What’s on offer?
Rory Carron worked in finance for eight years before deciding it was time to pursue his true passion. He bought a food truck and started trading at Killruddery farmers’ market last summer. His main motivation was to get a sense of the food business before heading to Ballymaloe Cookery School in September to study the 12-week certificate course.
He describes the Ballymaloe course as “a pretty transformative experience” and found that he was missing his food truck and the whole market experience. He decided to give it a proper go when he finished the course and has been trading as Mama’s Boy in Herbert Park since March.
His food is inspired by his travels to Vietnam, the food culture there and how tiny restaurants and hawkers specialise in one dish. His focus is on bánh mí, a Vietnamese sandwich of sliced meats, pickles and coriander served inside a crispy baguette that has been slathered with mayonnaise and split lengthways, almost like a submarine sandwich. The bánh mi is purported to have first been invented in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, in the 1950s and become a popular street food. Carron offers three bánh mí options – pork, chicken and a tofu vegan option – and sources his bread from OakSmoke Bakery, a mother and son operation.
What did we order?
A chicken and a pulled pork bánh mí.
[ Una takeaway review: The focaccia at this new Ranelagh bakery is spectacularOpens in new window ]
How was the service?
There was quite a queue on a sunny Sunday afternoon, so we waited for close to 30 minutes to be served. Everything is made to order in the food truck. The chicken has been pre-cooked, but is finished on the flat top, bringing a charred taste to the meat.
Was the food nice?
These bánh mí taste deliciously fresh with slices of cucumber, coriander leaves, chilli, and home-made pickled carrots and onions, bringing flavour and nuance to the sandwiches. The pork, which is dry-rubbed with white pepper and fennel and slow-cooked for five hours, is delicious, topped with red chillies, sriracha and sesame seeds. The chicken, which is marinated in soy, honey and Shaoxing wine before being finished on the flat top, has the same fillings and tastes equally good – sweet, salty, and savoury with a bit of heat.
What about the packaging?
The bánh mí is served in a compostable cardboard tray.
What did it cost?
€24 for lunch for two people: chicken bánh mí, €12; and pork bahn mí, €12.
Where does it deliver?
Takeaway only. Sundays, Herbert Park, 11am-4pm; and Thursdays, Merrion Square, 11am-2pm.
Would I order it again?
Yes, this is very good bánh mí. The portions are generous and I like that there’s a vegetarian/vegan option.
