andersen's turkey, avocado & swiss

 

andersen's bakery, crocker galleria, market & new montgomery

Due to recent work obligations, I've been spending a fair amount of time in the Crocker Galleria, an exceptionally boring mall in San Francisco- its small size and lack of interesting shops make it more or less a glorified food court.  And being a glorified food court, the options for a good meal are pretty slim.  So when I went to Andersen's Bakery for lunch the other day, my expectations were low.  But there were already a few signs indicating that this might be one of the better lunch options in the mall: for one, they bake their own bread, and two, there were only about five sandwiches offered.  The small size of the sandwich menu gave me hope that there would be a few well thought-out sandwiches, unlike shops that try to offer everything but don't manage to do anything very well.  My hopes turned out to be well founded, because this was a very good sandwich.  It wasn't great by any means, but certainly better than I expected from mall food.  I went with the turkey, avocado & swiss on sourdough, one of the all-time classic sandwiches and fairly easy to do right.  Andersen's version was definitely enjoyable.  Curiously, both halves of the sandwich came individually wrapped- I don't know why, except perhaps because the slices of bread were long enough to make the sandwich too large to fit into the bag as a whole?  As for the bread, the sourdough was soft in the crumb, tough on the crust, and had a pleasant albeit unexceptional sour flavor.   The rest of the ingredients were able to pass muster as well; the turkey was tasty and somewhat dry (and not slimy like you might expect from cheaper sandwiches), the avocado was delicious in spite of it not being avocado season, and the swiss cheese had enough flavor to be noticeable (unlike other sandwiches we've had lately where the cheese was too subtle and got lost in the mix).  One aspect of this sandwich that I liked best was the sweet mayonnaise, a staple of deli sandwiches that is frequently omitted from the high-concept sandwiches I mostly eat these days.  All around, this was a comforting sandwich that definitely defied my low expectations for food from Crocker Galleria.

Roxie Special @ Roxie Food Center

roxie food center, san jose & havelock, san francisco

As much as I love places like Kitchenette/Pal's/Rhea's/etc, who make finely crafted artisan sandwiches with inspired yet unconventional recipes and (often) with organic and locally sourced ingredients (and I do love those sandwiches), the fact remains that sandwiches are by nature not meant to be fancy.  They are an everyday food, a comfort food, meant to be enjoyed by everyone regardless of economic status and financial resources.  While its great to take the concept of a humble sandwich and elevate it to something more extravagant, to me the archetypal sandwich is the kind that is done perfectly at Roxie Food Center.  I don't know the brand of meat they use or the farm where they get their produce.  This is a sandwich that has iceburg lettuce and American cheese on it.  Basically, it's not the kind of sandwich that you will typically see being feted in the pages of a NY Times feature on San Francisco or whatever.  No one waits in line for 3 hours to buy one of these sandwiches, and they aren't going to try to sell you a t-shirt at the register.  Instead, you are just going to get a simple and delicious sandwich, on a really good sourdough with jalapenos if you want them and American cheese.  Of course, in the end it doesn't really matter if a place is hyped to the heavens or under the radar, if the sandwiches aren't any good.  But Roxie Food Center seems to have it down pat, where it seems less like an art and more just natural.  Sometimes simple is best.

bummer sandwich

submarine center, ulloa & west portal, san francisco

There's a pretty strict rule regarding negative reviews here at bxb, which is that we don't write them.  Everyone has different things that they like, and talking trash about someone's hard work never appealed to me.  So far, in the year and a half that this blog has been going, following this rule hasn't been difficult.  Sure, I've had a few disappointing sandwiches, but nothing so awful I wasn't willing to give the sandwich makers the benefit of the doubt.  So it's not lightly that I say that Submarine Center sucks and that no one should eat there. But-

Submarine Center sucks and no one should eat there!  God, what a bunch of jerks these guys were.  Els and I made a special trek out to West Portal yesterday, because we'd heard so many good things about Submarine Center and wanted to try it out.  When we arrived, the line stretched from the counter in the front of the long, narrow shop, out to the front door.  Looking over the enjoyably old-fashioned menu, we decided to try their home-roasted turkey on one sandwich, and pastrami on the other.  We reached the counter and placed our order, and then followed the couple that had ordered ahead of us to a second line leading to the cashier.  While it seemed like this line wasn't very formal- some people moved up to the front of the line when their order was called- we nevertheless waited patiently for our turn to pay.  When we reached the front of the second line, the man at the cashier gazed vacantly at me as I tried to explain what I was paying for.  I told him what we had ordered, asked for a potato salad, and pointed to the sandwiches on the counter that Els and I had been watching from the line.  "We ordered two sandwiches.... I think those ones are ours" I said, indicating the wrapped sandwiches.  At this point the man who made the sandwiches glared at us and asked, voice dripping with hostility, "You mean the ones I've been calling for the last ten minutes?"  I should point out that A) I wasn't talking to the sandwich maker, I was talking to the guy at the register, and B) I wasn't complaining, nor did I have any kind of attitude or frustration in my voice; I was just trying to communicate to the cashier which sandwiches I was paying for.  So the guy making sandwiches went out of his way to give us shit, for no reason.  I can understand that maybe there is a system at Submarine Center for paying for your sandwiches as they are called, but there's nothing to communicate this system to the customers, and neither Els nor I heard him calling our orders (we were standing in line basically in front of him, and he certainly didn't make any effort to make eye contact or communicate directly with us).  And we weren't complaining about how long the order had taken or anything else; we simply waited to order sandwiches, ordered, waited to pay for the sandwiches, and then got a load of this guy's shitty attitude for no reason.  By the way, I work a service job and have to put up with needy and rude customers all day, so don't think I don't know what it feels like to have to deal with a high volume of demanding customers.  In fact, I go out of my way to be polite to people working service jobs because I know that some customers can be a handful.  So in this case, the sandwich maker was being an asshole to us simply because he was an asshole and apparently it's totally OK to treat customers that way at Submarine Center.

Now I know that, if you are like me, you are thinking "So you had a crappy experience but what about the SANDWICH".  The sandwich was boring and plain and devoid of anything noteworthy.  The bread was dry and flavorless, the turkey was forgettable, the "secret sauce" tasted like the Submarine Sauce you can buy at Safeway (which in turn tastes more or less like Italian dressing).  If Submarine Center had charm I would have given the sandwich credit for being just an old-fashioned sub from a unpretentious sandwich vendor, but do you want to put up with people giving you shit just so that you can buy a bland sub?  I don't.  Els and I had made plans to come back and try out different subs while we were waiting to pay, but after experiencing their terrible brand of customer service, why would I ever go out of my way to go back to this place?

Oh yeah their potato salad sucked too.  Screw this place.

Hospital food BATTLE! Turkey burger vs Veggie burger!

This tasty battle took place at Kaiser Hospital in San Francisco. I was a little surprised to see a decent looking cafeteria with a grill, deli, and salad bar. The grill is open from 11am until 7:30pm Monday through Thursday and has a modified schedule Friday through Sunday that I can't remember. They have daily specials like any cafeteria but I was drawn to the grill.

It seems that every time I eat a sandwich I seem to be starving like no other. Above is the turkey burger which everyone around me was ordering and the cook had multiple patties on the grill. It smelled so good and I wanted to see what the whole fuss was about. I felt a little skeptical about the fries as I enjoy mine crispy and smaller cut or large wedges fried to perfection. I figured I would skip on the fries when a woman in scrubs encouraged me to get the fries. What the hell? I was hungry! I sat down and sliced the burger in half and popped open my can on coke. I normally avoid soda but I can't drink anything else but if I am having a burger. It's the American way!

I have to admit I was disappointed in the turkey burger. It was dry, as turkey often is, and I couldn't eat it with ketchup. I should have put more mustard and mayo on my burger but even then I don't know if it would have saved it. I usually avoid turkey just because eating it without stuffing feels blasphemous and brings back memories of painful Thanksgiving dinners I wish I could forget. The fries, too, were too soft for my liking. I sadly have to admit that I forced myself to eat this. I would not eat this turkey burger again!

Now this veggie burger was a delight! What I like about veggie burgers is that they can be very filling if the patty is made right. This one definitely is! I put on a generous amount of mayo and mustard on top to make sure it didn't get dry like the turkey burger and when I sliced my burger a little squeezed out on the side. It was very filling and satisfying and hit the spot (as I seem to say often) and is on the cheaper side at $3.25 before taxes. I didn't miss the fries (though I have yet to have the curly fries) and was really happy with what I ordered.

Now, I don't know why you would eat at a hospital over any other places in the neighborhood but there is plenty of good people watching to be had. There are the doctors, nurses, construction workers, security, patients, family, and friends of patients, too. I can also see as how this would be a total bummer place to eat since I have seen a couple people just sit around and stare at their food sadly. The fluorescent lighting isn't exactly mood lighting, either. If you're in the area, though, and don't feel like venturing to the Fillmore, Japantown, or the Inner Richmond or anywhere else in the area it's worth a shot just to say you have done it. It's located on the first floor to the right.

Also, how do you eat your burger? I learned to cut my burger in half by my friend Ciaron who learned this during a visit to Texas. I eat my burgers this way now and put a generous amount of ketchup on the side to dip the burger half into. It makes for a lot less messiness and it's good for the times when you're eyes are bigger than your stomach and you need to take the rest to go.

So, how do you eat a burger?

whoops

roxie food center, san jose & havelock, san francisco

"Oh man oh man oh man..... that was a GREAT sandwich.  The kid who loudly proclaimed 'best sandwiches in San Francisco!' when I walked into Roxie Food Center might have been right.  That sandwich was tremendous, both in size and quality.  Maybe the best dutch crunch I've ever eaten in my life?  And the pastrami!  So peppery, so unique.  God I can't wait to tell all of my friends on the internet about how AW CRAP I FORGOT TO TAKE A PHOTO

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

Piccolo Pete's Pickled Reuben

Walking into Piccolo Pete's was seemed like stepping into a picnic lover's armory. They seemed to have everything one could ever want for an indulgent day of eating stocked from floor to ceiling in every corner. There was no shortage in what they had to offer. A basket of bread towered on the deli counter, their deviled eggs consisted of three egg halves cupping an ice cream scoop of egg salad - even though I split one with AW, I was unable to even eat half - a long counter shelved multiple crock pots of soups, a wall was dedicated to the most well organized chip selection, and I can't even begin to talk about the drink selections (alcoholic and non).

I went wall-eyed, froze and chose the most basic sandwich I could think of, a Reuben. I should have been prepared for the what I got, after all, all signs pointed to over-the-top indulgence. The tang of the sauerkraut could not be enough, a layer of pickles had to be added for a bigger taste-y sourness. Or at least this is what I can assume, I would be remiss in my journalistic duty if I failed to admit I do not eat pickles and shortly after taking photographic evidence of my sandwich I passed them along to AW.

Once cleansed of pickles, my Reuben was ready to be devoured. Unfortunately, looking back, I believe the pickles were the key ingredient which set this Reuben apart from others, because in the end it was just a regular Reuben. This isn't to say that I would sway sandwich goers away from Piccolo Pete's. To the contrary, I think meat eating sandwich lovers need to experience this place for themselves! Set aside a day, because afterward one will want to revel in his or her bloated belly food-coma, grab a Cactus Cooler or broski and enjoy the meal in Piccolo Pete's cozy back patio.

Rhea's Deli: The Lexington, Hot? or Cold?

rhea's deli, 19th & valencia, san francisco

I took mine Hot!

... they gave me the option... it was cold... it was the right option.

Visually, it leaves a little to be desired, but I think the simplicity of a ham and cheese sandwich is, sometimes, all a girl really needs for comfort on a rainy day. Yet, really, this wasn't that simple of a sandwich. Melted swiss covered Boar's Head Black Forest Ham and Honey Maple Ham whose sweetness was complimented by the heat of Rhea's Sweet Pickled Jalapenos. A little extra kick of sweet and spice came with welcome taste buds from Boar's Head Honey Mustard. And the pickles, which I must admit I normally NEVER eat and I did pass most of them along to my eating buddy, wrapped this whole thing up with a punch of tang.

Also, I will admit I feel some of the ingredients advertised were left out of my sandwich. There were no roasted peppers or tomatoes in my or my eating buddy's half. Not to say that this bothered me. It's no longer tomato season and I must admit I greatly dislike out of season tomatoes. And, again, this was a simple sandwich and did not need extra frills of such things.

This was by no means a mind blowing sandwich experience, however, it was a great version of a classic.

the paul reubens

ike's place, 16th & sanchez, san francisco

Ike's Place's take on the reuben, the awesomely named "Paul Reubens", doesn't taste much like an actual reuben. I anticipated that fact before ordering this- after all, it did use italian dressing rather than russian, and perhaps more interestingly, "homemade poppy seed coleslaw" rather than sauerkraut (not to mention that it is served on dutch crunch, rather than rye). The sandwich was very salty in taste, and the italian dressing/dirty sauce gave it a very creamy flavor as well. Although I liked the coleslaw, it did taste very cabbage-y, and I missed the sour bite that sauerkraut brings to a reuben. The lack of the balance that sauerkraut would typically add resulted in the salty meat/creamy sauce overwhelming the sandwich. I felt very full eating this, very quickly. It was a pretty good sandwich, but not the best that I've had at Ike's.

fountain burger

peninsula creamery, high st & channing ave, palo alto

The Peninsula Creamery was my favorite restaurant when I was growing up, and is more or less solely responsible for my love of diners. While these days their 50's throwback style seems overly kitschy to me, I fully bought into it when I was a child and used to love staring at their posters, one avertising "green river", another depicting cows making donuts. Although they no longer serve my favorite milkshake (marble fudge ripple), I still enjoy eating at the Creamery with my family on special occasions. My longstanding favorite at the Creamery is grilled ham and cheese, but this time I went with the "Fountain Burger", which is like a patty melt. Served on toasted rye, the burger comes topped with melted swiss cheese, grilled onions, bacon, and dijon mustard. I think that this particular example had less dijon on it than it normally does, or that perhaps the dijon used to be served on the side? I cannot recall. But it tasted great, of course, and the fries were good too. And the milkshake, while not "marble fudge ripple" good, was great as well.

ariel's great idea

pommard deli, middlefield & loma verde, palo alto

Referred to by my family as simply "The Deli", Pommard is I think sadly overlooked by many Palo Alto residents. I've never really seen a busy day there before. It has changed a lot since I was a kid; previously, it was connected to the next door liquor store, and they didn't used to sell pizza. Nor, I think, did sandwiches used to come with french fries. But despite the changes they've gone through over the years, the sandwiches are still as great as they've ever been (my little brother, in particular, swears religiously by this deli, but I haven't been able to coax him into writing for the blog yet). Despite the availability of a wide variety of tasty sandwich options, I can never bring myself to order anything but "Ariel's Great Idea". It is a grilled chicken sandwich, topped with ham, melted swiss cheese, avocado, and a really good sweet mustard. As you can imagine, it's not the healthiest sandwich in the world, but then again, that's also why it's one of the tastiest. I'd really like to know what kind of mustard it is they put on this, because it kind of straddles the line between being dijon and being honey mustard. At any rate, it really ties the whole thing together, adding a necessary sweetness and balancing out the salty flavor of the ham and the savory flavor of the chicken. Perhaps the next time I go back I'll try something new, or coerce other members my family into writing about their favorites (my mom likes the roasted Mediterranean vegetable sandwich, my brother is particular to, I think, turkey and bacon). Pommard's also serves pizza, as I mentioned above, as well as roasted chicken and a full array of deli salads (although their deviled eggs aren't so hot). And one additional reason to check them out, if you are in the area, is that there is a Philz Coffee(!?) that recently opened next door.

turkey and swiss

village cheese house, town & country village, palo alto

Things have been kinda quiet around these parts lately! I myself have been experience some technical difficulties that have preventing me from updating recently. Those issues should be resolved soon, but until then, I have some sandwiches to write about from my home town of Palo Alto, CA. First up is this turkey and swiss from the Village Cheese House at Town & Country Village. Town & Country (or T&C) is located across the street from one of the two local high schools, making the outdoor mall a popular lunch destination. When I was in high school, my weekly food budget was five dollars, which meant that I could buy a one dollar lunch every day (plain rice from the chinese restaurant, or bread and dip from the grocery store (neither of these locations exist anymore)), or one five dollar lunch once a week. I didn't usually have the self control to save all five dollars for a single meal, but when I did, a sandwich from the Village Cheese House was one of my favorite lunches. The store used to be a gourmet food shop, featuring a variety of European cheeses and candies, and a wide selection of small-batch hot sauces. This meant that their sandwiches were made with top-notch meats and cheeses- and not much else. The "old fashioned" sandwich consisted of three slices of bread (or a roll), meat, cheese, pickles, and spread (a sweet mayonnaise and mustard combination). During the lunch hours, the Cheese House would have baskets of pre-made sandwiches up front, near a second register, to accommodate the student lunch rush. It was pretty fun to dig through the sandwiches looking for your ideal combination of bread and ingredients. The Cheese House remodeled a few years ago, reducing their floorspace and selection of foods, but seemingly expanding their deli. It doesn't have quite the same charm, but the sandwiches are still great. Its just too bad that they don't stock my old favorite candy anymore.

pastrami & swiss

george's bbq on 24th, 24th & capp, san francisco

This was the last sandwich I managed to get before departing from my dear, beloved San Francisco. George's BBQ on 24th is a place I first heard about on the exceptional Beer & Nosh, and I'd been curious about it ever since. Actually, I hadn't even ever set foot inside before this visit, despite the fact that I was living less that four blocks away from it while I was still in SF. George's immediately reminded me of another favorite of mine, Pete's BBQ at 20th and Mission. Pete's was responsible for the gentle aroma of roasting chicken that haunts 20th street, and its such a down-home, all-american, nothing-fancy-just-a-good-old-fashioned-hearty-meal eatery that I always want to salute and cry a single tear as I walk past. George's is kinda like that. No pretentions, no crazy dishes, just really honest and simple meals. The BBQ meats are the focus- on my sandwich, the veggies and cheese almost seemed like an afterthought. In fact, it seemed pretty funny to me that George's had gone through all of the effort to make their own pastrami, and that then they garnished the sandwich with some bland cheese and forgettable veggies. But of course, the pastrami was quite tasty, and that was the whole point. Unfortunately there are no options whatsoever for non-meat eaters here, so this joint is for meat-lovers only.

tom tom

mr. pickle's, 20th & south van ness, san francisco

The second day that JoJoJoJo and I were in SF, I had a gnarly hangover. The kind where you are certain that the sun is shining specifically because it hates you and wants you to suffer. So JoJoJoJo and I decided to tackle our mental impairments head on, pulling out every weapon in our arsenal to counteract the misery in our souls with positivity. We decided that old reliable stand-by, Mr. Pickle's, was in order. I practiced a little free-style walking on the way, stopping only to buy a little Animal Crossing charm outside the liquor store on 23rd and Capp. When we got to Mr. Pickle's, I decided I needed to try something new- and remarkably, this sandwich, the Tom Tom, was something I had never eaten. There are a number of factors behind this- I usually feel guilty about ordering anything with bacon (or I used to, anyway); and the menu at Mr. Pickle's has so many strange combinations that a turkey club just didn't seem exotic enough. But it turned out to be a great sandwich, much less intense than some of the other sandwiches at Mr. Pickle's, but certainly a worthy turkey club. We ate in the little park (Alioto? it has one of those old-timey SF names) that is usually full of drunks and hobos, but it wasn't too bad that day. The sunshine felt good and the sandwich elevated my feeble state from "critical" to "tolerable".

st. francis reuben

st. francis diner, 24th & york, san francisco

This was the first sandwich I got upon returning to SF for the first time since moving to LA. It wasn't the first time I'd gotten a reuben at St. Francis, but St. Francis makes awesome reubens. In fact, I could eat nothing but reubens every time I went to here, and I'd be pretty happy. The corned beef is very salty and good, there is plenty of dressing and sauerkraut, and the rye bread is always buttery and delicious. My only complaint is that this time that I went, I was told that they don't serve potato salad anymore!! What kind of self-respecting diner doesn't serve potato salad?!? St. Francis had particularly good potato salad too, so this is quite disappointing. At least their fries are good.

One night stand with a turkey melt

sherman's deli, tahquitz way & calle encilia, palm springs

I almost gave up my no red meet rule
when AW and I went to Sherman's.

how can I continue to resist
the pink succulence of pastrami?
and condemning myself to a life
void of soft, luscious corned-beef?
is white meat the one for me?

Sherman's turkey-melt sexily told me
'Yessssssss, I am made for you...'

moist, stacked meat tucked between
sweet, buttery rye,
swiss cheese melted to its creamiest,
dripping in beaver brand deli mustard
and coupled with a small sampling
of perfectly formed potato salad...

when it was all over
and this beautiful sandwich was gone,
my heart was broken
but my stomach was full.

I know we shall meet again, my turkey-melt lover, I know we shall meet again.

corned beef reuben

sherman's deli, tahquitz way & calle encilia, palm springs

anyone going to coachella this weekend? if you are going to be in the area and are a lover of sandwiches, I humbly suggest stopping by this deli. man oh man was this a tasty reuben. its kind of a weakness of mine that I always try the reuben when I go to a new deli- i'm sure i'm missing out on all kinds of great sandwiches- but I can't help it. and it in this instance, I don't regret it at all, because this was easily the best sandwich I've had in awhile. even though it was a monday afternoon, this restaurant was packed. and once JoJoJoJo and I were seated, we were confronted with what i'm now starting to suspect is a standard of good jewish delis- a menu with dozens of items available. and yet despite the crowd and the plethora of options, this sandwich arrived promptly and pipping hot. I'm not actually sure whether or not there was any russian dressing on this- if there was it was used sparingly- but it didn't really matter because the corned beef was so moist and delicious. the sandwich was so good that I didn't even eat a single cottage fry before I had eaten the whole thing.

pretzel bread is best bread

When it comes to eating premade sandwiches
I am usually hopeful but often let down
by those soggy french loaf, stuck meat and white american cheese
sandwich wannabies
shrink-wrapped and sold in grocery store chains' delis
typically they are gross...

This time, however, I was delightfully let
UP!!
This little sandwich is delicious!
It is turkey and swiss greatness,
with a garlic mayonnaise spread
descent spinach leaves
a dollop of gold mustard
and free roaming purple grapes

all complete on Pretzel bread?
what is this stuff -
well, it is the softest, chewiest,
delightfully the most pretzel flavored bread
I have ever tasted in my life.

and I love pretzels a lot.


Trader Joe's,
you brightened it up for me once again

hot pastrami and swiss

arguello's deli, arguello & cabrillo, san francisco

the aim of this blog is not sandwich criticism or comparison, but more just plain sandwich appreciation. so when I come across a sandwich that doesn't live up to expectations, it kind of leaves me at a loss. this is one of those sandwiches. its not that it was bad, per se- it just wasn't, you know, awesome. JoJoJoJo vouched for the hot pastrami and swiss at Arguello's, so I thought I'd give it a shot. but once again, I'd found myself at the deli counter well after the lunch hours, and frankly I don't think the guys behind the counter really have their hearts in it by five in the afternoon. as you can see, this sandwich is on sesame roll- that isn't by choice. it was the only roll they had left. I guess they must have their rolls delivered every morning, because otherwise I don't know why a grocery store would be out of rolls. as is also evident from the photos, this wasn't really stacked with pastrami. that's not necessarily a bad thing, but I think I prefer that the meat in a sandwich not be dwarfed by the bread or other ingredients. and finally.... this was supposed to be a hot sandwich, but it was more luke-warm. swiss cheese doesn't always melt very easily, but the cheese on this was hardly melted at all. it wasn't a bad sandwich, but I'm willing to bet that the same sandwich is a lot better if you show up during their peak hours.

ham and swiss on rye

delano's market, 23rd & south van ness, san francisco

I was feeling pretty mellow today, and felt like eating a mellow sandwich. in recent weeks, I've enjoyed an embarassment of fancy, high-concept sandwiches, nearly all of which have been great. but today I wanted something a little more old school. not a sandwich with a funny name or some kind of crazy sauce. just, you know, meat and cheese and some produce. and it occured to me that I had noticed that delano's market (RIP cala foods) had a pretty humble looking deli tucked away in the corner, and I had a bucket of change to feed to the coinstar machine at the front of the store. so after getting rid of my change, I stopped by the deli and got this sandwich. the woman behind the counter seemed like she was kind of bored, but she was really nice and I think did a pretty good job putting this sandwich together. and it ended up being exactly what I wanted- nothing fancy, just a really tasty sandwich. neither the meat nor the cheese were exceptional, just good, and there was plenty of tomato, which I appreciated. also, the sandwich had pickles and jalapeños and pepperoncinis, so it was pleasantly vinegary and a little spicy. I think maybe I'll go back and try a roast beef with muenster.

roast turkey sandwich

arguello's deli, arguello & cabrillo, san francisco

when the circumstances are just right, a roast turkey sandwich from the deli counter at the Arguello Market can be one of the best turkey sandwiches in the world. this is because they roast their own turkeys, in a giant rotating roaster. JoJoJoJo prefers the cracked pepper turkey breast (the kind that arrives at the deli packaged), but frankly I'm a little baffled by that, since that meat is available at pretty much every deli and there's nothing that special about the way Arguello's prepares their sandwiches. but to each their own sanwich.
the first time I tried this sandwich, JoJoJoJo had picked it up for me while I was doing my radio show at nearby KUSF. it was one of the most incredible sandwiches I had ever eaten- hot, freshly roasted turkey! on a sourdough roll, with all the right condiments!
but today, the circumstances were not quite right. I think perhaps I had arrived shortly after their lunch rush, because when I glanced at the preparation area behind the counter, I saw a sad, gristly looking pile of dark meat. like all of the fatty discards that were left over after everyone had gotten the good stuff. and that's what ended up on my sandwich. see, the thing is that when the meat is coming off of a freshly roasted turkey, timing is of the esssence, and today my timing was poor.
thats not to say this was a bad sandwich- it was pretty good. I could have used a stronger mustard, or sharper swiss cheese, but I understand that the turkey is meant to be the centerpiece of the sandwich. unfortunately for me, the turkey I ended up with today was not quite the best of the bird.