Vietnamese family takes big risk opening Shreveport’s first banh mi sandwich shop during a pandemic

Click here for updates on this story

    SHREVEPORT, LA (KTBS) — The pandemic has hit everyone hard especially local businesses, but one Shreveport family took a risk and did the unthinkable. They opened a Vietnamese banh mi restaurant, “World Sandwich.”

“I was like why not a bahn mi shop,” said the son of the restaurants owner, Sky Huynh. “He (Sky’s father) talked to my uncle over and over and they were like, “‘yes. Let’s do this.’” I couldn’t be more ecstatic about this.”

Banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich. Influenced from the French baguette, the Vietnamese people used the bread to create their own sandwich.

At World Sandwich you can get anything from a traditional Vietnamese bahn mi sandwich to sandwiches with a more southern flare.

“You have your meat and then your veggies. It usually comes with carrots, cilantro, cucumbers, jalapeños, soy sauce and a spritz of pepperoni sauce,” Sky said.

With spices and foods imported directly from the motherland of Vietnam to a secret flour that keeps the bread fluffy and fresh, World Sandwich on Youree Drive has been the talk of the town since opening their doors in October.

“I loved everything about it. The food is so flavorful and always fresh. It is delicious,” customer Jordan Evans said.

And for customers looking for a burst of energy, their Vietnamese coffee is no joke.

“You have to try the Vietnamese coffee,” Sky said. “It is very strong. You only need four ounces and that is it.”

The Huyn family is no stranger to business. Next door to World Sandwich is Luxury Nails and Spa, a well established nail salon they have successfully ran for the past 10 years.

“Tenacity. It is the constant drive for betterment for our family and themselves,” Sky said that is his family’s secret to success.

From their excellent customer service to their products, the Huyn family has found the secret recipe that’s guaranteed to keep customers coming back even during a pandemic.

“I love it,” Evans said. “They are taking a huge risk, but they are doing a great job keeping us safe and putting out great food.”

“I wanted this community to know about us, about the food, about the constant struggle for what it was for immigrants in the U.S. to really push themselves. Eventually, we made it.”

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.