Ba'get, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

There are plenty of Vietnamese eateries popping up around town.  And for me, it seems like the benchmark gets lifted each time a new entrant comes onto the scene. While Big Fil checked out the Russel Street Ba'get a few months ago (see his review in July 2014), I've only recently tried out their food when Ba'get opened a store on LaTrobe Street.  And since my first visit, I've been back many times.

It's not hard to see why this place is popular - fast service, fresh ingredients, great serving size and most of the menu is under $10.  Plus, it's a light, and healthy (especially now that the weather is warming up) and gluten free (for the noodle bowls), what's not to like?

On my first visit, I went with Mr S.  We both got the vermicelli noodle salads.  Each salad bowl comes with lots of warm vermicelli, julliened carrots, shredded lettuce, cuces, mint and garnished with mint and lots of roasted nuts, fried onions and chilli (which is optional) and a tub of nuoc cham.  Mr S chose roast pork and pork and taro spring rolls on top.  

I went for the lemongrass chicken version.  I loved the bountiful amount of noodles and there's quite a good amount of chicken too.  They don't skimp on any of the salad ingredients, either.  The lemongrass chicken is my favourite as the chicken is tender and you can actually taste the lemongrass.  However, I have tried the lemongrass pork and pulled chicken - while they were nice, the lemongrass is a clear winner for me.


Having heard the positive reviews from me and other colleagues in the office, Ms H was keen to check out Ba'get.  She has had both the noodles bowls and the banh mi.  She prefers the latter and reckons it's great value for just under $7 for lunch.  A crispy baguette with roast pork pickled carrots, cucumber slices and coriander.

Verdict

Food – 8.5

Ambiance – 6.5

Service – 7.5

Price – 8.5

Overall

Great value and tasty noodle bowls.  Definitely a keeper for me, and it's taken over Roll'd, Twee's Hut and Rice Paper as my go-to place for quick, cheap Vietnamese workday lunch in the city.  It would be fabulous, however, if Ba'get starts to offer betel leaf wrapped beef on the menu.

The only downside is the limited seating.  The place gets pretty crowded quickly (from people dining in or waiting for their orders), if you chose to dine-in, be prepared to have people queuing up against your table as you're trying to eat...so it's best to get the food as takeaway.

Address
Ba'get
3/284-290 La Trobe St
Melbourne 3000
Telephone: 9326 3449