Praying for cheese at the Sacred Wheel

Nothing signals gentrification quite like a new cheese shop. Just off of Oakland's popular Telegraph Street on Shattuck Avenue is what appears to be the neighbourhood's first: the Sacred Wheel, established in 2011. Boasting many extremely pricey, locally sourced, and esoteric cheesy treats, the shop also carries all the things you'd want to see on a serious cheese tasting board, little pickles, chutneys, those little wheels of fig pate, olives, and such. I took note of the soft-ripened Bellwether Farms Crescenza, an almond, apricot and fig fruity thing, and a free sample. Just in case a 12-15 dollar hunk of fancy dairy goodness seems steep, thankfully they also have lunch, which is not too pricey at all. For 6 bucks I tried the 1/2 Grilled Cheese Trinity with Tomato and Pabst Blue Ribbon soup. The thinly sliced sourdough and three-cheese sandwich was pretty straight up, but the soup was a heavenly creation indeed. Tangy, lip stinging tomato goodness that balances the greasiness of the cheese and makes me take note of their changing daily soup n' sandwich specials for next time.

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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!

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