First off; apologies for the flash bang in the photos to the food because these were all taken at a void deck of a HDB estate — the woes of visiting a Vietnamese establishment that primarily serves Banh Mi that does not actually have their own seating area. Just when we thought we were quite done with the craze over Vietnamese Banh Mi with lesser of such spots sprouting up all across the island, we found our about Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery — yet another stall that serves up Vietnamese Banh Mi that is situated in the heartlands. The North hadn’t seen many of such establishments opening up, with Miss Banh Mi being one of the rare few being situated in Woodlands North Plaza. Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery is a relatively recent addition to Yishun; itself being located at Blk 110 Yishun Ring Road where one can also find the very first location of Hyogaki — an ice-cream parkour which has since opened another outlet in Bedok. Tam Tam Vietnamese Bakery operates quite a large space for a takeaway-only establishment; the space does look reminiscent of a re-purposed neighbourhood bakery with its layout. Regardless, the way that Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery is being set-up reminds us a little bit of Miss Saigon at Ang Mo Kio and Yu Lok Fan Hin at Tanjong Pagar — the stall having doubled up as a grocery store that sells Vietnamese snacks, fruits and other packed light bites such as glutinous rice and other desserts at the same time. Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery does not offer a wide variety of Banh Mi to choose from — patrons simply pick between Pork, Fish, Chicken or Egg for their choice of toppings for their Banh Mi. One can either order ala-carte or in a set with hot coffee or iced coffee; both with or without milk. Other beverage available at Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery include sugarcane juice and ginseng water.

For those whom are into ordering Banh Mi Dac Biet (i.e. Banh Mi Special) at most locations that features a variety of different hams within the Banh Mi, then the Pork Banh Mi would be the one to go for if one drops by Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery. Much like all other Banh Mi specialty stores which we had visited, the baguette is only toasted up in the oven upon order. Once out of the oven, the lady at the counter slices the baguette open and spreads of layer of margarine in between — this is before a layer of pate is being spread atop of it. Thereafter, she layers the variety of hams which they have in stock, before placing the bite of barbecued pork in-between; this is not forgetting the coriander and the pickled vegetables, and a drizzle of soy sauce all before she adds the coriander as the finishing touch.

Taking a bite into the Banh Mi, the bread here is done crisp with a firm bite — we are suspecting that they do make their very own baguettes in-house considering they do actually sell the baguettes as-is as well. As one goes on further with the Banh Mi, one could definitely get a good bite of all of that meat in-between; the various cuts of ham coming with its own notes of saltishness and textures — the pate and margarine adds on to it and acts a vehicle to bring the hams and meat to the bread altogether. The addition of chili padi is optional; but it does definitely send a fiery note all the way to the back of the tongue; something which those whom are tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness would also find rather intense, though the drizzle of light soy sauce rounds it off just about nicely whilst complimenting the other elements in the Pork Banh Mi. Meanwhile, the crunch and tang from the pickled vegetables cuts through the carbs and the meatiness, with the coriander delivering its signature note to neutralise the flavours further. The Vietnamese Iced Coffee we had went for didn’t become with the most generous of portions, though their variant was actually one that was immensely strong and came with quite a caffeinated punch. For $5.90 for both the Pork Banh Mi and the Iced Vietnamese Coffee with Milk as a set, Tam Tam Vietnam Bakery does serve up one of the most affordable Banh Mi around — does remind us a little bit of Banh Mi Thit by Star Baguette. Needless to say, a pretty interesting addition to the Yishun neighbourhood for sure!