You Say Sandwich, We Say Yeah!

I forgot about going to Clafuti's in Outremont on a couple of occasions this past summer when I was staying nearby for a few days. Their upstairs space with free wi-fi is nice when it's not too busy, but I was quite disappointed by these sandwich offerings, especially considering how expensive they were. A smoked salmon offering on a brioche bun was skimpy on the fish, and a bit dry on the bun. And this sad pressed ham and cheese croissant was not worth any of my time. Considering a new bakery opened up a few doors down with much better sandwiches and service, and dare I say, a far superior croissant, I bid adieu, Clafoutis.

There's really no way to have photographed and salvaged this sandwich from Serrano's. The last time I posted about this sandwich, I was dreaming of smashing a few of their creamy, fluffy potatoes inside the sandwich, and here the dream is. I will only get the sandwich this way from here on it. 

Man I love Reuben's in Montreal. From top to bottom we have the beef melt, the classic reubens, and the beef dip.  Surprisingly, I love the beef dip the most, as that jus is killer! Real classic steakhouse mood with all your favorite heart attack dishes, their sandwiches are hardly an afterthought to the bevy of entrees. In fact, I would say their sandwiches are the real stars. What I love most about the beef dip is how juicy the baguette already feels even before you dip it. This is a fine dip sandwich, which is hard to do. So many disappointments have been experienced before this one, which is perhaps why it's so elevated here. The reuben is A+, but in a town that does smoked meat every which way, I don't remember it as distinctly better or worse. The melt I will probably not get again, as I was just curious, but I'd rather take the dip any day. Mmm Mmm Reuben's! 

Absolutely no need for a face-off save my exhaustion at sandwich posting, there is a connection between these two clubs. As Bernie from Le Pick Up referred me to Lester's club offering one sandwich eating session last summer, I couldn't help but have my interest piqued from one sandwich fiend to another. I love a club sandwich. So classic. Not a lot of places do it anymore, and not a lot of them do it right. Lester's was pretty good. Sure, the turkey was a smidge on the dry side, but it tasted goooood. Below, Le Pick Up's club on the right, and never able to order just one sandwich there, it's probably the breakfast sandwich on the left. Love that little guy. The club at LPU is infinitely more substantial given entire slabs of grilled chicken breast, but while the shape of a club was there, the sandwich actually fell apart on me. Finding myself eating more chicken breast than bread, or lettuce, tomato, and bacon, it was tasty, but it was too much chicken, no...

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.

On the first day of snow in Montreal, and stressed out in getting to the train station just barely on time to catch the train, I emotionally ate this Mother Hen sandwich along with these bagged snacks back to Toronto. I seemed to remember this sandwich being quite good, and the VIA staff quite rude, but nothing new there.

Eyeing this Vie & Nam place in Halles de la Gare since my last visit through, I grabbed a grilled pork banh mi to go this time, which I will say, was a mistake. Making it hot and fresh, the bread does not fare so well once wrapped in its own heat bubble. This is a sandwich that you need to eat immediately, but rushing to do a bunch of other things before hopping on the train, the sandwich grease soaked through half the paper bag by the time I unwrapped it onto the train, and the bread unfortunately went soggy and then dried out. Still, I am willing to give it another shot though. Next time.   MB says: Way too dry.

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...

  I was suspicious when a vegetarian friend told me that Montréal did Vietnamese food better, and not just because she was vegetarian. I had tried first hand for myself years ago, and what I remember tasting was bland, watery, and a cruel joke. However, time moves on, and I am willing to try again, and I am glad I did.  Taken a stroll up to Saint Denis, there was no shortage of banh mi options, but Carla B led me directly to Hung Phat, and being ravenous and greedy, we each ordered a tofu banh mi AND an order of salad rolls. Normally that combination should be no problem, but I was unfamiliar with the heft of Hung Phat's servings, which had a weight and density that did not compromise its deliciousness. A substantial sandwich if I ever saw one, I could barely finish the salad rolls, but of course I did. Carla B saved the rest of her sandwich for later and passed on the rolls, and I hope she does not mind me saying this publicly. Our early friendship may have been fo...

A friend and I agreed the personality of the sandwich changes with each person who prepares it, and today we felt something was a little less than parfait with our Haloum Grille. Folks at Le Pick Up seemed stressed . The longest wait ever, and our lunches sat around too long. Temperature of the cheese is important to experiencing haloumi’s firm the texture and the release of its saltiness, and I prefer when it’s grilled directly before entering the sandwich.  Creamy spicy slaw of red cabbage, carrot, and kale soothes the major crust burn associated with the crispy multigrain toast. Ideally it’s the bread that should be soft and the haloumi that gets to shine as the crispy grilled champ that it is.   Nevertheless, we stayed for hours at the back picnic tables, chatted with the servers, overheard some drama about the evening closing procedure, broke a dish, and spilled a coffee. A good day. 

True to culinary fashion in queer circles, the grilled cheese sandwich at Montreal's Cagibi was accompanied by a mini salad with grated beet and pumpkin seeds. The soggy appearance of the side pickle, perhaps not so much, but a sign of things to come: from wholesome lesbionic salad to  crispy grilled  seedy bread, that bracketed an also soggy marriage of cheddar and mozza cheese, pesto and tomato. By soggy marriage don't mean to evoke anti-assimiliationist critiques of the institution, but I do mean complete integration into a unified and undistiguishable new flavour. This is probably satisfying, like porridge, or baby food, but not particularly refined or exciting. It does in a pinch, but other cooks, like my new fuck buddy, have revived this old standby far beyond the pleasure of easy and comforting.

Carla B first introduced me to Coco Rico's on St. Laurent. When I returned by myself this last time out, I went plain and simple for the rotisserie chicken sandwich, spiced and sauced in a crusty Portuguese bun. There's something about sitting at the counter staring into the mirror and watching yourself eat a chicken sandwich. It's like you get to enjoy the sandwich twice, and it is surprising how filling one of those sandwiches really are. If I ever learn French, I will learn to ask for "extra sauce".

I've been consistent. Every single time I venture to la belle ville, within an hour of arrival, I find myself sitting at the Schwartz's counter on St. Laurent, taking in the aromatic brisket piled high before me and salivating at the thought of that brisket between perfect slices of rye bread with a pickle, and maybe a bit of slaw, fries. Having your choice of lean, medium, and fat, I went down the middle road as usual and it's always the most satisfying bite of a sandwich. The mounds of meat just melt away between a bread that does not go soft, having the picture perfect balance of moisture. The trick to eating this is to keep it all together, so minimal handling is required and I recommend not even putting the thing down as it's all downhill from there. Sidenote: Now a man who loves meat so much that he bares visibly on his forearm a tattoo of a hamburger, told me that it's actually the steaks that are the real deal at Schwartz's. Unfortunately, I can never re...