{"id":248355,"date":"2026-04-27T15:25:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T15:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/248355\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T15:25:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T15:25:10","slug":"banh-elevates-vietnamese-street-food-in-coconut-grove","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/248355\/","title":{"rendered":"BANH Elevates Vietnamese Street Food in Coconut Grove"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>With Aidan Friedson’s vision (r) and Chef Phuoc Vo’s exquisite family recipes, BANH is delighting customers with Vietnamese b\u00e1nh m\u00ec and artisanal bubble tea.<\/p>\n

Some of the most incredible partnerships are serendipitous. During Art Basel at Miami Kitchen Incubators, Aidan Friedson, a 22-year-old UM student with a fledgling meal-prep company, crossed paths with Chef Phuoc Vo, executive chef of a catering company working out of the same space. Chef Phuoc had spent over a decade in top kitchens (Ritz-Carlton, JW Marriott, Disneyland) and even competed on Food Network\u2019s Ciao House and Cutthroat Kitchen.<\/p>\n

They didn\u2019t know it then but fast forward a few years and that chance encounter would lead to BANH, the Vietnamese caf\u00e9 now serving exquisite b\u00e1nh m\u00ecs and bubble tea at Books & Books in Coconut Grove.<\/p>\n

After Aidan\u2019s meal prep company shut down, he worked for Chef Phuoc for six months, learning everything he could. Chef Phuoc recognized Aidan\u2019s work ethic and entrepreneurial drive. The two started talking about what came next. Since childhood Chef Phuoc always dreamt of opening a proper b\u00e1nh m\u00ec shop. That had been a childhood dream of his, rooted in the Vietnamese flavors he grew up with \u2013 and had been sorely missing since moving from California to Florida.<\/p>\n

Filling a Gap in the Grove<\/p>\n

Like a lot of UM students, Aidan spent his college years hanging out in Coconut Grove and saw a gap the neighborhood couldn\u2019t ignore. The Grove had eight coffee shops and zero boba spots. Authentic Vietnamese food (b\u00e1nh m\u00ec, ph\u1edf, bubble tea) was hard to find in South Florida. When Aidan\u2019s uncle, who owns Books & Books, mentioned the caf\u00e9 space, the pieces seemed to fall into place. The literary landmark already drew locals and visitors daily. Adding Vietnamese food and bubble tea would fill a gap while complementing the caf\u00e9\u2019s culture-forward identity.<\/p>\n

BANH opened in October, and the Grove responded positively immediately. Local high schoolers spread the word. Students told their parents, who came in curious and left the shop believers. The neighborhood\u2019s festivals (Japan Fest, Halloween, Tokyo Fest) brought massive foot traffic. During Japan Fest, they sold out in two hours. \u201cThe Coconut Grove BID (Business Improvement District) does a spectacular job with activations,\u201d Aidan said. \u201cThose events bring eyeballs to the Grove and local businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Precision and Heritage<\/p>\n

What sets BANH apart is precision. All meats are sous vide for tenderness, a French that literally means \u201cunder vacuum,\u201d which allows for perfect doneness and an incredibly tender texture.<\/p>\n

Each sauce is made from scratch using Chef Phuoc\u2019s family recipe. The bread comes from La Provence, but Chef Phuoc worked with their baker to create a special blend specifically for BANH\u2019s sandwiches. It\u2019s a fine dining technique applied to Vietnamese street food.<\/p>\n

The L\u00ea Dunk is BANH\u2019s most popular sandwich \u2013 and it\u2019s deeply personal. The name comes from Chef Phuoc\u2019s mother\u2019s maiden name. The sandwich features sous vide short rib dipped into a family ph\u1edf recipe Chef Phuoc has been perfecting his whole life.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s the wonderful Vietnamese coffee, BANH\u2019s best seller and most viral drink. They use Caf\u00e9 du Monde from New Orleans, the same coffee his parents kept stocked after immigrating from Vietnam.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to harness Chef Phuoc\u2019s origin and family recipes,\u201d Aidan said. \u201cThe L\u00ea Dunk, the Vietnamese coffee, it\u2019s all rooted in his background.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bubble tea menu includes drinks with fun names like Unicorn Moon Milk and Rising Phoenix (hibiscus tea with passion fruit and popping boba). Aidan describes BANH as \u201cartisanal boba,\u201d curating a focused menu rather than offering 1,000 flavor combinations. For first-timers, Aidan recommends the L\u00ea Dunk paired with the Vietnamese coffee. \u201cIt\u2019s the perfect intro to BANH,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Building Community, Looking Ahead<\/p>\n

BANH occupies a small 13-by-9 shop inside the caf\u00e9, and it\u2019s already become a destination. A breakfast menu is in the works, featuring breakfast b\u00e1nh m\u00ec and a Vietnamese espresso.<\/p>\n

They are also exploring collaborations with other Grove businesses: pop-ups, partnerships, anything that highlights the neighborhood\u2019s food scene. \u201cI want to use b\u00e1nh m\u00ec as a vessel to spotlight what makes the Grove special,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s exactly the kind of community-minded approach the Coconut Grove BID encourages, and BAHN is actively connecting with neighboring businesses to make it happen. They are exploring opening a new location by 2027. But for now, BANH is exactly where it needs to be: inside Books & Books, serving bold Vietnamese flavor to an eager community that\u2019s been waiting for it.<\/p>\n

BANH is located at 3409 Main Highway inside Books & Books, Coconut Grove, FL 33133. They are opening Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. <\/p>\n

For more information, visit www.banhlovesyou.com<\/a> and follow @banhlovesyou on Instagram.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n Connect To Your Customers & Grow Your Business \n<\/p>\n

Click Here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With Aidan Friedson’s vision (r) and Chef Phuoc Vo’s exquisite family recipes, BANH is delighting customers with Vietnamese…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":248356,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[225,227,226],"class_list":["post-248355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-hialeah","tag-hialeah","tag-hialeah-headlines","tag-hialeah-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248355","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248355"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248355\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}