Sandwiches: Then & Now

Now that we have officially entered the land of 2014 and I’ve had some time to reflect on the past year I have realized …. I ate a lot of sandwiches last year!

A lot of Roast Beef and Italian sandwiches. Looking at my photos was a slap in the face. I need to branch out people! I think I knew this deep down, I just didn’t want to accept it. I told myself the occasional chicken or turkey sandwich made up for it. Well, I’m accepting and embracing it. And I have a plan of attack for the coming year.

Sandwiches I plan to conquer in 2014 (in alphabetical order because I had to Google “types of sandwiches” to figure out what I was missing in my life and it showed up alphabetically in Wikipedia):

• Banh Mi – I’ve had the Meatball Banh Mi from Pigwich, but I’ve never had a “real” Vietnamese one. 2014 will change that.
• BLT – Hi, I’m Katie and I’m 35 years old and I’ve never had a real BLT in my entire life. I’ve had bacon sandwiches (bacon on bread with nothing else), but not a true BLT. Don’t hate me. I was wasting my time with roast beef and salami.
• Ultimate Grilled Cheese – I was going to write “Grilled Cheese” but come on. B.O.R.I.N.G. That is why I added “Ultimate” because surely that will make for a splendid sandwich.
• Cheesesteak – I know. I eat cheesesteaks all the time, but I’m not going to remove it from the list. No way. I love them.
• Chicken Salad – This one is making my mom cringe as she reads it because I’m 99.999999999999% positive she can’t stand chicken salad anything. Honestly, it kind of grosses me out. But kind of not. I kind of like the idea of one.
• Club – I’m not a big turkey fan, as you all know, but I will tackle a club sandwich this year. And not the one from Potbelly, since I already had that one. Something new. And inspiring.
• Corned Beef – I assume this comes on a sandwich and I assume I will have the chance to consume one around St. Pats Day. Check back in March.
• Croque Monsieur – Isn’t this fancy for ham and cheese? Surely there is something tres magnifique about one. I plan to find out.
• Cuban – I’ve never had a Cuban before. No. No. I do not think I have. This one excites me for some reason. Odd, I know. But exciting. I heard there is a pickle involved. I love pickles. [If you were able to read this entire blip about Cubans without repeating the phrase “That’s what she said!!!” over and over, then we can not be friends.]
• French Dip – Mmmmm. One of my favorite sammies so it will be on the list and will very likely be conquered multiple times in 2014
• Gyro – Not a fan of tzatziki sauce, but whatever, I will give this one a whirl. [Note: its spelled tzatziki, not tzitki. I thought it was tzitki until I googled it to be sure. I was wrong. And so were you if you thought it was spelled that way, too. But great minds think alike, so high-five to those who thought it was tzitki. For those who have never heard of tzatziki, branch out a little this year, okay?]
• Juicy Lucy – I’ve had many an opportunity to order a Juicy Lucy (hamburger stuffed with American cheese) but I’ve never done it. I did have that burger with mac & cheese inside, so I was close. But I want a real Juicy Lucy and I’m willing to travel for one. Minneapolis has the original. I love Minneapolis. I must talk to Brad Pitt about this idea.
• Lobster Roll – Ah the cockroach of the sea on a bun! Who wouldn’t want that!?!?
• Muffulletta – Muff-a-yum-yum. And best of all, the really good ones are in New Orleans. I love New Orleans. And since Brad Pitt went to NOLA without me last year, I think I deserve to go this year. Time to head south, I believe.
• Patty Melt – Hell, you can get a Patty Melt at Sonic. Surely I can find a really good one somewhere in town. Or make one at home if I needed.
• Po’ Boy – Reason #2 to head to NOLA. Are you listening Brad Pitt?!?! We need a road trip stat!
• Pork Tenderloin – My mom really likes pork tenderloin. If she doesn’t, then I have a really weird memory of growing up because I remember her eating pork tenderloins from Texas Tom’s when I was a kid. But I also swear on my life her favorite baseball player was Brett Saberhagen and every time I say this out loud she flinches and demands that she could not stand him. Regardless, I’m really looking forward to eating a pork tenderloin sandwich.
• Reuben – I have never had a Reuben sandwich. Embarrassing, huh? But one of my favorite people to hang out with is named Reuben, so maybe that makes up for it? Give me a Reuben with everything on it and we’ll see what happens.
• Runza – Friends from Nebraska were very excited with the fast food spot Runza opened in Kansas City. That was, like, three years ago. Three? Two? Four? I have no idea. But its been awhile. And I have yet to eat one of their infamous loose meat sandwiches. Maybe because the word loose reminds me of loose teeth and that grosses me out. Completely. But I love a good sloppy joe, and its technically loose meat. So, the next time I am near Runza and hungry, it will be my top choice in meals. And I will report back with information.
• Torta – Of course this makes the list. A Mexican sandwich. Seriously. I love a good taco, I’m sure I’ll love a good torta.

Also, I plan to try SPAM for the first time in my life this year. Maybe in sandwich form. We’ll see.

I guess while we are at it, I would also like to try frog legs this year. Last year the most bizarre thing I tried was probably chicken feet. I’m assuming frog legs can’t be worse.

Happy Sandwich Saturday! Here’s to a great year of sandwiches!