A Little Slice of New York

Greetings, Readers!

I am currently sitting here, thinking about the rain that is coming to Los Angeles for the next few days. There's nothing I enjoy more than a cool rainy day in the city with some warm soup, a good grilled cheese sandwich and a dark beer.

Before I get to that weekend activity though, I must recount a recent trip to a spot out in Camarillo, only a short jaunt from Los Angeles.

Stopping at the Old New York Deli and Bakery Company, I was immediately overwhelmed by the size of the menu. Even with the length of line I waited in to order my sandwich, I still didn't have enough time to take in all of the items on the menu. Immediately drawn to the Deli Sandwiches section on the menu board though I decided that it was a pastrami or corned beef sort of day.

Straying away from a straight forward option, I went for the Coney Island Style on Rye with Pastrami and Swiss. Essentially I was going to recreate a Reuben, which I had not seen on the novel of a menu until I had already ordered.

Pastrami, Swiss cheese, cole slaw and Russian Dressing stacked between two slices of rye bread, this sandwich started off in a good direction. The temperature contrast between the warm corned beef and the cold cole slaw was an interesting mix. It was slightly off-putting though since I had initially wanted a Reuben, with its warm sauerkraut, instead of this option with a cold and warm temperature competition.

The pastrami was good, though a few pieces could have been cooked a little longer so that it fell apart in your mouth. The combination of Russian dressing, Swiss cheese and sweet cole slaw produced a variety of flavors in my mouth that was enjoyable from start to finish.

The rye bread is also made in house, and is fantastic. So much so that an entire loaf was purchased on the way out the door.

Overall, the sandwich was a bit of a letdown, but I feel it was mostly due to the fact that I was hoping, or expecting, something else. Next time I'm in the area, I believe I'll just shoot straight for the Reuben and see how that sandwich fares. If you happen to be nearby the Old New York Deli and Bakery Co. though, I suggest you take your time in deciding which sandwich to take on. I'm sure there have to be some real winners on that massive menu.

Until next week, Readers...


Coney Island Style on Rye w/ Swiss
*** 1/2 Stars
Old New York Deli and Bakery Co.
4972 Verdugo Way
Camarillo, CA 93012
http://www.oldnewyork.com/

Spring House in Winter Weather

Greetings, Readers!

I hope the last two weeks of the holidays have left you satisfied, relaxed, and ready to start off 2014 with a bang.

2013 led to a lot of amazing sandwich experiences, and I'm looking to take you through another year of them.

Wrapping up 2013 with my visit to Philadelphia, I had a number of great experiences, and one of the top ones was my trip to Spring House Brewery Tap Room in Lancaster, PA.

Part of a full day of brewery tours in eastern Pennsylvania with my brother, Spring House was our first stop. To accompany the ten beer sampler, I decided to go with the Reuben. On a cool December day, this filling sandwich sounded like the perfect companion to some of the amazing house brews.

To be fair, every sandwich sounded excellent. I was also leaning towards the French Dip.

The Reuben is a straight forward affair at Spring House: Sliced Corned Beef, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing and Swiss cheese on lightly grilled rye bread. Sometimes being simple is the best way to take it. For this Reuben, the corned beef was cooked well and full of mouth-watering flavor. The spices in the meat shone through even with all of the other flavors competing for the spotlight. The Swiss cheese was melted thoroughly and offered its smooth smoky flavor, a delicious contrast to the sour bite or the sauerkraut and the sweet taste of the Thousand Island.

My only complaint, and it's minor in this situation, is that I would have preferred the bread toasted/grilled just slightly longer. This factor should in no way deter you form this sandwich though.

This was a delicious choice to accompany the beer sampler we had and a great way to keep warm on a cold December afternoon.

If your'e able to swing by the Tap Room, I highly suggest getting this sandwich as well as their extensive ten-pour sampler so you can try every one of their offerings. My favorite was the Big Gruesome Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout. It's a real knockout and thoroughly delicious.

One more stop to go in my trip back to Philadelphia, but we'll continue that next week.

Until then, Readers...


Reuben Sandwich
**** Stars
Spring House Tap Room
25 West King Street
Lancaster, PA 17603

http://www.springhousebeer.com

It's Reuben Time

Greetings, Readers!

After my successful first day in Cleveland, which I wrote about in last week's entry, I was still up for seeing more of what this city could offer me in terms of delicious sandwiches.

But the question becomes, how do you really even attempt to beat one of the best pulled pork sandwiches you've ever eaten?

You take on a Reuben.


But the trip to get this Reuben was not exactly easy. I was taken on a tour of the backroads of a rural area outside of Cleveland and I'm not going to lie here, Readers, but this shop may be one of the hardest places to find.

Ever.

Having arrived at Columbia Beverages & Deli though, I was pleasantly surprised by their deli counter and the sandwiches offered, even though I may never have given any of the other sandwiches a second look as soon as I noticed the option of a Reuben.

This sandwich is stacked high with corned beef that honestly just melts in your mouth. It's full of spiced and briny flavor that just beats up your taste buds with every bite and there's just so much of it that it took me a little bit to decide how I should even take the first bite.

The Thousand Island dressing and melted Swiss cheese add a great smooth flavor to the sandwich that are more mellowed compared to the flavor of the corned beef. There's a good amount of both ingredients ont his sandwich, but not too much as to overpower the flavor of the meat.

Topped off with a dose of crunchy sauerkraut and lightly grilled rye bread, this sandwich was excellent. The bread was also thickly cut which helped the sandwich hold up with so much internal deliciousness.

I wish more sandwiches had this kind of thickly cut bread.

Overall, this sandwich was excellent. A great Reuben, filled with so much that holds together until the end and despite filling you, leaves you wanting more.

If I had to go on my own, I probably would have gotten lost, but it would have been worth it to find a sandwich like this.

That's 2 for 2 Cleveland...what will you have next week?


Reuben Sandwich
**** 1/2
Columbia Beverages & Deli
25011 Royalton Road
Columbia Station, OH
(Corner of Rt 252 and Rt 82)

The Reuben Returns!

Greeting's Readers!

As long as I have lived in Los Angeles (and we are coming up on five years this fall), I have passed by Paty's numerous times as I frequented Toluca Lake for Priscilla's Gourmet Coffee and Tea cafe over the years. Even with this, I have never once stopped into Paty's before this past weekend.

Wanting something close to home that was low key and offered diner food, Paty's was one of the first places to come to mind. A retro looking diner out on Riverside Drive on the main strip of Toluca Lake, Paty's has been a stop for many a celebrity and hungry local for many years.

One of the first things I noticed after entering the diner was how incredibly friendly the staff was. I mean, I don't normally talk about the staff at all of the restaurants I go to, but I just have to mention this one. From the second we walked in until the second we walked out, the staff was always courteous and very kind. This place is worth going to just for the service.

But this isn't a food service industry blog, so I looked at their incredible sandwich selection. While I wanted to try a few other sandwiches that I never had before, I found myself in the mood for a Reuben which I hadn't had for quite some time.

The sandwich was excellent. It was hot and the corned beef was piled high, tender and full of flavor. Stacked on rye bread with swiss cheese and sauerkraut, the bread held together incredibly well and offered that strong rye flavor even over all of the other competing flavors.

Honestly, it's an amazing example of a Reuben and makes me feel like there is incredible promise n the other sandwiches offered at Paty's.

I will definitely be returning again soon.

Lastly this week, we are now only 2 weeks away from my 100th post and to do something special for the event, I thought I would go back through this massive amount of reviews and pick my top 10 favorite sandwiches and rank them all for you (thanks to reader Anderson for the suggestion).

Do you have any favorites from the ones I've reviewed?

Don't worry though, LA won't be the only city represented on here as one from at least every city I've been to over the course of this journey will be represented.

Even you, Cleveland.

Until next week, Readers...

The Reuben
**** Stars
Paty's Restaurant
10001 Riverside Drive
Toluca Lake, CA 91602

Cold Hands And A Warm Sandwich

Hello again, dear Readers!

I have traveled many miles back east in time for the holidays, and while I enjoy the season here in the freezing cold, I figured I would find some amazing sandwiches on the other side of the country.

The work of a true sandwichologist never ends.

This week, in my trek East, I stopped in State College, PA...home of THE Penn State.

I had to throw a bit of a plug in there, didn't I?

Settling in at local favorite, The Deli Restaurant, I looked through their menu, deciding which would be the first sandwich I reviewed back east. Every option on the menu sounded delicious, but one stood out the most to me: The Pastrami Reuben.

Yes, I know. I review these types of sandwiches a lot. But there's a reason, well two: 1.) they're my favorite and 2.) when made properly, they can be phenomenal.

This was hands down, the best pastrami reuben I have had since beginning this blog. I don't have a single complaint about it.

It's really your standard reuben, with sauerkraut, melted swiss cheese and rye bread, but instead of corned beef, pastrami takes center stage.

The pastrami was was a beautiful color of dark read with black edges. It tasted sweet and savory at the same time. Still warm from the kitchen, it practically fell apart in my mouth.

The sauerkraut had its usual pungent aroma and matched well with the smoky swiss cheese. But one of the most impressive aspects of this sandwich was the bread.

Your typical toasted rye bread for a reuben, except it did something not so typical.

It didn't fall apart.

It was a double decker sandwich, with toasted rye in the middle, and even that bread was able to handle the weight of these three ingredients without disintegrating or even becoming mushy. I was impressed, and this most of all ranks this sandwich near the top. Too many times my Reuben experience leaves me picking up pieces near the end because the bread has moved on to sandwich heaven. But not this time.

It was delicious, plain and simple. The person who made this deserves a hearty handshake.

So the next time you're heading to Penn State, or traveling across the beautiful state of Pennsylvania, make sure you stop in at the Deli Restaurant and order the Pastrami Reuben.

You will not be disappointed.


Pastrami Reuben
**** 1/2 Stars
113 Heister Street
State College, PA

A late night at the corner diner...

Welcome dear readers, for another lesson in DANGER!

There is something that you should know about me before we begin today: I have a deep love of diners.

Don't begin to worry though, this love has been deemed healthy and safe by a number of medical professionals, so i'm in the clear. Thank you for your concern though.

So what is it exactly about diners that I love so much?

Is it the atmosphere? The muddy coffee? The regulars? Or is it the waitress who once asked "you need anymore coffee, doll?"

It could be a combination of all of those, but then again if that was all I talked about, this foodie blog would leave out the crucial aspect of food reviewing.

Now for anyone who has ever eaten at a diner, you know for a fact that diner food can quite often be very hit or miss (there are some notable exceptions to be had though). And so, when a good meal is found it's definitely worth being passed on to others.

Enter the Reuben at North Hollywood Diner.

I've been coming to this diner since I first interned in Los Angeles in 2005, and I've tried at least half of the items on their substantial menu, but the Reuben is something new for me this time around.

Corned Beef, Jack cheese, and a healthy dose of sauerkraut on grilled rye bread seems like an easy enough sandwich, but in my position, I also know it's something that can easily be screwed up. The wrong proportions, or badly prepared meat can lead to an unsatisfying mess in your hands.

The Reuben at the North Hollywood Diner could have been improved upon had the meat cooked a little longer. The problem with corned beef is that if you don't take your time in cooking the meat long enough, it can be quite tough and take away from the experience. The seasoning for the corned beef was great, producing a subtle tangy flavor, but every once in awhile i'd have to put my incisors to work a little more than i normally like to.

The sauerkraut was perfect: not too sour, but not too weak either. The cheese was melted until it was creamy and blended well with the healthy dose of sauerkraut.

The grilled rye bread could have spent a little more time on the grill. There was a slight crisp to it, but was still very soft in most parts. Even the butter used on the bread was still noticeable, and a sure sign it hadn't been fully cooked. If you're going to grill rye bread for your sandwich, go hard or go home, is what i always say.

Overall, if you find yourself in North Hollywood and looking for a satisfying meal, the North Hollywood Diner will certainly tend to your needs. This sandwich, though, was passable but there are plenty of other delis and diners in the area that can easily do much better.

Until next time, may the DANGER be with you.

*** Stars

North Hollywood Diner

11329 Magnolia Boulevard

North Hollywood, CA 92601