*** Cali Cafe has closed, and is now an outlet of Bale.
With the slightly warm weather we had today, it only made sense for us to grab a few Banh Mi for lunch. And since we were in the Mira Mesa area, we decided to give Cali Cafe a try.
Both Renee and Rob have mentioned this little shop to me in the past. Because Lucky Seafood, Lucky Pho, and Tan Ky Mi Gia are all located in the same strip mall, I really hadn’t paid much attention to this small, but well lit, and clean restaurant.
The Banh Mi here are priced at $2.75, and other Deli type sandwiches at $6.
As is my MO I ordered the Dac Biet:
First off, this is the "long type" of Banh Mi, much like those at K Sandwiches. The baguette is also thin, minimizing the amount of bread, and maximizing crust. this "Special"(Dac Biet), was simply single layers of Ham and Lean Pork Sausage, nothing special. I enjoyed the addition of thin slices of red onion to the standard pickled veggies. In addition to the standard wedge of cucumber were 2-3 slices of Jalapeno. Since these were cross slices, you never really knew where they were in your sandwich. This creates and interesting Jalapeno Roulette of sorts. I really didn’t care for the mayo in the sandwich either, here’s wishing for a smear of pate’. Overall, a decent though not outstanding Banh Mi, very pedestrian flavors.
The Missus ordered a BBQ Chicken Banh Mi:
The Missus enjoyed Her sandwich, and I found that the BBQ chicken was very nicely flavored. The rest of the sandwich was the same. I felt that the BBQ Chicken fared much better than the Dac Biet.
The sandwiches at Cafe Cali aren’t too bad, though a half buck more than those at Lucky Seafood several doors down, the sandwiches here are bigger. I’d say I enjoy the bread and BBQ Chicken here, and the Dac Biet and more exotic flavors at Lucky Seafood.
Some Notes: Seems like many people place take-out orders and come back for them after shopping. I saw several very large orders picked up while waiting for my 2 sandwiches, probably due to the "Buy 5 and get 1 Free" promotion. As with many of these type of places, there is a nice selection of drinks, and other items for purchase.
Cali Cafe Sandwiches
9330 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92126
Open 8am-7pm Sun-Thurs
8am-5pm Fri-Sat
