In the land of Submarines

For weeks I have been hearing about the bánh mì sandwiches available at the Harbourview Weekend Market in Dartmouth. Today I finally got one. This was actually my first time at the Market, and I was pretty excited by what I saw. Along with the crappy jewelry, knock-off sunglasses and random garbage that one would find at a flea market — something the Weekend Market, I learned upon exclaiming “this is a great flea market!”, is definitely not — there are also some great food options. There are local fruits, berries and vegetables, freshly baked breads, pies and sweets, fudge and vendors with everything from clams and fries to Chinese, Vietnamese and Caribbean fare.

My first stop was Thuy Vietnamese Cuisine, where I picked up the mythical Dartmouth bánh mì.

Let’s take a closer look!

The pâté is what really makes this sub stand out, since Halifax’s only other Vietnamese sub shop, Indochine Bánh Mì, apparently doesn’t use it on their sandwiches. The meat was not the best, but the cilantro was nice and fresh and the carrot gave it a yummy, sweet crunch. It was really tasty, and totally worth the five bucks I spent on it.

Just around the corner from the Thuy booth was The Fudge Lady. She has a ridiculous amount of fudge and cake, and I ended up getting seduced by her simple display and picking up a piece of chocolate-peanut butter fudge.

For only $0.75 I felt like I couldn’t go wrong. I was right; the fudge was delicious.

The piece was big, about two inches squared, and was very smooth and not overly sweet. There were no sugar crystals, and it was just really well made. I don’t buy fudge very often, so I’m always delighted when it’s perfectly creamy. It was worth the indulgence.

Before I left the market, I had to pick up some local strawberries. The perfect way to end a great trip to the Market.

I hear Fid Resto is awash with local strawberries these days, too, and that Chef Dennis Johnston has been making his famous strawberry shortcake. It might be worth a visit.