In honor of QA testing today, the company treated us to sandwiches from the much hyped American Grilled Cheese Kitchen. Apparently they were a little backed up; it took three hours to get our sandwiches! Tasty but . . . I mentioned it's a grilled cheese, right?
I ordered the Moscone: fresh mozzarella, fontina, roasted tomatoes, basil-lavender pesto, and kalamata olive tapenade.
Though I've been to the famed Tartine Bakery a few times, until last weekend, I'd never had its sandwiches. I've made a Tartine sandwich recipe at home, and now I've had the real deal, times three. These are no dainty French sandwiches but rather two-handed handfuls, cut into thirds, with each third the size of a normal half sandwich. Commence the virtual face-stuffing by clicking on the gallery below.
Rarely do I visit my parents in Pensacola without stopping off at Target. So when my mom told me a new sandwich place called Roly Poly had opened across the street, I felt obligated to go. Founded in Atlanta in 1996, Roly Poly specializes in wrap sandwiches, cold rolled or hot pressed, and has stores in 24 states. Remarkably, this was the first I'd heard of it.
The place was buzzing around noon, and what it lacked in atmosphere (pretty standard healthy fast-food shop) it made up for in choices. The regular menu includes more than 15 cold sammies (including a Cobb salad roll and a basil cashew chicken, to name a few) and even more hot ones. The hot rollups looked and sounded better, so that's what we got.
My mom ordered the Santa Fe chicken (chicken breast, melted jalapeno jack cheese, plum tomatoes, onion, and ranch dressing with a side of salsa), which was a little bland; we both agreed the salsa left something to be desired. I got one of the turkey wrap specials (pictured) with brie and swiss, honey mustard, spinach, mushrooms, and tomatoes, which was far more flavorful.
I'd deem Roly Poly a good option for healthy fast-food sammies, though the menu seems hit or miss. That said, I'd be willing to experiment to find more hits. Anyone have any favorites?
The muffuletta is an inspired sandwich — and inspiring, in the case of Schlotzsky's. The fast-food sandwich chain was founded by Don and Delores Dissman after the couple tasted a muffuletta at an Italian grocery store in the French Quarter — most likely Central or Progress. They called their version The Original and made it the only item on the menu at the Austin, TX, sandwich shop they opened in 1971.
The Dissmans' eight-inch sandwich featured genoa and cotto salamis, smoked ham, red onion, lettuce and tomato, black olives, mustard and herb dressing, and melted cheddar, parmesan, mozzarella cheeses. It was the size of a Frisbee and, fittingly, served on one. The Dissmans named their restaurant Schlotzsky's, just because it sounded funny, punctuated by a simple slogan: "One sandwich. It’s that good."
The Original developed an enormous following among students at the nearby University of Texas, and a few years later, Schlotzsky’s started expanding into franchises. It’s now a full-fledged fast-food chain in 35 states (with lingering infamy from a 2004 bankruptcy filing) and it has long since moved beyond the single-sandwich menu. The Original now comes in three sizes, with turkey and ham versions, alongside several other round sammies and pizzas.
The muffuletta's influence on The Original is obvious: The seeded sourdough bun has the same springy consistency as muffuletta bread. The buttons of black olives together with Italian dressing function like olive salad, while crunchy lettuce keeps the toasted bread from turning everything into a melty mess. Essentially, Schlotzsky’s is serving the most successful muffuletta spinoff to millions of quick diners and road trippers who’ve never even heard the word "muffuletta."
Source: Flickr User Code Poet
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