You Say Sandwich, We Say Yeah!

Nowhere else in the world have I visited where the slab of breaded chicken or veal sits soaked in marinara on a round crusty bun. Usually hot or sweet peppers accompanies, with additional options of mushrooms, cheese, and onions. I have tried as many of these sandwiches as possible in the city, but more of them keep cropping up. Here is the latest batch, with some additional thoughts on their origins and varieties: Pictured above is a chicken sandwich from Bitundo's, located in Little Italy, Toronto, on a side street near the Monarch Tavern. I got mushrooms and cheese as my extras, and ate it on a frosty night in mere seconds. Lots of walk in pick ups for pizza were happening, which is pretty good business considering it sits directly across from another pizza + sandwich joint, San Francesco's. And while Bitundo's is more modest in appearance, their breaded meat offering was far more appetizing than the disaster I once had at SF's. While pizza seems be their big bu...

A birthday feast at Mamma Martino 's was not complete without multiple orders of garlic bread and house salad, and of course, a pizza pie, but as it was a special day, I also ordered the chicken parm sandwich, because I needed to know. The meat was tender and delicious, and I would definitely try the eggplant and veal in future orders, but it's hard, because all those other things also needed to be ordered, so maybe I will have to wait until my next birthday. It was also on Halloween when we went, and the haunted house at the owner's house was truly a magical, amazing time. The people at Mamma Martino's know how to have a good time, and whether he was earnest or not in inviting us back in the summer for a pool party, we may just show up anyhow.

Another sandwich bar downtown and this one had a line up. Hubbub Sandwich Bliss . Each sandwich has the basics and you can select from basic choices (pork, turkey sausage, veggie, or prawn). There is also the daily special, which is what I went for in the chicken parmigiana. The decor was slick, with a hand drawn sandwich of how a perfect sandwich is assembled. Apparently the two guys behind Hubbub initially wanted a sports bar, and so, what does this all mean for the sandwich itself? Coming on a long skinny crispy baguette, this is basically a fancy hoagie. It's over priced for what it is, but it's satisfying for the standards of metro Vancouver. The parmigiana was okay, a bit dry and weird in such an elongated format. The bread was good, and I would kill for a Vietnamese sandwich or meatball daily special on this type of bread. Here's hoping.

A Hero sandwich is very American. Basically, a hero sandwich comes on an Italian submarine, so, when you get the chicken parm hero, you're getting a venerable slab of crusted chicken in marinara sauce on a bun the size of your arm. Yes, it was amazing and delicious with every mouthful, but I will also share that I got sick later that night. Perhaps I wasn't ready to eat an entire chicken in sandwich form, or that the sauce and cheese were a bit too rich to go in one sitting, but whatever the case, I have no regrets. This is what one of my dining companions had, the Meatball Hero. I took a big bite. And yes, I would do this all over again too. 5th Avenue Diner , where you can still get a cup of homemade soup for under $2!