fast and overall worth a shot if you want to try a new spot.

The food is phenomenal and service was quick. I ordered the shrimp pho and a vegan banh mi for takeout. The food was prepared quickly well-package. Can't wait to go back.

Love this place! This was my second visit here and I love the Banh mi's and pork bao and spring rolls! We also got the pho (forgot to snap a photo) and it was delicious as well maybe one of the best pho base broths I've ever had. The pork was a bit on the dry side this time in my banh mi but still very delicious. I'm not in abq all that often but this is one of my favorite hidden hole type place with delicious food.

AMAZING food & service. Banh Mi is the best I've ever had‼ We had an oatmilk matcha that was the bomb. Spring rolls with peanut sauce were huge & tasty. I'll definitely be back to try the other menu items.

The spot was recommended to me by a friend over four years ago, but I'm so rarely on the west side that I had never checked it out. Wound up there over the weekend and I'm happy to report that it's a lovely little spot! I was SO impressed that there are SIX different vegan banh mi options. Plus vegan options for every other category on the menu, including bao, spring/egg rolls, and the vermicelli/bun plates. It's so sad that I live so far away.We tried two of the banh mi flavors, fried tofu and vegan ham. They were both good, although I preferred the tofu. But I love tofu. It would have been cheaper to split a 12", but we wanted to try both flavors and I'm glad we did. My partner also enjoyed a Vietnamese iced coffee. It was large, like boba style, so definitely a good value for the money. My only complaints about the food was that there weren't any jalapeños or mayo on the sandwich. I thought that was standard for banh mi but it's possible that's just something that varies by region.Overall I would definitely return! Vegans on the west side should definitely check this place out.

Decent food and prices. This is our go to for Pho when we want to take it home instead of eating in restaurant.

Sweet lil strip mall hole in the wall off Coors. Quiet spot to do some paperwork. Tried the (#19) vegan bao and the (#14) vegan Korean spicy b'ef (tempeh). The bao dough was pretty sweet with a stickier texture than I typically prefer. It was cumbersome to eat, as the dough was sticking to my fingers. It must have been premade, as I heard the microwave go off. This was confirmed once I unwrapped it and found it to be still wrapped up in plastic cling film, with that ever so telling melding between hot food and hot plastic wrap. There's also a small paper underneath, so be sure to peel that off before taking a bite. The filling was pretty good, mushrooms and one single piece of tofu.. but nothing to write home about. The bahn mi was heated too. The bun was hot dog sized, with a good crunchy exterior. The tempeh was just ok. Despite its name, the sandwich wasn't spicy at all. It looked better than the bao but was generally lackluster, kind of like if APS food service made a bahn mi. I will definitely return and try some other things on the menu. Maybe it was an off day, but my overall experience was super meh. Both items were served with a side of what seemed to be gochujang and hoisin combined, also meh. It wascold inside but they turned on the heat after I went to grab my coat. Their pos system is set to charge you a set tip (adjustable) for the counter service, which is fine.. but it's one of those slide adjustable ones, so it's hard to put in an even dollar amount. For parents and caregivers: there's no changing table in the restroom.