Tofu Banh Mi from Ebbett's Good To Go
Monday, September 13, 2010
John Birdsall Shredded Hodo Soy Beanery tofu with pickled carrots, cucumbers, piquillo peppers, spicy pesto, and sriracha mayo, $8.
Like Nancy Botwin, East Bay moms Suzanne Schafer and Shari Washburn wanted to do something that would guarantee they'd make the afterschool pick-up. They rolled out Ebbett's Good To Go earlier this summer (their formal launch was at Eat Real last month), in an imposingly tall, wood-paneled sandwich truck painted a lush, pale blue you swear they copied from Pottery Barn Kids. 
John Birdsall
Schafer and Washburn have been hawking in Emeryville. Last Friday was their S.F. debut, at Off the Grid Civic Center. I went to check out their cubano, but it'd sold out. I consoled myself with the tofu banh mi.
It was way better than consoling.
Schafer and Washburn bake tofu from Hodo and shred it into delicate filaments, which they pile on an Acme torpedo. Sriracha mayo, a cilantro and basil pesto, vinegared carrots and cucumbers, cilantro: It's good. Hunks of roasted canned piquillos don't totally seem to belong, but they did add a degree of meaty plushness. And in contrast to banh mi of the Vietnamese canon, the Ebbett's version had been premade, its roll turned even softer than when it started. Still, bright flavors count for a lot.
Ebbett's Good To Go: Parks in Emeryville and every other Friday in San Francisco at Off the Grid Civic Center. Check location on Twitter at @ebbettsgoodtogo.
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