Category Archives: Sandwiches

Good to the Last Crumb: Oliver’s Bakery & Deli

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A friend emailed the other day, looking for a last-minute lunch spot in Oliver, in B.C.’s southern Okanagan Valley. I suggested Oliver’s Bakery & Deli (“Our baker rises before the rooster”), run for a decade by Wayne and Dianna Jones.

I’d had their dense, marvellously moist birdseed bread in a sandwich at JoJo’s Café in nearby Osoyoos. But I’d never visited the bakery itself, which includes a deli and a breakfast and lunch grill.

Perfect, I thought. My friends can do some field research for me and send a report, hopefully along with an enticing photo or two.

I was wondering what they’d order. Perhaps a BLT or a scratch-made burger on a fresh jalapeno cheese bun, followed by a dinner-plate-sized apple fritter.

It didn’t take long for the review to arrive. Excellent minestrone soup, Denver on birdseed and tuna on multi-grain, along with friendly service during a busy lunch hour.

So, I was practically salivating by the time I clicked on the attached photo. Which was this:

The soup and sandwich was fabulous. Trust me!

The soup and sandwich was fabulous. Trust me!

I don’t know if they were playing a cruel joke or were so eager to tuck in that they forgot to take any pictures till they had inhaled everything. But I guess there’s no better testimonial than a plate and bowl licked almost clean.

My friends liked it so much, they’re planning on making Oliver’s a regular stop on their drives between Osoyoos and Penticton. Maybe next time I can convince them to click before they devour.

Oliver’s Bakery & Deli
6030 Main Street, Oliver, B.C.
Tuesday to Saturday 7:30 am-4 pm. Closed Sunday and Monday
250-498-0380

Lovely New Lunch Spot in Lethbridge, Alberta

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Bread Milk & Honey is a lovely, renovated lunch spot in Lethbridge, Alberta

Bread Milk & Honey is a lovely, renovated lunch spot in Lethbridge, Alberta

Here’s another brave soul taking over a beloved restaurant personified by its longstanding owner. In this case, the location is Lethbridge, Alberta and the new restaurateur is Michael Knipe, who bought the Round Street Café a few years after moving from South Africa to Canada.

He takes over from Bonnie Greenshields, revered as much for helping feed the city’s homeless as producing superb sandwiches and pies. But after a decade, she wanted to sell.

The resulting Bread Milk & Honey, which opened in August, is a mix of new and old. The downtown restaurant has been thoroughly renovated, and a lovely space it is, with high ceilings, lots of light and gorgeous wood paneling along the counter.

Manager Susan Roberts and owner Michael Knipe

Manager Susan Roberts and owner Michael Knipe

Knipe was smart enough to retain popular menu items like the signature chicken, brie and avocado sandwich. Just about everything is made from scratch, including daily soups (like Hungarian mushroom, cream and barley) and a spinach salad where the chicken isn’t grilled until the order is taken.

The chicken breast for this spinach salad isn't grilled until the order is taken

The chicken breast for this spinach salad isn’t grilled until the order is taken

One change is a decided emphasis on good coffee, whether it’s a carefully pulled shot or a pour over.The java goes down splendidly with a new item, a South African milk tartlet sprinkled with cinnamon.

The only thing I’m not wild about is the rather generic name, though apparently it’s the same as that of a café he started back home in Cape Town. But overall, I love the attention to detail and excellence, from the food to the décor.

Bread Milk & Honey
427 5 Street South, Lethbridge, Alberta
Weekdays 7 am-4:30 pm, Saturday 9 am-3 pm. Closed Sunday

Pigging Out at Edmonton’s Farrow Sandwiches

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Mason jar pour-overs at tiny Farrow Sandwiches in Edmonton

Mason jar pour-overs at tiny Farrow Sandwiches in Edmonton

Following in the footsteps of Vancouver’s Meat & Bread and fellow Edmontonian Elm Cafe, Farrow Sandwiches is bringing a decidedly minimalist approach to the city’s Garneau neighbourhood.

Like the former, Farrow offers a rotating menu of just four sandwiches, along with some high-end coffee. Like the latter, the space is tiny. Tiny as in three high window seats and a counter, a coffee-making space and a wee grill that collectively spans a few paces. Think food truck with indoor ordering.

The industrial soundtrack might be enough to make an oldster like me just grab my butcher block-wrapped sammy and head to a streetside picnic table or my car, anyway. (I was the oldest customer by a factor of at least two, but I can generally hang with the young’uns.)

Besides, in a place like this, it’s all about the food. I go with the popular, breakfasty Grick Middle ($7), the only constant on a menu that includes a daily vegetarian option. When it’s this simple, the details count and they nail them with a chewy Portuguese roll, thick strips of bacon, a slightly runny egg, rosemary aioli and a knockout tomato jam.

A fabulous egg and bacon sandwich on Portuguese, with a tomato jam kicker

A fabulous egg and bacon sandwich on Portuguese, with a tomato jam kicker

There are three types of non-espresso coffee, all from high-end beans like Stumptown and Drop Coffee. One is brewed (“fast”), one is “slow”—a pour-over into a big Mason jar—and the third is a cold brew. The two young owners of this new eatery obviously have a passion for sandwiches and coffee and are wisely sticking to their expertise.

Farrow Sandwiches
8422 109 Street, Edmonton
Weekdays 8 am-4 pm, weekends 9 am-4 pm. Closed Tuesday
Click to add a blog post for Farrow Sandwiches on Zomato

Happy Huckleberry in Santa Monica

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Huckleberry is a fun, happening place in Santa Monica, California

Huckleberry is a fun, happening place in Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica’s Huckleberry can get kinda loud. Not pounding music loud. More happy customers chatting with friends and enjoying a late breakfast or lunch loud.

Oh, it can get pretty busy, too, with people lining up at the counter to order a brisket hash or a lentil ragu with poached eggs for breakfast or a butternut squash salad for lunch. I opt for a recommended warm turkey meatball sandwich ($12), hold the extra burrata cheese. Great choice. The meatballs melt in my mouth, the tomato sauce slops my chops, the soft bread making everything pillowy smooth.

Warm turkey meatball sandwich certainly hits the spot

Warm turkey meatball sandwich certainly hits the spot

It’s not cheap. But like it’s sister Santa Monica restaurant Milo & Olive, the first-class food is mostly made from scratch and imaginatively put together. If you’ve got room, the baked treats will weaken your resolve, I assure you.

Huckleberry
1014 Wilshire Boulevard, Santa Monica, California
Weekdays 8 am-8 pm (lunch starting at 11 am), weekends 8 am-5 pm
Huckleberry Café on Urbanspoon

A Staggeringly Good Sandwich in Downtown Oakland

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Deciding what delicious sandwich to order at Stags Lunchette in downtown Oakland

Deciding what delicious sandwich to order at Stags Lunchette in downtown Oakland

I ask the guy at the counter of Stags Lunchette if they have a takeout (or even an online) menu. “No, we change it every couple of weeks,” he says.

I could stare up at the board and decipher the intriguing list of sandwiches currently on offer at this a bustling little place in downtown Oakland. Instead, I do something distinctly un-Canadian and start asking customers, seated at high tables in the darkened space, what they’re eating. One woman has turned a grilled wild mushroom tartine into a heaping salad, which she is  jealously guarding with a fork. A nearby guy is tucking into a heaping smoked meatloaf sandwich, which he says is great, especially if you like extra bacon.

No point salivating over these selections. Stags' menu changes constantly

No point salivating over these selections. Stags’ menu changes constantly

I decide to test them on a simple grilled cheese sandwich, which in Stags’s hands (hooves?) is a not-so-simple mix of Belfiore mozza and Wykes aged white cheddar. And how can I resist adding some whiskey bacon chutney, bringing this gourmet comfort-food total to $7, including a little spring salad and wee gerkins.

Just calling this a grilled cheese does this sandwich a disservice

Just calling this a grilled cheese sandwich does it a disservice

I could tell you what to order. But by the time you read this, you’ll have to do your own detective work on a fresh menu. Just make sure you go. I can tell you it’s damn good.

Stags Lunchette
362 17 Street, Oakland, California
Weekdays 8 am-3 pm, Saturday 9 am-3 pm. Closed Sunday
Stag's Lunchette on Urbanspoon

Fantastic Lunches at Magpie Cafe in Sacramento, California

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Magpie Cafe, in Sacramento California, serves the perfect BLT, with simple, sensational ingredients

Magpie Cafe, in Sacramento California, serves the perfect BLT, with simple, sensational ingredients

Usually, I know what I want to order within seconds of scanning a menu. But at *Magpie Cafe, on the edge of downtown Sacramento, California, I’m at a complete loss. My first instinct is to go with the duck confit salad. But then I see an absolutely loaded, pulled-pork sandwich slide past on a server’s arm. Hmmm. The grilled Diestel natural turkey sandwich, with sage cheddar, also looks enticing. And I’m only halfway through a lunch menu of sandwiches and salads. Aaargh!

Hard to resist this duck confit salad

Hard to resist this duck confit salad

I finally settle on a boring, summer BLT (a steal at $9.25), if you can call bursting-with-flavour orange heirloom tomatoes, thick-cut bacon, cress and caper aioli on a fresh baguette boring. Even the scoop of potato salad seems to contain heirloom, blue potatoes. In all, it’s simple but simply outstanding ingredients, creative details and great execution by owners Ed Roehr and Janel Inoyue and their attentive staff. Sandwich makers of the world, take note.

I’m so focused on the food, I scarcely look at the inviting surroundings—scrubbed, old brick walls and exposed ductwork running along the high ceiling. But I do notice the line of salivating customers forming behind me in late morning. They’re no doubt waiting for me to make up my damn mind.

People lining up for fabulous sandwiches and salads at lovely Magpie Cafe

People lining up for fabulous sandwiches and salads at lovely Magpie Cafe

Magpie Cafe
1409 R Street, Sacramento, California
Monday to Wednesday 10:30 am-9 pm, Thursday-Friday 10:30 am-10 pm, Saturday 8 am-10 pm, Sunday 8 am-2 pm
Magpie Cafe on Urbanspoon

I finish my midtown Sacramento afternoon with an exacting pour-over at elegant, spare Temple Coffee, arguably the best California roaster not located on the coast.

Temple Coffee might be the best California roaster not on the west coast

Temple Coffee might be the best California roaster not on the west coast

Temple Coffee Roasters
1010 9 Street (two other Sacramento locations)
Daily 6 am-11 pm
Temple Coffee on Urbanspoon