RELISH... AGAIN!!!

Rebecca and I got take out from Relish (Menaul, west of Wyoming) again today. This place is just so awesome that I can't stay away. Today I decided to try something new, which is unusual for me. Usually I find something that I really like at a place and stick to it. If you really like a dish from a restaurant and you order something else, you're just setting yourself up for disappointment. The new dish is rarely as good as your favorite entree. However, I have mixed feelings about today's decision. I went with the Spicy Muffaletta, which was really good, but I don't think it's as good as the Cubano. On the other hand, I did eat the entire thing, so I must have liked it.

The name Muffaletta comes from the name of the bread that the sandwich is served on. It's a circular shaped loaf that is very similar to focaccia bread. I'm pretty sure that the sandwich originated in New Orleans, but I may be wrong on that... The Spicy Muffaletta at Relish is made up of provolone and swiss cheeses, genoa salami, maple ham, sweet and spicy coppacola (or Gabagool if your name is Tony Soprano), pepperoni, artichoke tapenade (this is a variation of the olive salad that distinguishes the sandwich as a "Muffaletta") and garlic-chile sauce served on muffaletta bread.

Relish is great at taking a classic sandwich and putting their own delicious spin on it; the Spicy Muffaletta is no exception. It's flavor is a little rich, so don't expect to eat the whole thing, unless you like feeling sick at your desk the rest of the afternoon. It has tons of green olives on it, so if you're like Rebecca and don't like olives, this sandwich is probably not for you. I've been to Relish about five times now and have never been disappointed with my meal. I definitely recommend it.

The Formal Sandwich

At what moment does a sandwich transcend it's genre to become something more? At what point does a sandwich become a meal that you can eat on an anniversary or eat on a first date without embarrassment? It's not very often that you come across a sandwich of this nature, but when you do it's a bit like seeing a falling star or watching a dog walk on it's hind legs. It's something to be celebrated.

Last Friday, Rebecca and I closed on our new house and a celebration was in order. I put on my least wrinkled button-up shirt, my nicest pair of Vans and we headed to Nob Hill Bar & Grill. This restaurant prides itself on putting a new take on bar/diner food. Two of my favorite menu items are the Buffalo Calamari (fried calamari tossed in Buffalo wing sauce) and the Buffalo Meatloaf (homemade meatloaf made with real Buffalo instead of beef). If you were to describe these two dishes to Jessica Simpson (with their multiple meanings for the word Buffalo and the mention of other types of animals) it would cause her head to explode.

But on this night, I'm not here for entrees that will cause the demise of Jessica Simpson. I'm here for one reason and one reason alone; the Kobe Burger. The cheeseburger at Nob Hill Bar & Grill is no ordinary cheeseburger. First off, it's made with Kobe beef instead of just ground beef, which is like comparing a ribeye to bologna. It's served on a French roll with cheddar cheese and served with your choice of two toppings. This is the part where you let your imagination take you where it may. With choices ranging from the ordinary (green chili, avocado, grilled onions) to the more exotic (fried egg, homemade guacamole, foie gras) there's something for everyone.

To a non-sandwich addict, I must have looked like Paul Giamatti's character in the movie Sideways; drinking his prized wine while eating fast food. But as I sat there with the love of my life, enjoying what might be the best hamburger that I've ever tasted and sipping on a $65 bottle of Chianti, I was thinking to myself: 'this is about as good as it gets'. The guy across the aisle from me (with his expensive steak and shinny black shoes) was probably looking down on me, but to me, it doesn't get much better this: dinner with your best friend, a comfortable pair of Vans and a top notch Sandwich.

Two Fools Tavern

First of all, sorry for the poor image quality. The iPhone is great for many things, but indoor pictures at night is not one of them. This beautiful creature is the "Babe in a Bun" from Two Fools Tavern. It's my second favorite sandwich from there. I decided not to go with my favorite (The Perky Turkey) because almost every sandwich that I've talked about so far has had green chili and I don't want to typecast myself as only a green chili sandwich lover. As long as there is meat between two slices of bread, I'm a fan.

Two Fools is a great place to go any night of the week, but it's my favorite place to go to after indoor soccer games. All of our games are on Tuesday nights and usually pretty late in the evening. It's pretty much impossible to play indoor soccer within four hours of eating a meal, so I usually wait to eat dinner until after the game. I've made this mistake a few times and it usually ends with me puking between a Civic and a Subaru in the parking lot, which is not a pretty sight. Two Fools is just a few blocks from where we play, so it makes for the perfect post-game meal. Within minutes of arriving at the bar, my thirst is quenched with my after game ritual of a pint of ice water and a pint of Boddington's; double-fisting at it's finest. Two Fools is a hot spot for post-game drinks. Evenings are the prime time for softball and rugby teams, while Saturday afternoons belong to the Ultimate Frisbee players.

After a pint and a half of Boddington's, I've had enough with the foreplay and it's time for what I really came for... a Sandwich. The Babe in a Bun is made of slow roasted pork smothered in Guiness Barbecue sauce (yes, that's right, I said GUINESS Barbecue sauce). It's topped off with an apple coleslaw. When I first spotted this sandwich on the menu, the slaw put me off a bit. "How could apples taste good on a BBQ sandwich," I asked myself. I ordered it anyway and to my surprise, it was the perfect mixture of crunch and sweetness to counter the the spice and tang of the barbecue sauce. All of this is served on toasted French bread and your choice of fries, coleslaw or potato salad. The fries and the potato salad are both amazing, but if you're in the mood for something a little different, substitute a cup of Guiness stew for your side. It's worth the $1.50 up charge.

The art of the breakfast sandwich

If you lived in ABQ in the 90s, you've had a hamburger from Rex's. What you might not know is that Albuquerque's favorite hamburger joint that mysteriously disappeared is back... well, kind of. Busbster's (San Pedro and Montgomery) is the new restaurant from the former owners of Rex's. The menu is exactly the same and they even kept a lot of the decorations from the old restaurant. The burgers are amazing, but a lot of people don't realize that they serve breakfast too (when I went to pick up my order this morning, I was the only person in the whole place).

Rebecca and I are both huge fans of their Texas Sandwich. It's your choice of ham, sausage or bacon (Bec prefers the sausage and I prefer the ham), cheddar cheese, green chili and an egg that's not quite over easy, not quite scrambled. It's more like they just throw the egg on the skillet, breaking the yolk and let it cook that way, creating a marbled masterpiece of white and yolk. All of this is served on two slices of buttery Texas toast. There's definitely an art to making a great breakfast sandwich. You can go anywhere and find these same components in a different version of the same sandwich, but very rarely do they come together as perfectly as the do in the Texas Sandwich from Bubsters'.

http://rexsburgers.com/

Relish might be my new favorite sandwich spot

There isn't one thing that I don't LOVE about Relish (Menaul, just west of Wyoming). From their heavily tattooed and extremely friendly staff, to their amazing sandwiches and sides, you can't beat Relish. We went there for lunch today only to find out that this amazing sandwich shop has gotten even better. They now serve beer and wine. They serve both white and red wines and for the beer, they serve Fat Tire, Sierra Nevada, Session & Stone IPA by the bottle. No crappy beers for this fine establishment.



Rebecca and I both had the "Cubano", which is their version of a Cuban sandwich. The sandwich starts with a really buttery, thin French bread. The bread is topped with chipotle rubbed pork, honey ham, Swiss cheese, long strips of thinly sliced dill pickles and finished off with a cilantro mayo. The sandwich is served hot with a choice of either potato salad, pasta salad or cole slaw. It's a pretty big sandwich. I managed to finish my whole sandwich, but Rebecca had about half of hers left.



I definitely recommend Relish and the Cubano sandwich. It gets super crowded at lunch, so make sure you call in your order ahead of time or be prepared to wait at least 20 minutes for your food.

http://www.relishsandwichshop.com/

Confessions of a Sandwich Addict: Intro

This blog is dedicated to my love for sandwiches. To me, a sandwich is the most complete meal that you can ever have in hand-held form. You've got your carbs in the bread, your protein in the meat and cheese and your vitamins from the veggies. It truly is the perfect food. I've always loved sandwiches, but I think my appreciation for putting love into making a sandwich came from working in the sub station at Dion's when I was in high school. I was the fastest sandwich maker at Dion's, so they would always put me on that station on Friday nights, which were our busiest nights. Just being fast wasn't enough though. Each sandwich had to be made perfectly. My goal was to make the sandwiches as fast as I could, but at the same time for them to look and taste perfect.

I've often said that if money was no issue and I could have any job of my choice, I would choose to open a sandwich shop on a beach somewhere. I've imagined the kinds of sandwiches that I would have on my menu and two sandwiches always seem to be at the very top of my list.

The first sandwich is called "The Sheep Herder". I've had a few different versions of this sandwich, but I think the first time I ever had it was at The Sandwich Company on Candelaria and Carlisle. It's made up of pastrami, green chili, mustard, provolone cheese, diced tomatoes and lettuce all wrapped in a tortilla. You put the pastrami, green chili, mustard and provolone on the tortilla and wrap it up like a burrito, making sure to tuck in the ends to not let the mustard and juices poor out. You wrap the sandwich tightly in foil and place it on a cookie sheet in the oven for about 15 minutes at 400 degrees. You want the cheese to melt completely and the tortilla should be slightly crispy on the outside. Once you take the sandwich out of the oven, you unwrap it and open the tortilla. Now is when you put the cold lettuce and tomatoes in and roll the sandwich back up. It used to be a family tradition to make these sandwiches on Christmas Eve (weird thing to eat on Christmas Eve, I know...), so they always remind me of Winter, but these sandwiches make an excellent meal anytime of the year.

The second sandwich is quite possibly the most delicious sandwich that I've ever had the pleasure of eating. It's called the "Stormin' Norman" and to my knowledge is served exclusively at Ned's on Rio Grande and I-40. This sandwich is enormous, so make sure you come hungry. The Stormin' Norman is comprised of ham, roast beef and pastrami topped with provolone cheese and green chili (sliced NOT chopped). It's served on pita bread and cut into four triangle shaped sections. Each section is garnished with a slice of green chili and a green olive, held in place by a toothpick. It comes with mustard and mayo on the side, but you won't need them. The natural flavors of the meat, green chili and cheese are more than enough to satisfy. The sandwich is served hot. On a perfect Stormin' Norman, the pita bread should be lightly toasted and the cheese should be slightly melted, but not completely. The one thing that I usually don't like about sandwich shops is they don't serve beer. However, this is not a problem at Ned's because it's also a bar. If you're ever in the area, I definitely recommend checking this place out.

I plan to update this blog regularly with posts and pictures of the delicious sandwiches that I come across.