You Say Sandwich, We Say Yeah!

The way they taunt you from every corner bakery . . . . . . Made a mistake and got one from an upscale bakery. Worst sandwich offering in a week . . .   . . . But recovered by buying all the sandwich ingredients at a small market for a fraction of the price including some tomato and onion to kick it up a notch, plus smoky bacon chips! 

Because McDonalds was not yet open, we had to eat at the airport. One last dip into Portuguese style sandwiches of breaded veal or chicken, a salmon sandwich was also picked up, and some unidentifiable sandwich that was not breaded meat was also purchased for variety. I ate the breaded thing, and the other two were for Millie on her journey. She later said the salmon was also bad, after a bad unidentified earlier offering, but my context appropriate breaded meat offering was just fine. I recall fancy plastic seating overlooking a few airport shops, and feeling very 60s Mod, I sat there nursing these sandwiches in my fatigue zone.

Stopping into Hung Phat for a farewell late lunch and to load up for the train home, Millie Burger and I ordered three different banh mi's, a steamed pork bun, and an order of salad rolls, thinking that would be enough. Our crucial mistake was ordering three different types of sandwiches, as we then suddenly had to try them all. Also, having not eaten all day, we devoured everything like animals.  I think by then, a long line up had formed, and I had to go next door to the supermarket to pick up another sandwich for the train, a fourth banh mi, which was not as good, but what can you do about it.

  Probably one of the cutest vacays I have had in a while, a stop into Sugar Moon Farm lured me to stay in Pictou County, and I am sure am glad we did! Known for using regional ingredients farmed and raised and milled nearby to shape its seasonal menu, we caught the tail end of summer, sharing plates of sausages, pancakes, and breakfast sandwiches, all slathered in their famous sugar moon maple syrup. Using heirloom grains for their bread, presumably from their supplier at Speervile , the fluffy solid top and bottom of this breakfast sandwich was more griddle cake than crumpet, and yet, hearty like a biscuit. We didn't have time to walk the grounds as a ferry needed to be caught, but I will have to make my way back someday. Someday.

The third and final stop of the MB sandwich tour July 2016, Mtl ended at Wilensky's. A place I have seen on various food channel shows, the light lunch counter serves primarily the "wilensky special," a fried bologna sandwich with or without swiss or cheddar cheese and mustard.  Seemingly nothing to sneeze at, the crispy round bread is really comforting to bite into, making this ultimately a comfort food. Warning us that we could share one special, but that they won't cut it, we took turns biting through the tower of fried bologna and chopping down the sour pickles and a fresh cherry soda. The bread remains hard to define, not a regular bun, or like two bottom patties of a corn or egg based recipe, it was more of a shell than a bun.  Overhearing the counter conversation, which I'm sure they have said over and over again, this will be the last generation of Wilensky's running the counter, and I'm just very appreciative that I got to try this li...

The smell of Serrano's roasted potatoes and chicken is intoxicating. If I wasn't on stop #2 of a sandwich tour with MB, I would have ordered a plate. Instead, we opted for a chicken sandwich, dark meat, lettuce on the side. The size of the crusty bun is respectable, but the filling was a bit lacking. From seeing the woman behind the counter pull apart the meat with her knife and fork, I wish I could have had a smaller bun or more meat. One of our dining companions opted for the breast meat, and her sandwich was twice as thick. I am left with thoughts of whether I could have doubled down on the dark meat, or perhaps I should have gone with my instinct of getting the plate, with potatoes, with a bun on the side, and assembling my own chicken plate sandwich, with a few of those potatoes smashed into the sandwich as its own creamy layer.

This photo makes me blush. As stop #1 on a mini sandwich tour with Millie Burger,  Lester's is for sure a contender in the Mtl smoked meat sandwich race and the crowd is nowhere near as annoying as other places. The rye bread was notable for holding together under such duress. Salty and soft, we should have ordered pickles. Next time, I'm trying your club sandwich and hot dog Sulfites be damned.

So I have to admit, I had never been to Le Pick Up before. I tried once, many years ago, but it was too busy. Waiting in line for a sandwich is outrageous. It turns out the owners feel the same, as since those heydays, Le Pick Up has also closed on Sundays because it was just too busy. They consciously decided to close shop on their busiest day, because sandwiches are not about rushing. So sauntering down one day with Mille Burger leading the way, we had the mission to try as many sandwiches as possible in one go. Standing in line with Jaime Lannister behind us, we ordered a breakfast sandwich, a grilled haloumi, and a faux pulled pork to share with a spruce pine soda as a chaser. First: the breakfast sandwich/dep dej. Hearty multigrain bread to start the day, a fresh fried egg sits on top of bacon and some ruffage. The kicker is the chipotle mayo, a move I have only ever seen out East, where of course a bit of spicy mayo is what every morning bite needs. While we were su...