Why a popular doughnut shop is moving into the banh mi business instead

After spending four years slinging doughnuts, one Toronto business just took a hard left, transforming itself into a banh mi shop.

I hate to say "I told you so," but, in this case, I think I really did. The eddy that is Toronto's affinity for banh mi has been rising for some time now, and the city is now quickly careening toward full-blown saturation. 

One of the latest ventures in the city to throw its hat into the baguette-scented ring is Scarborough's Mochi Doh, which, as of January 2026, now goes by the name Banh Mi Nguyen.

But the former doughnut shop's decision to veer into the sandwich business wasn't actually due to the rising popularity of the Vietnamese specialty, Banh Mi Nguyen owner Diana tells blogTO. At least, not entirely.

"It wasn't about starting over, but it was about telling our story more clearly," Diana, who initially built the business on the back of supple mochi doughnuts, tells blogTO.

"As our menu grew, Vietnamese food naturally became the heart of what we were doing, especially banh mi. The rebrand allowed us to fully lean into our roots, our family recipes and the kind of food we're most passionate about right now."

Diana tells blogTO that her husband's family has been operating a Vietnamese restaurant in the city for more than 15 years and, after being closely involved in it for some time, she says that it "felt like the right time to carry that experience and make it my own."

The shop's banh mi recipe didn't come out of nowhere, though. In fact, banh mi appeared on the menu even back when mochi doughnuts were Diana's primary offering. Similarly, today, you can still pick up Mochi Doh doughnuts at Banh Mi Nguyen. It's just that, nowadays, banh mi is getting billed first.

"Eventually, banh mi became the centrepiece, and that's when we knew it deserved its own identity," Diana says.

For Diana, the secret behind top-tier banh mi all comes down to quality bread. At Banh Mi Nguyen, all of the baguettes used are baked fresh in-house with a family recipe devised to emulate classic Vietnamese banh mi as closely as possible.

"We don't cut corners and we don't rush the process," Diana says. "Fresh bread every day, no exceptions."

Even though banh mi has long since been a part of the story at her own business, Diana tells blogTO that she still sees why the sandwich is seeing such popularity in Toronto right now.

"Banh mi checks so many boxes," she says. "It's comforting, affordable, fast and packed with flavour. People are really drawn to food that feels authentic and rooted in culture, but still easy to enjoy on the go."

If you ask me, the more banh mi the merrier, and it seems like plenty of people in Toronto — Diana included — agree.

Banh Mi Nguyen is located at 3376 Kennedy Rd.