One Great Sandwich: First Slice's Chicago-Style Vegetarian

By Sarah Dahnke in Food on Jan 23, 2008 5:00PM

When this Chicagoist writer left a job in Ravenswood late last year, we knew we'd miss our officemates dearly. We also lamented the fact we'd no longer be within walking distance to First Slice Cafe for lunch. The cafe, located on the first floor of the Lillstreet Art Center, is home to a small menu of fine creations, one of our favorites being the Chicago-Style vegetarian sandwich.

This sandwich isn't the typical hummus and cucumber appetizer that often comes to mind when we think of a vegetarian sandwich. It's a hearty, gooey, delicious mess of spinach, red onions, mushrooms and sweet, neon-green pickle relish (the same you'd find on a Chicago-style dog) all melted together with Gouda and cheddar cheese. It's served up on a lightly grilled baguette and served with a light, green salad (our most recent serving included Granny Smith apple bites, too!) and a handful of plain ridged potato chips.

The cheese, spinach and onions all compliment each other nicely, playing a supporting role on the sandwich, while the mushrooms provide an almost meat-like texture, and the sweet relish contrasts the otherwise savory ingredients. We always lick our fingers when we finish this sandwich. We can't get enough of that delicious relish!

First Slice Cafe makes a great spot to grab lunch or a quick snack, with its bright, friendly space surrounded by cases full of handmade jewelry, ceramics and other works created by Lillstreet artists. And you can feel good about your purchase (note: make sure you visit the ATM first because they're cash-only) because a portion of the proceeds goes toward feeding homeless or low-income people around the Chicago area.

First Slice Cafe is located inside of the Lillstreet Art Center, 4401 N. Ravenswood. (Visiting may be difficult this week, considering the street imploded a block west of the building.)