Where sandwiches know no borders

We passed a sort of tipping point a few years back when shops selling banh mi -- the Vietnamese equivalent of the hoagie sandwich -- started taking names such as Baguette Express, Top Baguette and Mr. Baguette instead of Banh Mi My Tho, Buu Dien or Ba Le.

And why shouldn’t they have names in English? Banh mi sandwiches are total hybrids to begin with, based as they are on French baguettes moistened with mayonnaise or pate, but filled with basically Chinese-type sausages, meatballs or roast pork and garnished with Vietnamese chiles, pickled vegetables and fresh herbs. The interweaving of culinary elements moved someone to dub them “sociology on a plate.”

That unknown philosopher would likely be smitten with East West Sandwich, an edgily designed cafe in Westwood Village that, besides being a terrific source for classic banh mi, takes the genre to new heights of fusion with a smorgasbord of pan-Asian filling choices, such as Indian-style grilled chicken strips and Thai satay.

Purists who think it’s sacrilege to mess with the classics would do well to remember banh mi’s multicultural origins. Besides, there may be no better restaurateurs to perfect such a concept than East West’s owners. They opened their first pan-Asian noodle-teria, Noodle Planet (now a small chain), more than a dozen years ago. They know their Asian flavors -- and their urban-international, cheap-eats clientele.

In terms of decor, East West is more whimsically inviting than the rather functional Noodle Planet branch next door. The East-West theme is carried out with collages of disassembled abacuses and computer motherboards. High-backed booths repeat the abacus theme with a decoration of wood and beads.

The sandwiches are made to order on excellent bread and neatly wrapped in layers of heavy tissue. They’re fastened with logo-embossed stickers that match the menu design, suggesting that East West might one day be a chain competing with Mickey D’s.

Many fillings follow traditional Southeast Asian flavor ideas, particularly the grilled lemongrass beef and Thai barbecue chicken strips. Others are more fanciful. Tuna tom yum -- canned tuna dressed with lime juice, onion and a very little chile -- is the kind of thing I might concoct at midnight from pantry staples. It’s no hodgepodge, though; the combination makes a fine, rather refreshing sandwich.

East West carefully gives each sandwich a suitable accompaniment. With the Korean barbecued beef sandwich, you get a snack-size side of kimchi; teriyaki chicken comes with pickled ginger; and the Thai barbecue chicken strips have a sweet garlicky sauce (which is greatly improved by the addition of a dash of hot sauce from a jar on the table).

The house special sandwich is filled with Vietnamese grilled beef and chicken and barbecue pork. Half a dozen vegetarian fillings are available, including grilled tofu served as a satay or in Thai curry sauces. Several fillings are composed of steamed vegetables.

Which sandwiches are best? I favor the grilled meat fillings and the splendid Filipino pork adobo, a garlicky stew flavored with soy sauce. I have to admit that not every sandwich works for me. My companions thought the Chinese orange chicken was fine, but I found the combination of sweet sauce and pineapple slices with a baguette as wrong as Zinfandel with an ice cream sundae.

The restaurant clearly does a brisk business in boba; there’s actually a Boba World on the premises. Besides the usual ice tea drinks with the tapioca balls, Boba World whips up fruit and ice coolers, yogurt coolers, milk-based smoothies and “milkshake” smoothies with French vanilla added. Tropical twists are smoothies with fruit puree swirled into them. Teas also come in every imaginable form from plain, iced, green tea and tropical, fruit-flavored teas to ice-blended teas and coffees.

East West servers take orders for every kind of customization on its sandwiches and drinks, whether that means adding pate or extra jalapenos to your sandwich, or boba pearls or tiny fruit jellies to your drink.

Although for the cognoscenti, Vietnamese sandwiches have long been a part of the Southland casual food scene, unfamiliarity has kept them hidden within a subculture for decades. But lately, while standing by the counter waiting for my order at East West, I’ve been hearing “banh mi” and “craving” in the same sentence.

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East West Sandwich

Location: 1116 Westwood Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 208-8880

Price: Sandwiches, $2.75 to $4.25; drinks, $2.50 to $2.95.

Best dishes: East West Sandwich special, pork adobo sandwich, Korean barbecue beef sandwich, lychee Asian cooler with lychee jelly, tropical twist with peach or raspberry puree.

Details: Open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sundays to Thursdays, until 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. No alcohol. Street and nearby public parking lots. Cash only.