LUCKY BURGER REPLACEMENT: DRIVE-THRU BANH MI FROM THE LES GIVRAL’S CREW? 
It looks like a new drive-thru Banh Mi spot from the folks behind the rapidly expanding Les Givral’s restaurant empire is hoping to take over the recently vacated Lucky Burger building at the corner of Richmond and Mandell St. in Montrose. That’s the strongly hinted story, at least, implicit in the new teaser Twitter account for the venture, called Oui BanhMi, affiliated with the Les Givral’s Kahve restaurant on Washington Ave (as well as the recently opened Oui Desserts at 3411 Kirby and the Banh Mieria food truck), which pinpoints itself at Lucky Burger’s old 1601 Richmond Ave address. Any more evidence of the plans? Well, there’s this blurred sheet of “brainstorm” notes posted to the Les Givrals Instagram account last month. [OuiBanhMi on Twitter, via Chic Chick Chic Eats; previously on Swamplot] Photo of Lucky Burger: Swamplot inbox
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oh-hum
so 5 dollar banh mis?
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!
I find bahn mi to be one of the most overrated foodie hipster trends yet. Who wants a fistful of cilantro and one bite of meat? While that might be much better for you, I’m not buying it.
the “mi trangs” need need their non-Vietnamese Vietnamese food.
Anon, bahn mi’s popularity definitely precedes hipsters.
Totally and 100% on-board with this. Les Givral’s has excellent food at an incredible price and besides Dua and Hollywood, there isn’t any Vietnamese food that I know of in that part of Montrose.
I have definitely thought about driving to midtown to get Viet food but decided to do something else instead.
@Anon, you can order double meat at Les Givral’s for only like $.50 extra and you’ll have a ton. Still works out to $3.50 with the pate.
Tried Les Givrals on Washington twice and thought it was the worst food ever. But maybe after a night of drinking at Revelry no one will know the difference.
Banh mi is a foodie hipster trend? I’ve been eating these sandwiches for 30 years..
So the Les Givrals in Milam isn’t related to the Wash ave location? I find the one on Milam way better then the other. If they do open at this local I won;t be paying them a visit.
Yes, bahn mi have existed for a long time but they have only recently been a trend.
It should be named Lucky BanhMi to help preserve the important history of this structure.
That’s an improvement! Those Lucky Burgers were thin & God awful!
This building parking lot is big enough for a drive through I have been there a few time I do not even think there is enough room for todays big suvs when you have to make that turn you will hit the side of the building
Yuck the Kahve Givral’s is awful, is a travesty compared to the original on Milam.
anon: banh mi have been part of the landscape in houston (at least with students at UofH) since before 1988.
I remember consuming them when we used to put shows on at Cullen Performance Hall. Back then, there was still a true vietnamese presence in mid-town. i used to buy them from a cafe/Bida on milam where i was the only western customer and got mad-dogged by the gangs that used to hang out there.
it maybe something hipsters eat, but it is certainly not hipster food.
@I see Dead People
Agree. There was so much “tragedy” talk when this place was closing that one couldn’t possible disagree without being a sellout, but yeah I tried their burgers and they were absolute crap.
I think Anon might just be trolling? The number of banh mi places in this city well outside the purview of any hipster customers shows how deeply interwoven vietnamese cuisine and culture in Houston does not rely on hipster support. Now the Les Givral on washington (and yes Milam) might be where they choose to eat, but they certainly do not represent the entire cuisine.
Milam location is kind of alright–but they have sweeten the meats from some reason. Owners are dishonest jerks too. Go visit or read up on their jewelry store across the street if you don’t believe me.
I love this idea, with one stipulation: please keep the bahn mi $3.50 or less. Revelry is charging $15 for a burger next door and there are fewer and fewer places in Montrose where people besides oil & gas imports can actually go out to eat.
The Les Givral’s on Washington Ave has turned into a filthy, awful dump with inedible and likely unsafe food. I can’t picture this as a good option for diners., maybe ERs.
Givral’s on Washington is just dirty. Such a shame because it’s a great space but they don’t keep it clean. The food is ok but when you have the cashier making the food – it makes you wonder how dirty the kitchen is. The drink station is always sticky and the silverware station is nasty with fruit flies and sticky gunk everywhere.
It should be called Bahn Mi So Lucky.
But seriously, if it WAS Les Givral on Milam, I would so—o be on board with this. The dinky parking lot is crazy, you have to order two sandwiches to do a pick up (I do), so yes, a drive thru would be awesome for those quick bites on the way home. And yes, order double meat or a fried egg on top for 75 cents more and double the veggies for 50 cents more. Throw in a delectable iced Viet coffee for under $5. Can’t be beat.
I wish we had these in college. Would have made life much better…..coming from the guy who ate at taco Tuesday at the local dive. 6 crappy tacos for two bucks. Two draft beers for two bucks. Add a dollar tip. $5 bucks done right