Between the Bread

Sports and sandwiches go hand in hand — literally. So naturally, ESPN is hosting Fanwiches contest to discover America's greatest sports-inspired sandwich. Ike's Place has two sandwiches in the running: the Matt Caine (roast beef, salami, turkey, mozzarella sticks, Ike's dirty sauce, Ike's godfather sauce, avocado, and championship onion rings) and the Jim Rome, one of my personal favorites, pictured below.

The delicious Rome, made with turkey, avocado, cheddar, and red pesto, is one of the most conquerable sammies in the contest. Which is precisely why you should vote for it. Sports, after all, are about passion, and it's much easier to feel passionate about a well-made, delicious sandwich than a mere exercise in excess. Consider the The Adam Emmenecker Challenge from Des Moines, currently in the number one spot. It includes five pounds of sandwich — pork tenderloin, Angus steak burger, Texas brisket, apple wood bacon, and fried cheese, finished with buffalo chicken tenders and fries — that customers must eat in 15 minutes. Ugh.

Ike's Place, on the other hand, knows how to make excessive sandwiches (like the Matt Caine) that still sound and taste delicious. So go Ike's, and go vote!

Everybody loves sandwiches, but this year more than ever, sandwiches were everywhere. I could barely step away from my blog without missing some piece of breaking sandwich news. And what weird news it was. Here are the top 10 sandwich news stories of 2010.

1. Blimpie sandwiches sued for not being meaty enough
2. The rise of sustainable sandwich making
3. Chef creates a $176 cheese sandwich
4. Denny's creates a $4 fried cheese sandwich
5. Underground grilled cheese maker delivers on the DL
6. Carl's Jr. tests a footlong cheeseburger
7. Candwich sandwich in a can named in SEC lawsuit
8. Man dislocates his jaw eating giant sandwich
9. Three words: Selleck waterfall sandwich
10. And the biggest sandwich story of 2010: KFC debuts the Double Down

Source: Flickr User Daves Cupboard

UPDATE: As of last night, Ike's Place is closed, for real this time. Apparently the late-night farewell had folks waiting in line until the wee hours. I wish Ike the best in finding a new location in San Francisco soon!

I really didn't think this would happen, but apparently the NIMBYs of this city are uglier and more self-involved than I could even imagine. As of today, Ike's Place is being evicted from its cozy nook in the Castro.

By 5 p.m., San Francisco's favorite sandwich shop will be forced to shut its doors, after grumpy neighbors complained that it was basically too popular. I just cannot understand why we would want to chase out a successfully, locally owned business that's guilty of nothing but bringing people to the neighborhood and, I guess, smelling like food — 'cause, you know, that's so rare for a restaurant. Ugh. I really don't really know what else to say. I just hope Ike's can find a new home where they are appreciated. A moment of silence for Ike's Place. UPDATE: A Between the Bread tipster who just stopped by Ike's says the business has at least one more day, because the court mistakenly evicted Ike, not Ike's Place LLC. Does anyone know if this is true?

Ever since I tasted Al's Beef in Chicago, I've been saying that Italian beef sandwiches would make a killing in San Francisco — especially in North Beach. If only I'd gotten into the Italian beef business sooner.

This week, Tony's Coal-Fired Pizza & Slice House opens on Sutter and Union, selling pies and sammies to go, including seven kinds of Italian beef sandwiches, all made with slow-roasted meat cooked in garlic and Italian herbs in the coal ovens. For dessert, another Chicago staple: Italian ices. Better yet, it's open until 11 p.m.

Tony already made a name for himself with Tony's Pizza Napoletana, so he probably knows more about running a restaurant than I do. At least my loss in sandwich riches is a gain for San Fran's sandwich scene.

I kid my brother that his sole criteria for evaluating a restaurant is by its mozzarella sticks — really, are mozzarella sticks ever bad? When I saw this news about Denny's new Fried Cheese Melt sandwich, I thought about having my bro drive to Denny's to write a review.

Part of Denny's new value menu, the Fried Cheese Melt consists of four fried mozzarella sticks, plus American cheese, on two slices of sourdough bread, grilled and served with a side of marinara sauce. It sounds a little gross, yet when the persecuted Ike's Place puts mozzarella sticks on a sandwich, as on the Super Mario, it's yummy. From the looks of that photo, Denny's version worries me, though of course, neither sandwich is exactly light. Would you try a fried cheese stick sandwich?

I was really hoping that I'd never have to write about this Ike's drama again, after the beloved sandwich shop survived summary judgment in its ongoing legal battle — which is basically a lawsuit punishing Ike's for being so damn tasty and popular. But justice may not served after all.

Today, the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that Ike's faces eviction on Aug. 26. Apparently, owner Ike Shehadeh was originally granted a permit to run just a coffee store, not a sandwich shop.

The eviction was mostly prompted by the long lines and food smells that were bothering the neighbors. Unless the issue is resolved some other way — which is could might be — Ike's Place will have to relocate. I know Ike wanted to move to a bigger place, but being forced out probably wasn't his method of choice.

I hear you can get just about anything delivered in New York, including, apparently, a hot grilled cheese in a paper sack. According to a story in today's New York Post entitled "He's making a gouda living," an underground chef in the East Village is taking orders via text message for freshly griddled grilled cheese sandwiches, delivered on street corners.

Identified only as "Ronnie" out of fear of the health department, the shady sandwich maker says,  "I feel like a drug dealer because I'm handing people a paper bag and they're handing me cash." Ronnie charges $5 to $7 a sandwich. You'll have some cash leftover if you want to visit the underground lobster roll dealer.

Given, grilled cheese sandwiches are addictively good, but they're also ridiculously easy to make at home. Had I known they had such street value, I could have turned a serious profit after our great grilled cheese off. So what's your take on Ronnie: great idea or ridiculous gimmick?

I was in Seattle when the Candwich news hits, so I figured I was too late to cover it. But since then, about seven different people have emailed me about it, so I figure I should weigh in!

The Candwich is just what it sounds like: a ready-to-eat sandwich in a can. The cleverly named but ill-conceived product made news last week when an SEC lawsuit accused Utah investment manager Travis R. Wright of pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into Candwich R&D when he was supposed to be putting investors' money in high-return real estate.

Funny, just the other day I was at Safeway, remarking on the Lean Cuisine frozen sandwich meals and wondering just how lazy you have to be to eat a frozen sandwich. Then came the sandwich in a can.

Remarkably, Candwich has a website and everything, so perhaps it's only a matter of time before I can buy some for my earthquake kit.

Is it a burger or a sandwich? Or merely a monstrosity? In Santa Ana, CA, Carl's Jr. is testing a new footlong cheeseburger, which Food Beast suggests is an attempt to generate some Double Down-like buzz. It's basically a sub sandwich on what sounds and looks like subpar bread, with multiple burger patties as the meat filling.

I'd argue that this is more of a sandwich than a burger. Like a patty melt, it uses hamburgers inside another sandwich shape, as opposed to a hambuger, which is its own defined thing. What do you think? And would you try it?

Photo Source: Food Beast