PARIS BANH MI (163 W. Clayton St., 706-215-9290): Given that it’s a national chain with locations from Florida to Arizona, I didn’t have very high hopes for this franchise Vietnamese sandwich shop. But browsing the other locations shows a wide variety rather than a cookie-cutter format, with restaurants tucked into all kinds of strip malls and even a former fast-food eatery. The space on the ground floor of the Georgia Heights building is roomy, with a couple of interior murals, free Wi-Fi, a ton of tables and big windows. The menu board hung above the ordering counter will give you a crick in your neck if you peer up at it while trying to say what you want to eat, so memorize your order and keep muttering it to yourself while in line.
Obviously, Paris Banh Mi has banh mi, the fusion of colonizers’ carbohydrates and pâté with pickled vegetables and aromatics. The latter are right on at Paris Banh Mi. The bread is a little squashy and is, in a rare case, bettered by the croissant option, which maintains some crispness. Priced at $8–10, they make one sigh a bit at inflation. If you want a bigger meal and a more satisfying one, the restaurant also has pho and offers soup and half-sandwich combos, all of which are available in chicken and vegetarian versions, as well as the traditional beef and pork. The broth could use a deeper, longer-cooked meatiness, but it’s also pleasingly fragrant and prioritizes its herbs, spices and aromatics.
But wait, there’s more: Paris Banh Mi also serves cóm (rice dishes), Korean corn dogs coated in novelty batters (blue Takis, Hot Cheetos, potatoes; I didn’t try these due to their being generally oil-soaked; ditto for the tornado potatoes on a stick sitting under a heat lamp) and a jillion snacks laid out on a large table. These include Mexican Chicken Tomato flavor Lays, Soul Jazz Burger chips, corn snacks flavored like grilled meat, as well as Pocky on a shelf and a case of refrigerated drinks. It has a refrigerated case full of cute desserts, made in Orlando at the original location and shipped here. They survive the journey decently well. It also, as required by law of all new restaurants in Athens, has bubble tea. The menu of drinks isn’t as extensive as at some places in town, but they’re really well executed and not all sugar bombs. In other words, the tea tastes somewhat like tea, which is nice. Even those that are very sweet, like the fruit milk slushes, have great texture. Ignore the fried stuff, order the things that use fresh ingredients, and hang out.
Paris Banh Mi is open 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Sunday and closed Monday.
CHEBA HUT (135 W. Washington St., 706-850-0767): Learning that Cheba Hut, a new sandwich franchise in downtown Athens, was founded in 1998 in Arizona absolutely tracks. The theme is ‘90s stoner, and if you’re wondering how thoroughly the restaurant commits to the bit, a large image of UGA’s mascot smoking a blunt greets you right when you walk in the door. It is pervasive. The sandwiches have names that you are thankfully not required to use when ordering (you can say, “I’ll have the ham and pineapple” rather than trying to remember which weed reference applies to that item). There are stickers on every surface that are wink-wink-nudge-nudge. Every sign, even handwritten ones, has a vibe that could have come straight from my patchouli-misted friends in high school.
It’s pretty dumb, but the sandwiches aren’t bad at all. Available in 4-, 8- or 12-inch sizes, they’re heavy on the veggies. Order a sub like the Power Plant (regular or jalapeño hummus, guacamole, feta, spring mix, tomato, onion, pickle, cucumber, mushrooms, black olive, green pepper, dressing and parmesan), and you really won’t miss meat. Fillings are well seasoned. The bread is good, coming in at an approximately Jimmy John’s level of chewiness and available in garlic herb (the winner), wheat or white. They’re not too big. They don’t really seem to get soggy. There are a lot of options, including seven (!) vegetarian possibilities. Sure, one of them is PB&J, but you have to give them credit for thinking it all through. Pricing feels a little high (get it?), at nearly $15 for a foot-long sandwich. The Loaded Not’chos, made with Doritos, reinforce my stance that Doritos don’t function as an ingredient, only as a delicious snack on their own. You can get a cup of decent meatballs topped with marinara, teriyaki sauce or barbecue sauce for $5.99, which could do for a high-protein snack.
Is it all a bit much? Yes, especially if you’re older than 15, but there aren’t that many places downtown to get a quality sandwich, so credit where credit is due. Cheba Hut, which also has a bar, is open 11 a.m.–1 a.m. Monday through Thursday, until 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, and midnight Sunday.
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