Falls Church

If perhaps not the best in the D.C. area for banh mi, Ba Le in Falls Church is right up there in the top echelon, and is open 24/7. The ramshackle seating is available in limited quantity inside and out on the strip mall parking lot patio (where they even seem to have one of those winterized outdoor seating heat lamps?). If it's 3AM, and you find yourself here eating head cheese sandwiches and washing them down with mung bean smoothies, you are clearly doing something right. Incidentally, you'll note that the Ba Le logo has an Eiffel Tower in it; Ba Le is Vietnamese for Paris—a nod to the French colonial past that gave birth to this magnificent sandwich!

The banh mi here are absolutely in the top echeleon, and the menu has some hard-to-find variants, perhaps most notably the smoked (not fried crispy) bacon banh mi. The bubble tea is fantastic here, as are the many other baked goods. No seating, so plan to eat on your car's trunk.

Make sure you get the right menu, and order properly here, as the standout dishes are the spicy Szechuan entrees (like the delicious lamb cumin), rather than the Cantonese, or even worse, American dishes. Unless you are willing to drive to Rockville in Maryland (too far), you won't find better Szechuan cuisine around. Dim sum available Sa Su mornings.

Notable particularly for those late night hours, this is a really solid bet regardless of the time of day for authentic Cantonese.

Ever famous for popularity with the Bush family, who never minded the long trek out to this unassuming strip mall (is all great food in Northern Virginia in strip malls?). Peking duck, naturally, is the star attraction, and you'd be crazy to come here without trying it.

So 1 is probably popular choice number two for best banh mi in Eden Center. Expect much bigger baguettes and a much longer menu than you would find at, say, Nhu Lan below.

There is not a consensus regarding the D.C. metro area's top banh mi purveyor, but if there is one, this is it. It's a tiny little bakery with only four tiny tables and a smaller menu than just about anywhere else, but the baguettes are absolutely second to none. Buy four and get one free.

This little bakery is as of yet overlooked by the white folks, but the service is probably the friendliest in the mall, and the banh mi are right up there with the best. They also have a more extensive selection of other Vietnamese baked treats than most of the other delis at Eden Center. Lastly, ginger fans should make sure to grab some delicious unfiltered ginger ale out of the fridge.

Virtually everything on the gargantuan menu is great, although the more adventurous in the delicacies/specials section are the most rewarding. The most famous dish here is the crispy quail wings appetizer. This is also the oldest restaurant in the mall.

The restaurants inside the mall are harder to find, and attract a more exclusively Vietnamese clientèle. The standout dish here is bún bò huế, a richer vermicelli soup than pho, with a reddish, chili-heavy broth, some congealed pig's blood, a strong taste of lemongrass, and some optional fish sauce on the side, in addition to the same fresh veggies associated with pho. Full bar.

Another great, traditional full-service restaurant with a long menu to rival Huong Viet's, but an especially fun choice in the evenings, with frequent live music. The hot pots are a specialty.