Posted by Robyn Lee, September 25, 2008 at 6:45 PM
Add this to the list of Things I Have Not Eaten, But Would Like To: waffle sandwiches. James Starmer made toasted nutella and banana waffle sandwiches and shares instructions for how to make your own. Unfortunately I am missing the crucial waffle maker and the sandwich toaster components to this recipe, but someday...someday....
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Posted by Robyn Lee, September 16, 2008 at 1:30 PM
Designer and engineer Sherwood Forlee's Anti-Theft Lunch Bag disguises your sandwich with green splotches to deter co-workers from stealing your lunch. Another possibility is that they'll throw it out, if they dare to touch it at all. [via Lifehacker]
Related: The Easy PB&J Jar: A Jar with Two Lids (also designed by Sherwood Forlee)
My favorite sandwich? Probably sliced heirloom tomatoes, goat cheese, and pesto on a toasted baguette. Check out We Love Sandwiches, where you can share recipes of America's favorite lunch (and breakfast, dinner, and midnight snack). We love their adorable logo.
Posted by Jenn Sit, September 4, 2008 at 8:30 AM
Hoagies, heroes, subs, wedges, po'boys, grinders, and the list goes on. No matter what you call your hometown hero, we're here to talk about America's best hot and cold versions—for now, we'll define it as a sandwich on a long individual bread or baguette. Whether the name refers to the people who eat them (Cubans, Italians) or the shape (submarine, torpedo, zeppelin), the long list of monikers should at the very least give you a hint of the importance and history of this most beloved and humble sandwich.
Submarines
Photograph from Benton on Flickr
Perhaps the most widespread term, a sub is a sandwich served on a long Italian roll, topped with a variety of meats and cheeses, lettuce, tomato, onion, oil and vinegar, salt and pepper, and maybe oregano. Some Philadelphians see subs as only a poor substitute for hoagies, which must be served on a roll that's crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. No matter if you're hailing from Philly or Boston, some argue that a sub can only be cold with no lettuce, while others see hot subs as part of the pack.
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Posted by Erin Zimmer, August 30, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Do you like plotting graphs and eating sandwiches? Behold the two-by-two 'Wich Plot from the site Simply Sandwiches. One axis measures sandwiches in terms of strategy and the other, execution. By combining the two, four sandwich quadrants are created. Analysis that's delicious!
Posted by Carey Jones, August 26, 2008 at 11:15 AM
So often, the key to the perfect meal is simplicity.
On Nantucket Island, the Straight Wharf Fish Store is a local's one-stop shop for all things aquatic: lobsters, scallops, and cod just out of the waters outside. Resident fishmaster Walter (with a Red Sox cap on and a matching accent) supplies the freshest of the day’s catch to professional and amateur chefs alike. But he doesn’t just sell by the pound—he’ll fry you lunch right there on the dock.
Soft shell crab sandwich; fish sandwich.
The soft shell crab sandwich:
1. Procure crab. 2. Fry in pan. 3. Put on bun.
Or the radically different fish sandwich:
1. Fillet fish, usually cod. 2. Fry in pan. 3. Put on bun.
Tuna sandwich, swordfish sandwich—you get the idea. On a butter-toasted roll, with a glob of homemade tartar sauce and a few salty chips, it’s the best lunch in town. Especially when enjoyed on the dockside picnic tables right out the door. Just watch out for the seagulls. (They get mean when jealous.)
Straight Wharf Fish Store
4 Harbor Square, Nantucket MA 02554 (map)
508-228-1095
Posted by Carey Jones, August 24, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Even the shortest visit to the Steel City will teach you that Pittsburgh pride runs deep—starting with the Steelers, and ending with the sandwich. The Primanti Bros. sandwich, that is.
I had hardly touched down at the Pittsburgh International Airport before being whisked from baggage claim straight to Primanti’s for my first taste of the ‘Burgh. Their flagship location in the Strip District, where a colorful mural of notable Pittsburghers hangs along one wall, is something of a city landmark. Originally a wooden lunch stand serving huge, hearty sandwiches to Depression-era truckers pulling up to the loading docks across the street, Joe Primanti’s operation has spawned fourteen satellites throughout the city—though the first (and best) is the only one that boasts 24-hour artery-clogging capacity.
This is not a lunch for the faint of heart (or meek of stomach). Sandwiches were always intended to be meals-in-hand. So Primanti’s takes this ambition to the logical extreme—they toss the fries and slaw right inside. This is no lazy, horizontal hoagie. It’s all stacked up high, in a towering marvel of sandwich construction that reached, in my case, almost six inches.
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Posted by Erin Zimmer, August 20, 2008 at 3:15 PM
Domino's Pizza is introducing baked submarine sandwiches, available for $4.99 nationwide starting August 25, with flavors like Chicken Bacon Ranch, Chicken Parmesan, and Philly Cheesesteak. How weird will it be to order delivery from Domino's, but it doesn't have to be pizza. Hopefully they'll have the special insulated holders, but sandwich-shaped, for prime preservation during travel. [via YumSugar]
Posted by Sarah Wolf, August 7, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Superstar intern Sarah Wolf just got back from a summer study in Paris, where she ate seriously, of course. This is the first of her snapshots from the City of Lights. —Adam
Gérard Mulot and their croque monsieur.
See that little fleck of green in this warm, crispy croque monsieur from renowned patisserie Gérard Mulot, peeking out from inside the ham, melted cheese and butter-drenched toast? Yes, in the midst of all the delicious fat, that is indeed a vegetable—zucchini, to be exact. Thanks to its added crunch and its ability to convince me that it was somehow counteracting the damage the other ingredients were doing to my arteries, the zucchini helped establish this as the best sandwich—if not necessarily the best lunch—I had in Paris. I devoured it in the Jardin du Luxembourg, the big beautiful garden a few blocks from the patisserie, while sitting on a lounge chair and looking out at the trees and the pond. Following it with one of Mulot's incredible lemon tarts didn't hurt the meal, either.
If you can't buy the genuine article in Paris, try to make your own!
Gérard Mulot
76 Rue de Seine, 75006, 6th Arrondissement, Paris, France (map)
01 43 26 85 77
gerard-mulot.com
Reginald Peterson of Jacksonville, Florida, wasn't happy with the sandwiches he received at Subway, so he called the cops hoping that they would get him correctly made sandwiches. Instead, Peterson was arrested and the sandwiches of discontent were thrown away.
Posted by Hannah Howard, July 31, 2008 at 5:30 PM
Another change at Starbucks in light of recent underperformance? The reheated breakfast sandwiches—yeah, they're making them smell less. While the McMuffin lookalikes received poor marks on taste from us, customers still found them perfectly appetizing. It was the smell that irked them.
Meaty, eggy aromas were infiltrating the undertones of Kona Blend and Caffè Verona in the air. "While relatively popular, the smell interfered with the coffee aroma, and therefore the store experience," according to Ad Age. The article noted that products have been reformulated to eliminate this "smell" problem.
Back in January, CEO Howard Schultz said the breakfast sandwiches were on the way out, but we swear we've spotted them behind glass counters at multiple branches. A trip to a nearby Starbucks this morning confirmed our suspicions: plenty of sandwiches and a confused barista who hadn't heard of impending smell-related tweaks.
Posted by Robyn Lee, July 28, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Robin Bellinger is off blogging duty this week, so we're rounding up the best posts from her Sack Lunch recipe columns!
Black Beans with Rice, or 'Spotted Rooster': Make a big pot of black beans with rice and you'll have enough food to last you a week of lunches. You can eat it plain or with extras like salsa, yogurt, or cheese.
Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwich: Bellinger started eating peanut butter and honey sandwiches in summer camp as a teenager. She still loves the sandwich today, but makes a somewhat less indulgent version with spelt bread instead of wheat.
Turkey and Coleslaw Sandwich: One of Bellinger's favorite sandwiches is with turkey and coleslaw, but she felt compelled to make a homemade version since she was dissatisfied with the counterpart at most delis.
Cold Sesame Noodles: When the weather's hot, cold sesame noodles flavored with sesame, peanut butter, and soy sauce will help you cool down.
Posted by Ed Levine, July 25, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Photos from some of my recent trips to New Orleans.
My friend Brett Anderson has just resumed reviewing restaurants in the New Orleans Times-Picayune for the first time since Katrina struck, according to the New York Times. He reviewed the classic New Orleans restaurant Mr. B's Bistro in his typically straightforward, clear-eyed fashion. Anderson lauded what he found delicious (barbecued shrimp) and fairly criticized what he found wanting (fried catfish). In other words he did what a good restaurant critic does.
This is good news for Serious Eaters everywhere, who shouldn't need anymore reasons to visit the Big Easy to do some serious eatin'. When I last visited Brett in April he was already in reviewer mode, directing our meals together as only a newspaper restaurant reviewer—who eats virtually every meal out—can.
Before this Anderson felt that he was better serving his paper and the city he loves through coverage of the Big Easy food culture, as it tried to recover from Katrina. At Serious Eats we took note of a great series he wrote about the classic New Orleans restaurant Mandina's ultimately successful struggle to open after the devastating hurricane.
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Posted by Erin Zimmer, July 24, 2008 at 11:00 AM
That's too many seeds for a normal McDonald's bun. Spotted in Taiwan, the "Grilled Chicken Multi Grains" demonstrates the fast food industry's attempt to make us healthier—and what better way than with big, fat seeds. The sandwich isn't currently available in the United States, where the closest alternative is a Premium Grilled Chicken Classic Sandwich on a "toasted honey wheat bakery roll." (No seeds involved.)
Posted by Robyn Lee, July 22, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Photograph from Daily Feed
Boccalone Salumeria in San Francisco makes their proscuitto cotto with provolone panini out of an inverted baguette, allowing the tender inner part of the bread to get crisp and creating "more textural interest with its chewy crust melded to the melted cheese." Like I needed even more reason to want to eat a sandwich filled with thinly sliced pork and molten cheese. [via Eater SF]
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Posted by Emily Koh, July 20, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Raw herring is a Dutch specialty, so it's no wonder that the broodje haring, or a raw-herring sandwich, is the national dish of the Netherlands. Says Simply Sandwiches, "It's cold and a bit mushy, but has a refreshing freshness and bite from the onions and pickles that it's a pleasure to eat. It also helps that it's incredibly soft and I could probably eat it without teeth."
Posted by Erin Zimmer, June 27, 2008 at 3:45 PM
Even if Bakesale Betty in Oakland, California, didn't have such an amazing fried chicken sandwich, the place would still be insanely likable. The ironing boards in lieu of tables outside, the free cookies that somehow end up in your bag, the simple menu scribed onto white butcher paper, the scary long line that moves so fast, the owner Alison Barakat (who most customers just call Betty) and her color-rotating wig, oftentimes blue.
But then they have to serve a delicious, football-sized fried chicken sandwich, and move from likable to obsessively lovable. Almost as satisfying as the actual eating of this sandwich is watching the rushed yet scientifically precise assembly line of fried chicken sandwich-makers behind the glass.
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Posted by Erin Zimmer, June 25, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Brazil Fresh Squeeze Cafe's veggie sandwich features five vegetables in every bite—if you can get your whole mouth around it, that is.
Like novels, sandwiches get bragging rights when they are so thick, they make you stop and think, "wow, that might take you a while, but I bet it's good." At Berkeley's Brazil Fresh Squeeze Café, the veggie sandwich is four-inches thick, and that's only after squeezing it to clear the roof of your mouth.
Homemade nutty, fluffy grain bread (an inch per slice) smashes together fresh ricotta, diced carrots, folded-over romaine leaves, corn kernels, tomato slices, and green olives—the martini kind with pimento centers, but somehow it works here. With all the vegetarians in Berkeley, it's nice to see something that can hold them over in the way only a big hunk of meat could.
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Posted by Ed Levine, June 22, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Editor's note: Occasionally what looks at first glance to be a conventional guidebook transcends the genre in surprising ways. John T. Edge's Southern Belly is just such a read, which is why I'm pleased that he has allowed us to excerpt selected items from it on Serious Eats, where they appear every other week. —Ed Levine
By John T. Edge | The Sheik on North Main Street, in business since the 1970s, is one of the six fast-food shops in a Jacksonville chain. Like the unaffiliated Desert Rider downtown and Desert Sand on Beach Boulevard, they serve sandwiches—club, ham and cheese, bacon and egg, that sort of thing—tucked into pita bread. By my count, a couple dozen or more sandwich shops around town share a similar bill of fare. Come breakfast, pita cheese toast is a favorite. So is the link, egg, and cheese sack. Not to mention the breakfast in a cup, a sundae-like stack of grits, patty sausage, and eggs. At lunch, the steak-in-a-sack and the cold cut-stuffed camel rider are the main events.
Whiteway Deli
1510 King Street, Jacksonville FL 32204 (map); 904-389-0355
Must-Haves: The desert rider sandiches and the tabouli omelet
The term camel rider might play as a pejorative in most cities, but here in Jacksonville—which has among the largest Arab Middle Eastern communities on the East Coast—it's a marker of influence among immigrants and the descendants of immigrants who, fleeing the economic decline and religious persecution of the Ottoman Empire, began settling in the area in the 1890s.
Many Arab immigrants made their way as peddlers. Some opened groceries, which in time evolved into sandwich shops. Assimilation was the watchword. Mohammed became Mo. Saliba became Sal. Men with surnames like Hazouri built houses of worship like Mount Olive Syrian Presbyterian Church. By 1915 the Syrian American Club was thriving. The Ramallah American Club followed in the 1950s.
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Posted by Michael Nagrant, May 21, 2008 at 1:30 PM
I wonder if Miamians get bored with the Cuban sandwich or Philadelphians forego the Philly cheesesteak for long periods of time. I know, with so many new restaurants opening each day and so many tasty leads to follow, sometimes I take the local food icons here in Chicago for granted. I even forsake them occasionally. But, with so many fanny pack clad tourists descending on our city in search of salad dogs, deep dish pizza, and the Italian beef, I don’t really think they need me.
Fast forward to last Thursday when I just happened to be driving through Elmwood Park, a suburb adjacent to the Northwest side of Chicago city proper, and I spotted one of my favorite Italian beef stands: Johnnie’s. You know the soup nazi? Well, Johnnie’s proprietors are the beef Nazis. They make you wait in a single file line and if you’re the next person in line in front of the entrance door and you thing about holding it open to suck up some warm beefy air on a cold or rainy day, don’t do it. If you let so much as a minor draft sneak in to the store, you’ll get glares from the employees and customers alike. You also better have your order together when you hit the cash register and it better not include cheese on your beef (which is pretty much an equivalent crime in these parts to putting ketchup on your hot dog), unless, of course, you want to get laughed at.
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Posted by Gina DePalma, May 19, 2008 at 8:30 AM
Last week, I took a little lunchtime trip to Frascati, one of a handful of little towns in the Castelli Romani, a culturally rich area just southeast of Rome shadowed by the Alban Hills and dotted with volcanic lakes. Thanks to a direct commuter train, I was there in only 30 minutes, and at the very appealing price of €1.90 (US$2.96) each way.
Frascati is home to a number of grand villas built by some of Rome's most powerful and wealthy families as retreats from the city's sweltering streets. Most of Frascati's day tourists make a beeline straight from the train station to visit the elaborate gardens of Villa Aldobrandini (right), the largest of the estates. I headed in the opposite direction, climbing a steep stone staircase to get to the compact center of town.
After wandering up and down the narrow, cobbled streets, I reached the Piazza del Mercato. As the name implies, it is ringed with the kind of stores that meet the daily needs of residents: an alimentari, a few bakeries, the butcher shop, and a place for household odds and ends. But at the far end of the circular piazza, I paused, gasped, and beheld "Leda, La Regina della Porchetta."
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Posted by Zach Brooks, May 14, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Add beets, and you have got an Aussie Burger.
Is there anything greater than the breakfast burger? I love a decent burger, and if you top it with an over easy egg, something magical happens. And that magic is called egg yolk, covering your burger in gooey goodness. Last week I sampled the breakfast burger from Goodburger (a slightly upscale, NYC burger chain) along with some co-workers, one of whom remarked, "Add some beets to this, and you've got an Aussie Burger." Come again? Beets? Now that sounds like something I could get into.
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Posted by Raphael, May 2, 2008 at 3:45 PM
"Which is more important, love or a great sandwich??? Tough call" commented Perkymac on today's video, Sandwich Day on '30 Rock'. For those who haven't seen the episode, here's the answer to her question in the form of Tina Fey internally debating whether or not to wolf down a sandwich in front of airport security, or simply hand it over and save precious time to catch her man before he goes to Cleveland.
Of course, she inhales it, and then runs after her man. Thus is the mark of a true—and possibly insane—sandwich lover.
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Posted by Raphael, May 2, 2008 at 12:00 PM
"It's the most wonderful day of all. Once a year, the teamsters go to this Italian sandwich shop in Brooklyn. No one knows what it's called, or where it is. It's a teamster's secret."
Watch the freakishly giddy happiness brought about by Sandwich Day on 30 Rock, after the jump.
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Posted by Robyn Lee, May 2, 2008 at 10:30 AM
From April 13 to 19, I traveled around Chile with two other American food journalists on a culinary media trip. Here's another snapshot from that week. —Robyn Lee
Just like my group's visit to a café con piernas, obtaining a completo, a Chilean hot dog impossibly overloaded with condiments, wasn't part of our itinerary. But everyone knew I wanted one. Because during the second half of our trip I would not-so-subtly remind them with each passing completo-less day that I still wanted a completo.
My last day in Chile started at Rapa Nui, a long-established restaurant in Temuco that, as far as I know, has nothing to do with being named after the indigenous name for Easter Island, but offered everything I could ever want: hot dogs and sandwiches. Looking around the dining room, we noticed other customers—from a small, young boy to an old woman—ringing in the morning with breakfast completos. We followed suit.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, April 30, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Photograph from BKMD on Flickr
With the all important Cinco de Mayo holiday less than a week away, my thoughts turn to using the day as an excuse to transform ordinary sandwiches into lessons in excess. For example, adding guacamole to every single thing I eat. From a sandwich standpoint, is there a better condiment than guacamole? In fact, I can't think of many sandwiches that couldn't be improved with a giant spoonful of guac.
Here are some of my favorites.
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Posted by Ed Levine, April 24, 2008 at 11:00 AM
This week I learned something every astronaut has learned the hard way: Re-entry is a bitch, at least when it comes to breathing-living-eating-dieting. When I last left you, serious eaters, I was consuming quite a few pieces of some of the finest fried chicken in the land. It didn't get any easier after that in New Orleans.
Dinner that night was at Cochon, Donald Link's tribute to all things porcine that should be renamed Porktopia. The man loves pork as much as I do. It wouldn't surprise me if the tap water I drank there was infused with pork. We ate fried boudin balls, grilled pork ribs with watermelon salad, cochon (roast pig) of course, and house-made salumi, including some killer bologna and so many other pork-derived or saturated dishes that my dinner companions and I actually oinked in unison when we walked back to our hotel.
Last Meals in New Orleans
Breakfast and lunch the following day, the last two meals I was to have in New Orleans, were from Lüke, John Besh's newish restaurant that serves classic New Orleans cuisine and New Orleans–influenced German food. Mad good, but not exactly light.
Breakfast was grilled shrimp and buttery grits studded with fantastic andouille sausage, feather-light pancakes topped by berries in syrup, and just to kick it up a notch (hey, I was eating in Emeril country), a couple of big fat links of house-made pork sausage. Of course I left most of all three dishes, but the total calorie intake couldn't have been all that minimal. While there, I figured I'd order lunch to take on the plane; I grabbed a pressed cochon sandwich, which I had been eying on the menu ever since I had arrived in New Orleans. That sandwich represented my re-entry to moderation, as you're about to find out.
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Posted by Michael Nagrant, April 19, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Rosario’s has a serious pig problem. There are little porky tchotchkes on the counter, statues of swine behind the counter, and a few huge piggy bank–looking porkers above the freezer case. Even the neon sign on the front of the building depicts a bunch of happy piglets jumping in to a grinder. Of course, I wouldn’t expect anything less from one of Chicago’s best Italian sausage makers.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, April 16, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Photograph courtesy of thewx4.com
Despite being subjected to the familiar "don't play with your food" parental instruction throughout my childhood, as an adult I can't help but succumb to a little makeshift breakfast sandwich action. The most popular (and easiest to assemble), has got to be the irresistible pancake-bacon combo, or you can get a little more serious, as in the case of the waffle sandwich I posted about here last September.
It's always fun to create your own monstrosity, but I have a tremendous amount of respect for the chef who saves you (and by that I mean my wife) from the embarrassment of a self-made sandwich at the table. Such is the case with the seared smoked pork loin and French toast sandwich served for brunch at Thuet, a Toronto restaurant-bakery-boulangerie-atelier run by Alsatian chef Marc Thuet.
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Posted by Jamie Forrest, April 15, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Don't ask me why, but April is National Grilled Cheese Month, and to celebrate, the Food Network ran Bobby Flay's exciting Grilled Cheese Throwdown this past weekend. Flay took on New Jersey's own Pop Shop in a sandwich battle for the ages.
The Pop Shop, which offers 31 different grilled cheese variations on their menu, put up a good fight with their sandwich called "The Calvert"--jack cheese, roasted turkey, bacon, avocado, and house dressing (balsamic mayo) on foccacia. Flay countered with his delicious-sounding Grilled Brie and Goat Cheese with Bacon and Green Tomato sandwich. In the end, Flay's sandwich won by a hair, with the judges saying it was a tough decision and that there were no losers.
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Los Angeles Times Magazine profiles the history and continuing popularity of Philippe the Original, the nearly 100-year old L.A. institution best known for serving French dip sandwiches.
Posted by Joy Manning, April 3, 2008 at 3:00 PM
You may know us for our cheesesteaks. But lately, it seems more and more outsiders are becoming aware of Philly’s real sandwich treasure: roast pork sandwiches. John’s Roast Pork, literally a shack in a lot by the river (and amid a newish cluster of big-box shopping plazas), has been lauded in the pages of Esquire. More recently, the Washington Post pounded the pavement in search of this other Philly favorite.
Just as with the cheesesteak, there are variations. But most aficionados agree that a roast pork sandwich with garlicky broccoli rabe and sharp provolone cheese is a holy trinity of Philly flavors. Next time you are here, skip the partially-hydrogenated cheesefood and that stupid, offensive sign. Chow down on the roast pork instead.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, April 2, 2008 at 1:45 PM
If you are in Miami, Florida and looking to eat the "best sandwich," you'd be hard pressed (terrible pun intended) to find something better than a Cubano. Sliced pork, ham, cheese, mustard and pickles, ironed flat inside a French-style Cuban bread—it's a near perfect creation. I say near perfect because you will always find that person from Tampa who insists on salami, but in all my years growing up in Miami, genoa was something you got on an Italian sub, not on a Cuban. Salami or not, it's about as serious as sandwiches get.
And yet, this past weekend when I was visiting Miami, I found myself craving a totally different pressed sandwich. A sandwich whose soul is about as far away from Calle Ocho as you can get, and possibly my earliest memory of eating what we would now refer to as a "Serious Sandwich": the pressed duck sandwich from the Deli Lane Cafe in South Miami.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, March 19, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Since my "real" job (whatever that means) is in the "music industry" (radio is still part of the music industry, right?), I've always dreamed of going to the SXSW music festival. I've heard great things about Austin, Texas, and my friends and co-workers always have amazing stories of great shows that I am bound to love that take place in a really cool town. But this year, I discovered a new aspect of SXSW that makes me feel jealous about not getting to go: all the serious sandwiches.
Thanks to blogs, Flickr, and most important, the invention of the iPhone, the SXSW food porn has been pouring in since last week—and I have to say, the sandwiches look pretty damn delicious. Using previous years as a guide, you would expect me to be super envious of missing My Morning Jacket tear through their new songs at the Austin Music Hall, or Michael Stipe playing at the all too famous Stubb's. This year, however, I think I'm bummed because I missed out on all the eatin'.
After the jump, my recently created, hipster food porn-based, Austin sandwich checklist.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, March 5, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Photograph from drewleavy on Flickr
We have no shortage of delicious bagels here in New York City. (Is there a better bagel city in the world?) We also have no shortage of fat laden, drool inducing corned beef. (Is there a better corned beef city in the world?) Yet, explain to me how London is the city that has combined the two into what looks like a pretty outstanding sandwich. It's called a hot salt beef bagel, and it leaves me wondering, "How on earth did we got scooped on this?"
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Posted by Adam Kuban, March 3, 2008 at 1:30 PM
The featured tome in this week's Cook the Book is one I've been looking forward to trying out since we got it in the office a few weeks ago. Panini Express: 70 Delicious Recipes Hot Off the Press, by Daniel Leader and Lauren Chattman gave me an excuse to do something I've been thinking about for a while now—buy a panini press for the office and get to town making sandwiches for lunch. So for today and the rest of the week, we'll be excerpting one recipe from the book daily and bringing it to you as an overview of the book.
Among the 70 sandwich recipes are some familiar panini and some unexpected ones. And they range from vegetarian options to the range of meats and cheeses. Daniel Leader was one of the earliest proponents of artisanal bread-baking in the U.S. and is the owner of Bread Alone in upstate New York, so the book includes not only panini recipes but a handful of instructions for breads as well.
Win 'Panini Express'
As is always the case with our weekly Cook the Book feature, we've got five (5) copies of this book to give away to our readers. Simply name your favorite panini sandwich in the Comments section below.
Winners will be chosen at random from among the commenters, and comments will be open until noon ET, Monday, March 10. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Michael Nagrant, February 29, 2008 at 10:15 AM
It would seem that a man who wore a Jason (of Friday the 13th) mask for a living and took more than a few discs of frozen rubber to the head during his career isn’t the best person to take food advice from. But Tony Esposito, the Chicago Blackhawks hall of famer was, in hockey parlance, a serious grinder. And as it takes one to know one, Esposito definitely knows his grinders. His framed signed picture hangs in the back of Bari Foods, an Italian grocery brimming with tinned cans of San Marzano tomotoes and gleaming jars of pickled goods, praising the house giardiniera
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Posted by Robyn Lee, February 28, 2008 at 5:15 PM
How much does Grace love the popular Vietnamese sandwich, banh mi? She declares, "If I could marry a sandwich, I would marry a banh mi." After staring at her photo of her sandwich's innards, I might have to agree with her.
Posted by Zach Brooks, February 27, 2008 at 11:30 AM
I still remember my first sandwich press. I convinced my mom to let me order it after spending a day at home sick from school watching some lady make apple pies, brownies, waffles and, of course, sandwiches. I also remember my first car accident—it was caused by my fumbling for a boombox that had just tumbled off the dashboard of my Honda (the car stereo was broken). I can't help but think that S. King had me in mind when it developed the car-powered Pro 12-Volt Sandwich Maker—it's perfect for that person who is in love with cheap sandwich presses but also stupid enough to put an appliance on the dashboard.
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Posted by Robyn Lee, February 20, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Tuna melts are so passé. For your next meal, why not try squirrel melts? All you need are some good shooting skills and a forest of squirrels at your disposal. Let Heidi Wilson, star of The Outdoor Channel's show The Huntress (circa 1999), show you the way with her clear instructions and mellifluous voice. "Squirrel melts; you must try them."
Yes, I think this is real. Watch the video after the jump.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, February 13, 2008 at 12:45 PM
Surprisingly, I actually like Valentine’s Day. Maybe it's not that big a surprise since I have someone I love, and against all odds, she actually loves me back (food obsessions and all). I know you can do nice things for people you care about “anytime you want,” but there’s something about Valentine’s Day that I like. Maybe it’s that you have an excuse to do something on a weeknight that you may not do otherwise. Last year my wife and I had the best Valentine’s Day—it involved a movie, some wine, and, of course, a pair of serious sandwiches. Fancy dinners and expensive flowers are nice, but I think hidden food snuck into a movie (with alcohol pairing of course) is the best option. And what better food is there than a sandwich? Perfectly portable, and easy to eat in a theater—silverware not necessary.
Lucky for us, there a place right between my office in Midtown Manhattan and our local movie theater on the Upper West Side of New York City that has a few serious sandwiches: the Bouchon Bakery take-out window, courtesy of Thomas Keller (French Laundry, Per Se). No matter where we eat, my wife and I usually order two different things and share (to cover more ground), but when it comes to the Bouchon Bakery vegetable jardiniere, neither of us are willing to give up a half…so two of the same thing it was.
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Posted by Robyn Lee, February 12, 2008 at 5:30 PM
Hannah Kaminsky of BitterSweet didn't intend to make doughnut sandwiches filled with maple frosting, but when her homemade baked doughnuts came out flat-topped, it was the only way to salvage the fat doughnut bottoms. Some of the best ideas come out of mistakes! [via tastespotting]
Previously: How to Eat Cupcakes—sandwich the frosting between the cake!
Philadelphia City Paper investigates the questionably authentic interpretations of Philadelphia's beloved cheesesteak sandwich around the world. [Tip o' the hat to Neal]
Posted by Zach Brooks, February 6, 2008 at 1:15 PM
Photograph of General Tso's Philly Cheesesteak from DJ Grocery
Coming up with a theme for this week's sandwich should have been easy. Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, but po'boys have been pretty well covered here on Serious Eats. It was also Super Tuesday, but I couldn't seem to find any mention of candidates' favorite sandwiches. Tomorrow is the start of the Chinese New Year, but "Year of the Rat" does not exactly make for sandwich inspiration.
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Posted by Michael Nagrant, February 1, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Jerry’s has a hundred and twenty plus signature sandwiches named after musicians, cartoon characters, customers, and pop culture icons. Given the wide choice, the journalist in me yearns to work through each and every one of them. But, while I stray occasionally, my stomach's desires trump my investigative nature, and I almost exclusively order the Marky B (named after owner Mark Bires).
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Posted by Erin Zimmer, January 31, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Or, 'It's the Espresso, Stupid!
Whether you loved or hated the Starbucksian take on the McMuffin, it will officially be yanked, according to today's New York Times. After making some calls to Washington, D.C., locations, it appears that Monday is the national D-Day, which leaves just three days of devouring the pre-assembled shrink-wrapped sandwiches.
A Brief Starbucks History
Pre-Breakfast Sandwiches
In 1971, they sell just roasted beans and brewing equipment.
In 1982, they add live-made coffee and espresso drinks, all the while fearing that a foray into the beverage world will distract them from bean-roasting.
Along came pastries and banana breads... some ambiguous time in between...
Post-Breakfast Sandwiches
In 2006, they have jealousy issues with McDonald's and create six warm breakfast sandwiches: sausage; peppered bacon; sun-dried tomato with ham; reduced-fat turkey bacon; and eggs Florentine with spinach (all of which include egg and cheese).
On January 30, 2008, that dream dies. With a pending economic recession, Starbucks embraces a turn-around plan, focusing on its original plan: coffee.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, January 30, 2008 at 1:30 PM
Photo courtesy of chowdownphoenix.com
Obviously most of us can't afford to go to the Super Bowl, and quite frankly if you don't live in New England or New York City, I don't understand why you would want to. But, if I was going to Phoenix for this year's Super Bowl, you better believe I'd be eating one of these: the Navajo Lamb Sandwich from Arizona Native Frybread.
Invented by the Navajo people, frybread is normally served at fairs, pow-wows, and art shows and can come topped with powdered sugar or honey (think elephant ears) or beans, meat, lettuce, tomato, and cheese, commonly referred to as an "Indian taco." But for a truly unique and authentic savory Navajo frybread sandwich, you have to go out to Arizona Native Frybread in Mesa, one of the few permanent, year-round shops for an authentic Navajo frybread sandwich like this.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, January 23, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Since we started the Serious Sandwiches Flickr Group at the end of last year, there have been a ton of great submissions, but my favorite photo so far has got to be this one—the "king of the meatball sandwiches" posted by made by moxie. It comes from Zagi's, a 3 year old pizza parlor in the Ballard district of Seattle—a city I've never been to, but am now seriously considering visiting.
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Posted by Ed Levine, January 22, 2008 at 7:15 AM
Wow, it turns out that people are as passionate about their local food as they are about their sports teams. There were many claims and counterclaims being made by Boston and New York food advocates on yesterday's post, so I thought it might clarify things if I broke down the comparison food group by food group, much the same way newspapers, magazines, sports radio shows, and talking heads on television break down a football team: offensive line vs. offensive line, linebackers vs. linebackers, quarterback vs. quarterback, coach vs coach, and so on.
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Posted by Robyn Lee, January 18, 2008 at 11:30 AM
The Crosby Connection, the go-to sandwich spot in New York City's NoHo neighborhood, is about to lose its lease on February 1. A lease on a kitchen the size of a closet. Out of this narrow 45-square-foot space, owner Joey Cramarossa and his employees churn out awesome sandwiches for $5 to $7. These sandwiches have cheaply filled my belly many times during my lunch breaks; it'd be a shame if future students and workers in the NoHo area were unable to experience the same sandwich-induced joy.
Head over to An Error Occured While Processing This Directive for more pictures, a petition, and information on what else you can do to help save this little sandwich shop.
UPDATE: Crosby Connection isn't going to disappear—Joey plans on opening a new restaurant just a few blocks away. [via Eater]
Posted by Zach Brooks, January 16, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Today's Serious Sandwich post feels like one of those crossover comic books events, like the time Spiderman showed up in Daredevil. I don't normally write about sandwiches from Midtown Manhattan (I leave that stuff for my blog Midtown Lunch), but I had a sandwich for lunch on Monday that to not share with you would be a disservice to Serious Eaters everywhere. I found it while researching a piece for Midtown Lunch at Tina's Restaurant, a fast food Cuban place that I not only had no intention of eating at, but I wouldn't even consider a NYC destination or even the best Cuban food in Midtown. But then I saw it—the fried pork sandwich, with fried plantains (or as I like to call it, the "You top what with what?!?"). After spotting the sandwich on the menu, considering the consequences of my actions (I had plans to eat Cuban food with friends for dinner), I was forced to use the excuse that this wonderful column has afforded me on so many occasions: "I have to order and eat the sandwich. It's for work."
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Posted by Zach Brooks, January 9, 2008 at 1:00 PM
While traveling through Chile last week, I discovered that my new favorite Spanish word is completo. A word with a few different meanings when it comes to food, completo is best translated as "the works." Use it alone as a noun, as in "Yo quiero un completo," and you'll get a hot dog topped with everything but the kitchen sink (usually salsa, tomatoes, guacamole, sometimes sauerkraut, ketchup, mustard, and the requisite mayonnaise). Use it as an adjective, following the word churrasco and what you'll get is a very serious sandwich.
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Posted by Michael Nagrant, January 4, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Photograph courtesy of Ron Kaplan
It's often said Chicago is a city of neighborhoods. Taking it a step further, it's also a city of sandwiches, as each of those neighborhoods, whether it's the Will Special in Dunning, Al's Italian Beef in Little Italy, or the Bari prosciutto and mozzarella in West Town, has its own distinctive bread-and-meat combo.
In Logan Square, my new obsession is the juicy olive-studded ropa vieja or braised beef piled high with a smattering of lettuce on crisp grill-marked water bread from El Cubanito.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, December 19, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Photograph from c(h)ristine on Flickr
With the New Year approaching, there is the possibility of the chance that maybe I would perhaps consider having an inkling to make a resolution to eat better. With that (50/50 at best) chance of "improving" my diet looming, it's time to stuff my face with not so healthy things, just in case I decide to abstain after January 1st.
In my book of guilty pleasures, the number one at the top of the list, has got to be fried chicken—and what better way to enjoy it then in sandwich form, served out of a bakery in Oakland, by a former cook from the birthplace of California cuisine.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, December 12, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Well, today is the last day of Hanukkah. The eighth and final candle was lighted last night, and the only question that remains is what to do with any leftover latkes. To solve this one, I will go back to my time-tested formula. Item of leftovers + the word sandwich + exclamation point = delicious treat. Put this one through the machine, and voila: latke sandwich!
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Posted by Zach Brooks, December 6, 2007 at 12:15 PM
In lieu of a Serious Sandwich post this week, Adam asked me to provide a Serious Sandwich Gift Guide for the holidays. Rather than give you a list of all the things that I have—and recommend—I've decided to kill two birds with one stone, and just post all the sandwich-related gifts that I want. (Mom, please take notice.) I give you permission to steal any of my ideas for the sandwich lover in your life.
Prices do not include shipping unless otherwise noted.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, November 29, 2007 at 2:45 PM
Editor's note: We just can't resist bringing you more po' boy info. By happy coincidence, our Serious Sandwich columnist, Zach Brooks, happened to have this sautéed shrimp po' boy on the slate for this week's installment. —Adam
It takes a lot for a new sandwich to get recognized in New Orleans. It's already home to the Central Grocery Muffalatta, plus every type of po' boy imaginable (see Blake Killian's Po' Boy Festival post), including two that I've already written about here (Crabby Jack's duck po' boy and the soft-shelled crab po' boy I had Jazzfest).
Now you can add the sautéed shrimp remoulade po' boy to that list. Shrimp remoulade (like the one from Susan Spicer's new book) is traditionally served chilled, as an appetizer. But Ignatius Eatery, a one-year-old restaurant on Magazine Street uptown (from the owners of Rue de la Course), has taken the Crescent City classic, and turned it into a serious sandwich that is finding its place in a city already known for some pretty amazing sandwiches.
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Posted by Blake Killian, November 29, 2007 at 12:00 PM
Editor's note: This post marks the debut of our new New Orleans bureau chief, Blake Killian. When he's not out and about eating around New Orleans, he's blogging about what he's cooking up in his kitchen at Blake Makes. We're excited to welcome Blake aboard and eager to read all about what's going on in the Big Easy. He'll be along periodically to give us all the lowdown on what's going down in one of America's truly great food cities. —Adam
Unfortunately the idea of a po' boy festival never materialized in food-crazy New Orleans until a couple of weeks ago, so my wife and I were thrilled to attend the first annual Po' Boy Preservation Festival on November 18. The fest to "save our sandwich" was held on Oak Street, a funky lane in the Carrollton neighborhood near Tulane. When I say the street is funky, what I'm really saying is that it's small, narrow and just a little dirty (but isn't everything in New Orleans).
Because this was the festival's first year and I hadn't seen that much publicity for it, I assumed the Po' Boy Festival was going to be an uncrowded, low-key affair with maybe a few hundred people wandering in and out throughout the day. The lack of some of the city's best-known po' boy joints (Domilise's: Where were you and your amazing oyster po' boy?) from the festival guide also led me to believe turn-out might be low. I should have known, however, that where there are po' boys, any po' boys, hungry bellies are never far away. Add live music, free admission and 60 degree weather, and it's a wonder the fire marshal wasn't called in to clear us all out.
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Posted by Zach Brooks, November 14, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Who doesn't know what a burrito is? Taco, of course. Quesadilla? No problema. Torta? Well, they don't have those at Taco Bell! Even if you are familiar with the Mexican Sandwich that is the torta, (not to be confused with the Spanish egg "torta") you probably don't know the torta. Why? Because no two are alike, and every region/state/restaurant/bodega has their own version. Meat or no meat? Sliced avocado or guacamole? Black beans or refried beans? The permutations are endless, and you'd be hard pressed to the find the "perfect" torta. That is, until you
