California Love

As an east coast girl, leisurely lunches, skateboards and shirtless men were practically supernatural phenomena to me. Yet, I now feel like an explorer who has just discovered uncharted territory - San Diego. Ponce de Leon should have searched for the fountain of youth in San Diego, year 2011. Maybe Doc Brown would have let him use his DeLorean DMC-12.

Not only does San Diego have surfer babes, perfect 75 degree weather and the best zoo in the country, it also has far superior sandwiches. Even though Care was getting married in 24 hours, she picked me up from the airport and we went straight to a little sandwich shop close to Pacific Beach. I can't even remember the name of it; it was definitely a woman's name. Betty's or Veronica's. Maybe I'm just thinking of the Archie's. Regardless, it was a standard sandwich shop, little tables with umbrellas outside. I ordered an 8" with capicola, ham, salami and pepperoni (not the healthiest choice), hot peppers, tomatoes, shredded lettuce, mayo and "special sauce" (thousand island?). The sandwich was toasted and served on a paper plate. We sat outside and as the California breeze played with our hair, we happily munched on our delicious sandwiches. I don't know if it was the bread, the meat, or my vacation mind that made that sandwich taste so good, but I swear, that was one of the best sandwiches I have ever had.

I should also give a shout out to the Sweet & Savory Café on Mission Boulevard. I got a couple sandwiches from here - the Brie, filled with oven roasted turkey, thinly sliced granny smith apples, imported brie cheese and a tangy cranberry mayo, and the Tri-Tip, coffee spice rubbed tri-tip, roma tomatoes, mixed greens, smoked gouda cheese and a roasted garlic mayo. Both sandwiches were fantastic, I even heard a few people in the café talking up the garlic mayo. The breakfast sandwiches looked really good too, unfortunately I just didn't have enough time to try one. I loved this place though. Grab a sandwich, walk out to the boardwalk, find a bench and watch the skateboarders cruise by you. It's a good life, but I do enjoy faster-paced Boston.

Lastly was the Bare Back Grill. Jill drove in from LA, and we ventured out to Pacific Beach for a good burger. Some new friends from the wedding raved about the Bare Back Grill and their New Zealand style burgers, so we decided to give it a shot. We both ordered the Kiwilango, recommended to us by our beautiful waiter (he could have told us to order scorpion tongue and we probably would have). The burger was made with 100% organic beef, blue cheese crumbles, fresh diced jalapenos (not the pickled kind!), lettuce, tomato, red onions, hot sauce, aioli and BBG sauce. And finally topped with crushed tortilla chips. I'm not sure what exactly the BBG sauce was made of, but it tasted a lot like a tangy BBQ sauce. The burger was outstanding, not quite up to R.F. O's standard, but still incredibly satisfying.

Oh San Diego, I’ll miss you. But I did get back to Boston just in time for lobster roll season.

/ˈbʌnmiː/

Looking past the suspicious exterior of the Super 88 (now known as Hong Kong Supermarket), the food court exudes eclectic charm and authentic Asian cuisine. Brightly colored chairs, haphazardly-placed tables and energetic college students create a lively environment centered around fresh, cheap Asian food. Walking around the bustling food court, you’ll find stands featuring fare from Thailand, Vietnam, China, Japan, Korea and India. Especially popular is the bubble tea shop called Lollicup. Although all the food looked amazing (including the pho and the noodles!), Div and I weren’t there for anything but the renowned banh mi from Pho Viet. We walked up to the stand for the third time in the last month, but this time we asked for our pre-ordered spicy pork banh mis. (A bit smarter this time, Div and I called ahead to order our Vietnamese sandwiches – highly recommended. The banh mis sold out at about 7 PM.)

Thinly sliced, marinated pork was grilled, stuffed into a soft, crusty baguette, and then topped with pickled vegetables. The carrots and cucumbers were cut lengthwise and garnished with sprigs of cilantro to give the banh mi the freshest flavor. The mystery sauce – resembling sweet, salty and spicy flavors – seeped into every corner of my sandwich and literally made my mouth water.

The best part? You get all this for just $3.50. The price can’t be beat, and although you have to travel all the way to Allston for it, you won’t be disappointed. Be sure to ask for your banh mi extra-spicy!

BEEF. It’s what’s for Dinner.

Literally, but let’s start at the beginning of the night. After venturing out to Allston to finally try Pho Viet’s banh mi, we were extremely disappointed when the woman behind the counter told us they were all out of sandwiches. This is the SECOND time this has happened to me. I promised Div I would give them one more chance, but come on, Tuesday night at 7 PM and you’re out of banh mi? Trying to think of sandwich places close by, we drove by Michael’s Deli (an Anthony Bourdain hot spot), only to find that it closes at 5:30 on weekdays.

I remembered a few friends telling me about the Brookline Spa, so we decided to check it out. Expecting a fancy, pretentious sub shop, we were pleasantly surprised by the casual, college-style deli. Although the other five customers in the shop were all dressed in gym clothes, this didn’t deter us from grabbing a six pack of Long Trail and skipping over the healthy options (salads, wraps and a section called “healthy choice sandwiches”). One board displayed a list of top 25 sandwiches, so we ended up choosing the Reuben and the Rajin Cajun.

Normally, I’d say it’s difficult to compare a hot sandwich with a cold one. In this case, I can easily say that the Reuben is miles better than the Rajin. The Reuben is served hot on marble rye bread with grilled corn beef, sauerkraut, Russian dressing and swiss cheese. The flavors come together pretty nicely, the sauerkraut and melted swiss cheese standing out in front of the other ingredients. The Rajin Cajun is served cold on a nondescript sub roll with seasoned roast beef, pepper jack cheese, lettuce and tomatoes. Oddly enough, the tomatoes are chopped into cubes instead of slices and placed right on top of the sub. Although a condiment lover, I was disappointed that the horseradish mustard overpowered the entire sandwich. Div pointed out that if you tried the roast beef by itself, you could taste the Cajun spice in which it had been seasoned. Unfortunately in the sandwich, the mustard completely took over all other flavors. Overall the sandwiches didn’t live up to their hype, but they were enjoyable nonetheless…especially with our Long Trails. I’m still intrigued to try the other 23 sandwiches on the Spa’s top 25 list, so if you have one that you live by, let me know.

Babes in Burgerland

After reading my 10 Things I Hate About You blog on 21A's sliders, my friends admitted that they had never even tried them. Appalled, I met them at 21A after work for sliders and beers. Here are some truly extraordinary (and preposterous) photos of them enjoying their first bites.

Busted!

Sandwich-eater spotted on the train to NYC!

Comfortably sitting on the train to NYC, Div and I heard a forceful crunch before the train had even left the station. Looking around anxiously, I knew I had heard that crunch before. It sounded just like a bite does when your teeth hit a crackly baguette filled with crisp lettuce formed around juicy tomato slices. I wish I knew what kind of sandwich he was eating. This led to a new game - "What kind of sandwich guy is he?". My guess was prosciutto and mozzarella, while Div's was tuna salad. (Her speculation was a bit skewed because she caught him watching Real Housewives on his laptop. Busted again!) Between inventing lines to the movies our fellow passengers were watching on their laptops, and the sandwich game, we were entertained for hours.

In the Heat of the Moment

Isn’t this a fantastic photograph? You can actually see the moment when Neel reached his peak of full intimacy with Benny. Oh come on, Neel is happily married (to a woman), and I’m referring to the Benny, Parish Café’s chicken banh mi (actually Ken Oringer’s innovation), served on a hard baguette with assorted vegetables and mint-coriander mayonnaise. The sandwich is paired with spicy purple cabbage slaw topped with tomatoes, fresh mint, Thai basil and cracked peanuts. The sandwich is delicious to say the least, but I do prefer their pulled pork with a papaya salad on side. I usually scoop up the delicious papaya salad, mingled with mint and peanuts, and throw it right on top of the pulled pork. The flavors are outrageous and the pork literally melts in your mouth. I'm actually craving one right now. Maybe with a frosty Corona to cure my post-Cinco de Mayo hangover.

I’ve tried the Mexican Meatball Sub also (Rattlesnake Bar and Grill), one day during my meatball obsession, and it was just okay. The menu makes it sound amazing – cilantro infused Mexican meatball sandwich with a chipotle and jalapeno au jus, pepper jack cheese, red onions, lettuce and tomatoes on a toasted baguette. Don’t be fooled. You’re definitely better off trying something else on the menu.

Parish Café is such a creative idea for a restaurant, featuring gourmet sandwiches created by chefs around Boston (and the Greater Boston area) - almost makes you wish you had the idea first!

And the vote is in..

http://www.isawrapasandwich.com