lee's sandwiches

i recently heard an npr program (lynn rosetto casper), that focused on the joy of the banh mi sandwich--something with which i was unfamiliar.  after the program i couldn't wait to try one.  i did a little homework andlee'sseemed to be one of the premier places offering this marvelous creation.  i was really impressed by the size of the place, the cleanliness, the bright colors and easy to follow menu.  the staff make this place hum like a well oiled machine.  i tried the grilled pork asian sandwich (with extra meat), and a little order of beignets to boot.  the sandwich consists of a traditional french baguette, very tender, very nicely seasoned grilled pork, with lots of crunch veggies and some great sauce as a garnish.  the flavor is just plain great--exactly like lynn described it.  i don't go out for sandwiches a lot, but i think that's about to change--now i want to try all the varieties!  thank you lee's! :)

(october 2015)
stopped by for breakfast one day, and lunch the next!  delicious and fast as always, even when there is a lot of people.  for breakfast, i recommend the ham, egg, & cheese croissant (which they stop serving that around 10:30am).  for lunch, i recommend any of their vietnamese banh mi sandwiches - some of the best sandwiches in oklahoma city!  my favorite is always #1 (special).  try it out and let me know what you think!
(july 19, 2015)

returned tolee'sfor a red bean smoothie - and it was delicious!  we always have and will continue to love their smoothies here, especially with boba.  the boba the last time we had a smoothie were kind of old, but this time around, they were easy to chew on, soft, and tasted like they were freshly made.  the smoothie was also very good and we enjoyed every bit of it on a hot day.
(june 22, 2015)

lee's sandwiches are not only very affordable, but loaded with straight-forward, wholesome flavors. after a very busy start of the morning, we dropped by for breakfast at lee's. the loyal patrons of the restaurant - mainly others meeting friends and family over coffee and breakfast - were present and there was a lot of them. as always, upon entering, we are greeted by the many flashing neon lights and colors of the place. it's lively, open, and always with appetizing smells in the air. there were also other people coming in and out ordering breakfast to go on their way to work, which is a very good idea. while the restaurant was serving breakfast, they were also serving all their lunch and dinner items as well (e.g. pho noodle soup, banh mi sandwiches, smoothies).

seeing that it was breakfast, my husband ordered a bacon, egg, and cheese croissant and he ordered the #1 sandwich (a traditional vietnamese sandwich). mine was very hot, cheese melting and gushing off the edges of my very buttery, flaky croissant. the bacon was okay, but the egg, cheese, and bread was the best in that sandwich. my husband's looks unassuming, but there's tons of flavors in that traditional banh mi sandwich, and it was very good!

overall, we loved our experience and we would come back again! also, when we came, it was fun watching the bakers run the machine in the corner that bakes the bread then line them in the baking trays. even iflee'ssandwiches is an international chain, it's nice to know that they straight-up bake their items, which adds more to the appeal of it all. like i said, we would come back and you should definitely give them a try - whether on the way to work, with your children, or by yourself - it's good for everyone who likes sandwiches, vietnamese food, smoothies, and quick, affordable meals!

( may 2, 2015)

great sandwiches & smoothies, especially for lunch!. it's always a pleasure to see this business so busy during the days and evenings! it really deserves it. the sandwiches are always delicious, made fresh, and quick (as long as there's not a person ordering 20 sandwiches in front of you - yes, this happened, and i don't blame them at all)! we've tried several flavors of their smoothies - with and without boba - and they are delicious. givelee'sa try if you haven't already!

lee's sandwiches serve up a mighty fine franco-vietnamese sandwich. rarely is there a day that i drive through okc’s asian district and not see a ton of cars in the parking lot of the ever-popular restaurant lee’s sandwiches.

sure, there are other sandwich places within view (one that is the biggest chain in the world and features a formerly fat man named jared as their spokesman) of lee’s, but their parking lots aren’t nearly as full.

to me, that’s always a good sign. clearly lee’s sandwiches – a vietnamese fast-food chain - has a good reputation. i’d been once before and found it to be pretty good. and since i was in the neighborhood doing a story on the chinese new year (year of the goat) celebrations, lee’s seemed like a quick place to grab a banh mi sandwich, a sort of franco-vietnamese sandwich feaured on a baguette.

for me, having given up meat for lent, i went for the “number 12” vegetarian sandwich. complete with fried tofu, vermicelli, bean curd, yam, carrot, house pickle, jalapeno, cilantro, salt & pepper, and soy sauce, i took one bite and smiled. by the time i was dune, crunching through the lightly-toasted baguette and all the goodness inside, i thought it was the best vegetarian sandwich i’d ever had. and while i had a special brothy soup (with other vegetable ingredients to add as needed), it was the sandwich that was the focus of my deliciouslee'smeal. i should add thatlee'sis very generous with their portions. you definitely get what you pay for.

the interior is well-lit and clean. the staff is friendly and helpful and there is plenty of seating and even a few seats outside.

the san jose, california-based chain, with shops in california, of course, along with oklahoma, nevada, oregon, texas and arizona, has proven very successful here in okc, with its sizable asian population and non-asians who have happily discovered the tasty fare that lee’s has to offer.

in line, you pass by packaged goodies from foreign and domestic sources – candy and cookies, etc. – and coolers full of healthy and less-healthy beverages and soft drinks. essentially, the options are many.

and despite being an out-of-state chain, lee’s takes community – and the idea of “think globally, act locally” - very seriously. they regularly raise funds for victims of hurricanes and typhoons, either in north america or in asia.

for more information go to www.leesandwiches.com or visit the oklahoma city location at 3300 n. classen blvd.

great variety of yummy food, and great prices.. why did it take us so long to stop here? now that we have found it, we are going twice a week for the sandwiches (either on baguette or croissant, both wonderful) and are going to work our way through the menu. today i had the pate chaud--a meat pie surrounded with flaky pastry crust. less than $2.00 each, they are very satisfying. the only thing so far i haven't really liked is the crab rangoon--its hard to find ones that aren't sweet, except in a couple of chinese restaurants here in the city. i like them savory, andlee'sare slightly sweet, although not as sweet as some i've had. always check out the cheap specials!

great viet baguette sandwich. i grew up with the originallee'sdown the street in california. my family would grab some pork sandwiches before every fishing trip great memories! seeing alee'sin this city brings me delight. lunches, croissants, iced coffee is just great. enjoy!

i have dined atlee'son multiple occasions. the food has always been good. today my order was taken by the owner. i expected courteous, friendly, customer-oriented service. instead i received rude, belittling, discourteous service. needless to say, i will not be coming back.

i feel that if your customer makes a simple request, you should fulfill it or politely decline, not give them a snide, "i know best" type response.lee'sreluctantly agreed to fulfill it anyway and when we picked up our order, we found that decided not to...

triedlee'sfor the first time today and i was not impressed. ordered the veggie with avocado and all it had on it was iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and avacado. i don't think i'll be giving this one another try.

do not go here if you customize your orders!!!. i have been tolee'ssandwiches several times, and i have ordered the same sandwich. the particular sandwich i order is an asian sandwich that happens to have the following vegetables in it: carrots, daikons, cilantro, jalapeno, and onions. every time i order this sandwich, i tell them that i only want cilantro... no other vegetables. the cashiers get the order correct, but within the last 5 times i have gone there, 3 of the 5 times they have put all the vegetables in there. are the people in this location that are putting together my sandwich incompetent? it's a hit or miss... if you are a person that customizes your order do not go here. be sure to always check your food or else you might be in for an unpleasant surprise.

don't get me wrong, i've been tolee'ssandwiches before in several other states including california, nevada, and arizona. these other locations make my order correctly, and i am very pleased with the sandwiches. i am only typing this review for this particular oklahoma location.

sandwiches done right!. the wife and i prefer to eat light for lunch and if we can share its even better.lee'slets us do both!

the place is huge and very clean. even though there are two other sub sandwich shops at this intersection (subway & neptune's),lee'sis consistently packed while the others often sit empty.

the prices are low and the ingredients very fresh. they are almost always offering a $4 special of a sandwich, chips and a drink.

the wife and i like to share either a turkey club or asian grilled chicken sandwich on a croissant (my favorite). its plenty big and if we are still hungry we split an order of either shrimp or veggie rolls.

its a great lunch for less than $10 for two people!

tasty bang for your buck. a fast food take on that franco-vietnamese classic, the bánh mỳ (baguette sandwich).

great selection of vietnamese sweet and savory dishes, too.

very reasonable prices.

now, imho, there are other bánh mỳ places in town that have better quality baguettes to offer. the machine-made ones atlee'slack the flakiness of baguettes at other places in town, not to mention those in other cities and abroad.

still, what do you expect for $2.00 to $3.00 plus tax? this place, while not perfect, is an incredibly cheap place to fill up on good quality food.

by the way, you'll need to ask to have your jalapeños, your cilantro and white radishes and carrots removed from your sandwich if you don't like them, as they're standard on all bánh mỳ. trust me, though -- leave them be. they're incredibly good.


-----19 mar, 2010-----

vietnamese tradition meets fast food. a fast food chain take on the classic bánh mì (vietnamese baguette sandwich), with other goodies on hand.

i'll be candid -- there are better bánh mì shops in town. i especially like saigon baguette and -- even better yet -- the lunch counter at super cao nguyễn. still,lee'shas good quality sandwiches and, better yet, a wide array of vietnamese pastries and ice creams.

lee's is also a good place to take those unfamiliar with vietnamese food, as it's colorful, exceedingly clean and (of course) equipped with a state of the art, glassed in, automated baguette making operation that's actually fun to watch in action.

every time i drive through the asian district, i pass the large white building sporting thelee'ssandwiches sign and am intrigued by the descriptives on either side…"euro-asian sandwiches, baguettes and croissants, coffees, desserts, smoothies, ice cream". recently, our daughter-in-law laura called me and screamed "you have to try lee's!". well, okay, maybe not screamed, but she was very boisterous to be sure. i mentally filed away the thought and then 2 more weeks of life just blew right past me. then, monday night at our small group, one of the young ladies randomly said, "hey katie, have you tried lee's? i love that place!" mr. wonderful and i visited it the next day. walking into the large building, it is bright and airy and almost aesthetically clean. you have to wait in line to order at the counter, and during the entire lunc hour, the line just got longer. people were streaming in and

credit cards now. big banner out front says they're now accepting credit cards.


-----27 apr, 2009-----

wonderful crusty baguettes. excellent iced coffee, sweet and bitter at the same time. i didn't use it but there's an atm inside.

oct. 12, 09: i hadn't noticed the free wi-fi until i saw someone using their computer today. the sandwiches are still great, mostly due to the excellent quality of the baguettes and croissants and fresh ingredients. there's just really no way for them to go wrong.

baguettes are still buy one get one. you can make awesome garlic bread with them and with 2 for one there's a chance you'll get one home. any time a serving suggestion says "serve with crusty bread" this would do the trick.

croissants come in small and large and are buttery and flaky.

ice cream comes in some familiar and some unusual flavors: plenty of chocolate and cookie choices,lee'scoffee, and then there's mango, honeydew, kiwi.

always solid.lee'sis a great place for lunch if you work in the classen area. it is very cheap and you can always get your food quickly. you must have cash. they have an atm, but it has a high fee. there is a 7-11 around the corner though.

my favorite is the grilled pork, although the chicken and vegetarian are quite good as well.

at its best, saigon baguette makes a better banh mi sandwich, butlee'shas a bigger selection and is more consistent. of course it is slightly more expensive, and is a national chain, so if you prefer to eat at locally owned restaurants, stick with saigon.

the only thing i would not recommend are the non-vietnamese sandwiches, such as the ham and cheese. the quality of the cheese is sub-par at best, and they will be particularly disappointing if you are expecting a french-style baguette sandwich. stick with the banh mi and you'll be good to go.