Lunch time mystery

I need to start taking better notes (or start taking some form of notes) to accompany these sandwiches as I am having a hard time remembering what was what and where.

Definitely a sandwich had at the office, I have been staring at this sandwich photo for five minutes, examining the quality of the bread to the melange of fillings to wonder what it is and where I got it from.

The bread seems of a higher quality than the usual suspects around my office, but the excess of what appears to be slaw and chicken make me wonder if this was something I had ordered for myself.

The mystery isn't so much a mystery as it was a mistake. One rainy day I popped into Piknik, a place I keep walking by endless times, but never trying. I was told they had good things, but I should have trusted my chalkboard instincts. I feel like a lot can be discerned from an establishment's sidewalk chalkboard menu, and their daily specials never ever spoke to me.

But alas, the soup drew me in, and to go with this sandwich I had a vegan curry squash soup that was terribly bland. The sandwich here is their take on a Vietnamese sandwich, and they failed on their cultural diversity assessment. The slaw was way too wet, but unflavourful with no crunch or acid to help it along. The meat was completely forgettable as I think it may have actually been ham and not the chicken it appears to be, but that will remain a mystery. The bread was its saving grace, but wasted in this combination and more of a hearty roll than a light baguette, which is key to a Vietnamese sandwich.

Comments

Monty’s Bakehouse wrap, Air Canada

I’d rate this wrap as strange. Its packaging created expectations of a more appetizing experience, which it was not. After a vastly superior egg salad sandwich from London Heathrow, I could not greet this airplane freebie with serious interest, but at least it was hot, and at least I could review it for this blog. Steaming contents were oozy and largely undistinguishable, but suggested some kind of red pepper or sundried tomato origins.

Specialty Sandwich, Amtrak train dining car

Advertised as the "Specialty Sandwich" on board the Oakland to Los Angeles Amtrak train, this $9.75 grilled cheese seems a safe vegetarian bet, just as a bagel and cream cheese does when faced with weird processed meat choices aboard the VIA Rail in Canada. The specialty allegedly features gruyere and smoked cheddar, however each cheese was tasteless, plastic, and greasy, cooling to reveal six slices of highly processed cheese product. The crisp, somewhat grainy bread absorbed cheese sweat from inside, completely obliterating any relief that the mustard or tomato could have provided, and was thoroughly saturated in a meaty residue from the grill on the outside. This sandwich leaves the kind of mouthfeel that a glass of water cannot wash away. Note: pack toothbrush in carry-on.

Kim Anh Subs, Calgary

It's no secret I'm a fan of the Vietnamese sub. Hell, they've prevented my vegetarianism . But I do enjoy the vegetarian option now and again, especially when it's warm marinated soft tofu rather than the shredded fake meat variety. In Calgary one weekend, a friend and I found ourselves stranded in the city due to a snow storm, so lounging around 17th Avenue, cold, tired, hungry, and near broke, we popped our heads into Kim Anh Subs where he had ventured once before. Offering a whole wheat sub bun option, Kim Anh's subs were a bit more expensive than what I'm used to for a sub of this style ($3.50 is my price range), but it's Calgary, so what can you expect.

You Say Sandwich, We Say Yeah!

Search This Blog