SandBookWich

A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain

Sandwich Gal — Sat, 18 May 2013 00:57:30 +0000

This collection of short stories by Robert Olen Butler won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. I love reading short stories; you can read them concurrently with other books, and you do not have to worry about refamiliarizing yourself with the story. Each vignette is a peek into the life of a Vietnamese character who has somehow wound up in Louisiana. Post-read, I really felt the struggle of each assimilation. Some stories were disturbing (A Ghost Story-she’s beautiful, she’s dead), some were satisfying in a Gossip Girl kind of way (Love-If you cheat on your husband, prepare to pay a price), and one will stay with me forever (The Trip Back-Alzheimer’s plays a key role in a surprisingly beautiful act; I sobbed.) I highly recommend this book.

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Prosciutto Panini

Sandwich Gal — Sat, 11 May 2013 02:23:26 +0000

Scoozi was not on my radar as I wandered around Boston on a beautiful Saturday morning in April. I was in need of a lunch, it looked like a happening place, and it is always fun to quote Fred Armisen’s brief and hilarious quotes from EuroTrip. Scoozi’s outdoor seating is a great people watching corner. We opted to sit inside due to the long wait for an outdoor table and scheduling conflicts. And my hungry belly. The best dish of the day was the Pear & Gorgonzola salad we split. The candied walnuts were a lovely and delectable touch.

My sweet Husband went with the Chicken Sausage and Arugula Calzone. It was huge!

My sandy came with Prosciutto, Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil & Pesto on a French Baguette, served with chips.

Later that day, we ended up at Boston Symphony Hall for a concert featuring the works of Schubert and Mahler. Sandwiches and music in Beautiful Boston? Perfect.

http://www.scooziboston.com/Default.aspx

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Pot Roast Sandwich

Sandwich Gal — Sat, 04 May 2013 02:12:52 +0000

I have been a fan of the Tampa Bay Rays for years. I actually worked at Tropicana Field for five seasons. Therefore, I have cheered against the Boston Red Sox on countless occasions. The Husband and I planned a trip to Boston for a quick weekend. Neither one of us had ever been there before, but we had both heard great things about the culture, the sports, and of course the food. I walked into Fenway on a Friday night with zero expectations in the food department. I was hoping to run into a lobster roll, and praying that no drunken Sox fans could see into my Rays-loving heart. (Dual purpose fashion side note: I wore “neutral” pink; I wasn’t planning on cheering for either the home team or the visiting Astros, and that pink goes amazingly well with my black Anne Klein boots.)

I walked into Fenway and immediateley, shockingly fell in love. That place is old school baseball done to perfection. We walked up and down the rows of concessions, and I am forever thankful that we took a chance at a no-frills stand that turned out amazing sandwiches. The Husband went with the Steak and Cheese. He decided to have it with mushrooms, ketchup, and pickles. This sandy was a hot, tasty mess. I almost wore it when we sat down at a wobbly picnic table.

The homerun sandwich of the day was my Pot Roast perfection. I had never heard of such a thing. I am apathetic about pot roast in general, but I was intrigued. I chose provolone for my sandwich glue. Per the suggestion of my sandwich makers, I went with some mushrooms, lettuce, and tomato. It was huge, it was messy, it was succulent, it was one of the best sandwiches I have had in a long time. That pot roast was so tender and flavorful.

We topped it all off with some Fried Dough. As you all know, calories do not count on vacation.

The Boston Red Sox spanked the Houston Astros 7-3. I cheered for back to back homers over The Green Monster directly to our right. I drank a few wicked small beers. We Floridians survived the 45-degree weather. Most importantly, I added a new must have sandwich to my All-Time List.

Cheers, Boston, stay Strong. You are fantastic.

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Live to Tell

Sandwich Gal — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 00:16:45 +0000

I am a self-proclaimed book hoarder, and I have no idea where I got this book by Lisa Gardner. I must suffer from some sort of novel grabbing black outs. The story consists of three masterfully interwoven tales: Detective D.D. Warren is apparently a recurring character in several of Gardner’s books. D.D. is a tough-as-nails, beautiful, and libidinous homicide detective for the Boston P.D. Danielle is a nurse who works with children in psychiatric ward. She is also the lone survivor of her entire family’s brutal murders 25 years prior to the story taking place. Victoria is a beaten down mother who is fighting desperately to raise her child. The three women are gripping characters. If you have kids, or you want to have kids, or you have ever seen a kid, the scenes involving severely mentally disturbed children were pretty graphic and horrifying. I could not relate to Victoria at all; you mothers out there let me know if you would sacrifice your entire family (husband and child) for the sake of one child. Not an easy question, to be sure, but mystifying to me. I appreciate the light being shown on mental illness; I have seen children with severe issues, and there is not a lot of help available to them. After a genuinely disturbing route that kept this reader guessing, the story came to a satisfying conclusion.

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The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Sandwich Gal — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 00:45:08 +0000

My lucky literature streak continues with this gem by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. Aside from the horrendous title, I loved it from page 12 or so on. You see, this fantastic tale is told solely through letters. It took me roughly 12 pages to stop fighting it (How can you tell a story through letters ALONE!?) and delve into the lovely cadence of the whole idea. The bulk of the letters are either to or from writer Juliet Ashton. She has just wrapped up a gig writing about World War II. As that assignment and the war are both drawing to a close, Juliet searches for a new topic. Enter Mr. Dawsey Adams, a farmer from Guernsey in the Channel Islands. Through sheer coincidence, Dawsey becomes the proud owner of a book previously owned by Juliet. Thus begins a friendship based on love of books. Dawsey also sparks the idea for Juliet’s new project when he introduces her to the world’s most fascinating, grief stricken, and poorly named book club of all time. Juliet states in a letter to Dawsey, “That’s what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It’s geometrically progressive-all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment.” You’re welcome, book clubs, there is your new motto. The characters are painted with an adept hand and are multi-layered. The historical facts are on point. You will know this book club, your heart will break for the characters, you will cry with joy, and you will laugh out loud during one seriously funny slapping scene.

Get over that title and the idea of the letters, and go ahead and fall in love with this book.

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Basil-Blue Cheeseburger

Sandwich Gal — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 17:04:09 +0000

A perfect recent Tuesday found the Sandwich Gal in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Every year since college (Montana State, represent!) my best friends and I have always met up for Spring Break. It is a treasured tradition, and a much needed form of therapy. We will be 80 and still meeting up for cocktails and conversation. My friend Allison has a second home in Cabo and invited us to join her for some fun in the sun. I flew in from Florida, Allison arrived from Montana, and Stacy came in from Colorado. I was coming off of one crappy week and was overjoyed to see those girls.
We thought it fitting that we ended up at the Baja Brewing Co. It was a little bit of home smack dab in the middle of gorgeous Cabo. The brewery was founded by some Colorado boys. The food was delicious, the beer was incredible.

As I am a big fan of the fruity beers, I went with the Baja Razz. It was comforting to my soul, and my sunburn. Nothing quite compares to having a cold one with your besties in the middle of a weekday afternoon.

As a starter, the onion rings we ordered were greasy perfection.

Allison and Stacy both opted for the Tortilla Soup, filled with huge hunks of avocado.

My favorite item of the day was my soup pick, the Sea Bass Corn Bisque. It was creamy and decadent.

The friendly waitstaff was happy to split the burger for Stacy and me. Creamy blue cheese, cherry tomatoes, a slice of apple, and basil topped the burger that was served on a cheddar and onion bun.

We ended the day being wholly inappropriate with the company’s mascot.

I can’t wait to go back and find the perfect torta. Until then, I shall just count myself blessed to have these amazing friends.

http://www.bajabrewingcompany.com/public_html/donkey_spanish6.html

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Empire State

Sandwich Gal — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 21:40:46 +0000

Due to the proximity of Big Stein’s Delicatessen to my home, I shall count myself a lucky sandwich eater. I have gone to Big Stein’s (9001 4th Street North, St. Petersburg) for countless sandys over the last several years. The guys working there are invariably helpful and friendly, and the Rays games are always on during the season. The restaurant is small and fairly lacking in decor, but this is one great place to stop in and grab some quality items. Since I am now fortunate enough to have found The World’s Best Husband, we always get two sandwiches and share. Priceless. My selection was the Honey Chicken Wrap. This tasty treat was filled with a huge amount of excellent chicken breast, bacon, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, and a yummy sweet honey mustard dressing. It came with a little cole slaw; usually my wraps come with a pickle, on this day no such luck.

I loved it; I will probably go back to my stand-by, the Veggie Wrap. That one is my favorite wrap of all of the wraps in all of the land. I like to cheat on said wrap about once a year; I always go back.

The Empire State is one of Big Stein’s Monster Triple Deckers. This sandwich is as big as the New York skyline. We opted for the Marble Swirl bread (amazingly fresh) and instantly fell in love with the blend of turkey, brisket, lettuce, tomato, onion, and mayo. You have to see this bad boy to believe it:

I am equal parts proud and disgusted that we finished both sandys in one sitting. If you live in north St. Pete, stop on by and grab some dinner for your family. The place is open until 6 Monday-Saturday, and delivery is available.

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The Imperfectionists

Sandwich Gal — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:42:10 +0000

I have been on a lucky streak with my book choices of late. The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman keeps the trend alive for me. The tale is a collection of short stories based on the lives of those working at an English language paper located in Rome. Their lives and sundry foibles intersect strictly because of the jobs they hold. Reading through the expertly written characters in each chapter (which were cleverly titled with newspaper headlines and the name and title of the main character for that section) was like peeking into co-workers’ lives. The pages are filled with all of the juicy gossip about everyone, from the editor to the accountant to the reader. Adeptly woven in between the chapters is a sub story about the origin of the paper and the subsequent owners. The figures are people you know at your own work, their personal adventures riveting. The dichotomy of the familiarity of the daily news and the exoticism of Italy make for a perfect setting for these Imperfectionists.

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Croque Monsieur

Sandwich Gal — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 00:18:16 +0000

Oui, oui, you guessed it. The Frenchies make sandys too. I recently visited the new St. Petersburg location of La Creperia Cafe. The food is fancy, the Airstream it comes out of is decidedly trailer park chic. I met up with a couple of fellow St. Pete food bloggers (Amber of http://sweettampa.blogspot.com/ and Jenn of http://jennlikesit.com/ ) to brainstorm and feed our faces. Lucky for me, both of those gals are full of solid ideas and they possess food sharing hands. I chose a Café con leche from the extensive and eclectic drink menu and got down to the business of ordering.

Amber went directly for the Croque Monsieur. It was a ham and cheese sandy with a little veggie garnish.

I opted for La French Riviera. This savory crepe was filled with cheese, chicken, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, and a white wine sauce. This was a tasty piece of business.

Jenn, through sheer scheduling coincidence, was at La Creperia for the second time in 7 hours. For her take 2, she went Fontina crepe: turkey, cheese, spinach and mushrooms.

The grand finale and the star of this show was definitely the sweet crepe we just had to order. The Romeo y Julieta (I glean way too much enjoyment from pronouncing that in a horrible accent) was filled to bursting with Nutella, bananas, and fresh strawberries. If you are there with close friends, prepare to do battle with your plasticware over the last bite. We gals were on our best behavior.

There are kinks in the service (one lonely crepe maker was pumping out the dinner orders as fast as he could) but the quality is key. I’ll definitely be heading back, make sure to check their website for coupons and punchcards.

http://www.lacreperiacafe.com/index.html

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Tough Sh*t

Sandwich Gal — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 00:00:38 +0000

I’m what you might call a ‘moderate’ Kevin Smith fan. I fell in love with the dialogue and Indie-ness of Clerks and have been a follower ever since. I am a big enough fan that I own all of his movies and have seen them countless times (Dogma is my favorite, if you don’t love Jersey Girl you have no soul.) I have a signed copy of Silent Bob Speaks. I have seen more than one episode of Degrassi, and thanks to Mr. Smith I holler out “Wheelchair Jimmy!” every time I see/hear Drake. I have seen Spoilers and several of his famous Q & A sessions. No less than 10 family members and friends have bought me Kevin Smith merch for gifts. I say ‘moderate’ because this dude has roughly one million irons in the fire, and you would have to have no job or life if you followed everything that he does.

Tough Sh*t: Life Advice from a Fat, Lazy Slob Who Did Good is a collection of life lessons meant to inspire the reader to reach for the stars. When the author is faced with the death of his beloved father in an abrupt and borderline frightening manner, he gleans this simple truth: We are all going to die anyway….so why not take a chance while you are here on this Earth and strive for what makes you happy. Then try to make some bank off of that Happy. Which is a fairly straightforward concept.

Lucky for us, Kevin Smith peppers this life lesson with his special brand of humor and behind-the-scenes stories. One example from Miramax: In the midst of a particular meeting with Harvey Weinstein and Michael Eisner, Smith paints a picture of the scene by stating Eisner …”unbuckled, dropped trou, and crapped a long log of truth in the midst of the party.” Smith pulls no punches telling tales of the horror of working with the ego-maniacal Bruce Willis (who “turtled the f**k up like Claude Lemieux getting a beat-down by Darren McCarty” when faced with improv.) Smith also brings forth the cringe when he describes the abominable way that Southwest Airlines treated him. You may also want to run for the hills when Smith describes his love for his wife in the sweetest possible ways….then follows that sweetness with some pretty graphic married couple business.

Is this book going to change your life? Probably not. It might make you stop and think for a minute about your own goals and how you spend your time and think about what your next move on the ice of life is…natch.

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