Minhs open new Pullman business; Couple features Vietnamese food at their second Pullman restaurant

What is the difference between Los Angeles and Pullman? Up until a month ago, one difference was that L.A.'s Chinatown offered a wide assortment of ethnic Asian cuisine while Pullman only offered a narrow variety of traditional Chinese and Japanese food.

The owner of The Emerald restaurant in Pullman opened a small eatery called Minh's Bakery & Sandwich. This restaurant, located at 102 N.W. Stadium Way, the former home of Daylight Donut's, offers a blend of more uncommon treats and meals from Asia.

The new restaurant offers Vietnamese cuisine, which may be new to many people who live and work in Pullman.

"We have Chinese steamed bun and baked, some sweet, some with pork, some pastry, some Vietnamese beef noodle," said Minh Lam, owner of Minh's Bakery and Sandwich. "Many Americans, when they were in Vietnam, they liked to have the beef noodle. We have the Vietnamese sandwich, which is prepared differently than the sub sandwich here. We also have congee, which is a rice soup. It is pretty good. A lot of Chinese people like it."

Lam said that he hopes people who are from Asia will enjoy eating at his new business. "It doesn't matter if you are Japanese, or Vietnamese, or from Thailand, or Hong Kong, or Taiwan, they all like this kind of food."

He said that people from Hawaii like to eat the pork bun, and he hopes that they will come by the bakery and try some. He also encourages people who have never eaten the buns and Vietnamese food to stop by.

"This food is only offered in Chinatowns. I want Pullman to have something like this so they can try it. People don't have to go to Seattle or somewhere to look for this food," Lam said.

Patrons of The Emerald may be disappointed that Lam is not at the new bakery more often. People like his friendly personality and that he knows his customers by name. He said that he is at the bakery only to help out once in a while.

Mindy Lam, Minh Lam's wife, cooks most of the food that is offered at Minh's Bakery and Sandwich. She makes most of the baked items fresh each morning, Minh Lam said. He said that one difference between the foods that are already in Pullman and what his new bakery is offering is the herbs that are used.

The Lams try to use less oil and make their foods less sweet than donuts. It is better for the body and the buns can provide energy for people so they can work for the rest of the day, he said.

Minh Lam's aim is to provide fast service and to make this different food affordable.

"We have some steamed sweet buns that are just one dollar. Some are 80 cents," he said. Some sandwiches are only two dollars, which is pretty good considering the size and the quality. It is a very good bargain, so people can easily afford."

Some might wonder why Minh Lam picked a location for a eatery that is so close to his other restaurant. He said, "It is a little corner with a lot of traffic," he said. "It used to be Daylight Donut's, people used to stop there, and I wanted to catch those people. It isn't that I do not care about location, I just want the people in Pullman to be able to try something different."

Minh Lam hopes that people come to his new restaurant.

"I think that the bakery is mainly for people who like to take out," he added. "We have about nine tables there, which can seat about 20 people. People can have coffee and a sandwich or some things that they can eat there and look outside and enjoy the intersection.

"It is a little place where people can stop there and have a little talk and a little breakfast, which is in the Chinese tradition. They used to have this kind of stop in the morning, like the Americans used to have getting a donut. The Asian people mainly have this kind of food, which is different than the American donuts."

So far, the new eatery has not seen many people.

Minh Lam commented that, even if he does not get much business, he would be happy.

"Business is OK. We opened this month and the students are gone, so there is not that many people in the town," he said. "But when I opened this, I did not think that it would work out 100 percent. All I wanted to do was let the people in Pullman to try something that is different that is not offered in the Pullman and Moscow areas."

Minh Lam was born in Vietnam and has been in Pullman for 20 years. He went to high school in Pullman and attended Washington State University. He transferred to University of Idaho and graduated with a degree in biochemistry and psychology.

"Now I am trying to do my best to do a service for the community and make Pullman a nicer place so they can try the Asian cuisine," he said.

Minh's Bakery and Sandwich is open from 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. daily.

"If you are not in Seattle's Chinatown, or Los Angeles's Chinatown you haven't seen this type of steamed bun or baked bun before," Minh Lam said.