Results tagged “sandwich”

The H1N1 flu strain (aka swine flu) has claimed the life of another area teen. The teen, who was a student at Sandwich High School and hadn't attended school all year due to the illness, passed away on Sunday. Officials were not releasing the student's name. Michelle Fahle, a 14-year-old student at Naperville North High School, died two weeks ago and had been diagnosed with the H1N1 virus, though a previously undiagnosed heart condition is believed to be the main contributing factor to her death. All told, the state's Department of Public Health reported 20 H1N1-related deaths as of last Friday.

A single-engine plane crashed at the Sandwich Airport in DeKalb County yesterday afternoon, killing two. According to the Chicago Tribune, Randy Hougham was taking friends for rides in his vintage 1946 Ercoupe 415-C. Two flights went well, but the third ended in disaster. The plane crashed and caught fire shortly before 2 p.m., killing Houghham, 53, and his passenger, recent Bradley University graduate Lauren Hamilton, 22. Hougham's brother-in-law, Bruce Burlingame, said, "He was a great guy, a good family man, a good dad. He was just a normal guy who did construction work and had a plane."

We were stoked when the news broke that John Manion of Nas and Old Oak Tap was taking over as Executive Chef of Goose Island Clybourn that we made it a point to pay a visit last weekend to see what changes were happening to the menu.

Now that Philly's Best has opened up a Greektown location (769 W. Jackson), we get to deal with a completely different brand of last call idiocy for late night eats. Lucky for us the Markellos brothers have both a sense of humor for dealing with drunks and make some of the best Philly cheese steaks and grinders in the city. A longtime favorite of ours from our days on the North side is the Monterey Chicken grinder, a molten blend of skinless chicken breast, ham, bacon, cheese and ranch dressing that's good for at least two meals (if you buy the large one for $8.99). It'll definitely absorb a fair amount of alcohol.

Let's start with the bread. Marble rye is great for sandwiches, so there's no complaint on choice. What it could have used was some more toasting to not fall apart under the weight and combination of oil and dressing. The toppings could also use some work. The caramelized onions are a nice touch, but the spinach looked sautéd added extra weight and oil to the mix. Given the spice of the seasoning, we would loved to have seen some Swiss chard here, under the salmon.

        

"Today, Chicago is Chewtopolis, the Mt. Sinai of Mastication!" And with that, we were thrown into the Jimmy John's Freaky Fast Sandwich Making and Eating Competition pitting three Jimmy John's sandwich makers against three world class competitive eaters from Major League Eating. We'd never had the opportunity to witness such a spectacle in person (though we've long been fans of the annual 4th of July hot dog contest) and weren't disappointed. Master of Ceremonies George Shea kept us entertained with nuggets like, "This is about to get as crazy as a monkey riding horseback on a poodle." (We admit...we half expected him to try to sell our town a bunch of musical instruments and then go woo the local librarian.) The large crowd gathered around the stage at Taste of Lincoln Park cheered in agreement and were ready for some sandwich slinging.

Heaven knows we love our food and have been accused of eating at a clip that puts nearby fingers in jeopardy. But we're pretty sure we're going to be put to shame this Saturday when Jimmy John's offers up three of its fastest sandwich makers to see if they can make subs faster than the sandwiches can be eaten. Of course, they won't be eaten by just anyone.

When the temperature in Chicago is 80 degrees with 100 percent humidity, a giant sandwich of stacked meat and melted cheese is slightly less appealing to us that it was four months ago. In our quest to find a sandwich that won’t put us into a cured meat coma, we ventured to the mecca of Chicago’s health food extremists. We went raw. Specifically, Karyn’s Fresh Corner Café for the Square of Joy sandwich.

The Sun-Times, probably regretting that they're still on the hook for Conrad Black's attorney fees and Jay Mariotti's salary during a recession, has been on a frugal kick this week. Every day they've run a story on families saving money on groceries, usually involving shopping at Aldi's, cutting coupons, or selling the extra car and biking.

Tank Restaurant’s bánh mì is damn near a perfect sandwich. Tank's open air restaurant with community seating is a welcome, busy place to sample Vietnamese fare while sitting next to a friendly stranger. This traditional street food is a Vietnamese baguette / French roll filled with meat, cucumber, cilantro, jalapeño, picked daikon radish and carrots, and a touch of soy sauce. You can choose from marinated beef, pork, or chicken – each slightly sweet and spicy.

The corner of Dempster and Chicago in Evanston still retains some vestiges of its hippie past, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It actually reminds us of the less annoying parts of Lincoln and Wicker Parks. We've been fans of Bagel Art in Evanston for as long as we can remember; we usually have a sesame seed bagel with plain cream cheese every morning on the way to work. They also make a few good sandwiches for a quick bite during the work day, fuel for grinding out miles on the old Green Bay Road bike trail during summer, or just futzing around Evanston.

Love for the Hopleaf is easy to generate, despite it being one of those Yogi Berra joints - so crowded, no one goes there. This is especially true in this post-smoking ban era, now that people can actually (gasp) eat in the front section without getting choked out by massive clouds of carcinogens. It's been years since we started going to Hopleaf for Kwak and mussels, but only recently discovered the massive amounts of awesome that constitutes an order of CB&J.

The jibarito is a cross-cultural gem with a very American story. It was invented in Chicago (circa 1993) at Humboldt Park’s Borinquen Restaurant, a tricked-out plantain sandwich inspired by Puerto Rican culture and named after its peasant class, then embraced across strata at local Cuban, Mexican, and South American joints.

In our experience, most people who eat at Costello's Sandwich and Sides get the same thing every time. It's their Costello's Match. Former Chicagoist editors Scott Smith and Erin Shea love the Heartland and Smokin' Turk, respectively. Our boyfriend's favorite is the Italian Grinder. For us, our Costello's Match is the Turkey Focaccia. Generally speaking, the Turkey Focaccia is a basic turkey sandwich — turkey, provolone, lettuce, tomato, vinaigrette. But what makes this sandwich...

There is ham, and then there is French Madrange Ham. There is cheese, and then there is Swiss Gruyère. There is bread, and then there is organic Bretzel Bread. Which brings us to Hannah's Bretzel. Hannah's has a lot of things going for it before you take the first bite. The local sandwich shop features a green retail space, a wall of exotic chocolates, and a friendly staff, but the Sergio Special is where it's at.