The Charlottesville 29

Where to eat in Charlottesville

Tag: The Charlottesville 29 of Sandwiches

05/27/2022

#10: Deli-Egg and American on an Everything – Bodo’s Bagels

The Bodo’s Order

Insert your favorite Bodo’s sandwich here.

Everyone has their go-to order at Bodo’s. Charlottesville’s signature restaurant feeds 6,000 people per day. Sure, the options are endless. From the assortment of bagels and toppings, guests can play Iron Chef and create a different sandwich on each visit. Or, if they prefer, they can choose from the Bodo’s ordering guide, which includes dozens of unique combinations recommended by those who know best: Bodo’s staff. Work your way through them all.

But, amidst the variety, everyone has an order that they come back to time and again. Like a child reciting a poem by rote memory, they can say it by heart. Like this: “Deli-Egg and American on an Everything, cut in half.”

The Deli-Egg’s greatness is well-documented. Originally, it was a way for delicatessens to use scraps of deli meats and cheeses. Bodo’s version includes diced ends of pastrami, corned beef, ham, capicola, salami, provolone, Swiss, and Muenster, all folded into an omelet. Requesting more cheese some might consider gilding the lily. But, indulgence is no time for half-assing it.

#10: Deli-Egg and American on an Everything – Bodo’s Bagels
The Charlottesville 29 of Sandwiches

Others of Note: The Fox at Bodo’s Bagels, Your Go-To Order at Bodo’s Bagels

05/27/2022

#17: Grilled Pork Shoulder – Little Star

The Pork Sandwich

There’s something about pork sandwiches that causes people to, well, pig out. Often a pork sandwich involves not just one pig product, but several. The Italian, for example, piles pork products high. The Heaven, at BBQ Exchange, likewise fits pulled pork, sticky love bacon, and baconaisse all on a bun.

At Little Star, chef Reggie Calhoun pursues this piggie practice with his Grilled Pork Shoulder Sandwich. One might think that grilled pork shoulder, white cheddar, house pickles and dijonaisse would be plenty to stuff between a sesame seed brioche bun. But, there’s always room for more pork, so Calhoun finishes his delicious sandwich with a few slices of salami. Worth the piggery.

 

#17: Grilled Pork Shoulder Sandwich – Little Star
The Charlottesville 29 of Sandwiches

Others of Note: Dave’s Roast Pork at Chickadee, The Squeal at Kitchen(ette). Vegetarian Alternative: Grilled Broccolini and Mozz at The Fitzroy

05/26/2022

#11: Ace Dip – Ace Biscuit & Barbecue

The Barbecue Sandwich

It is easy to think of sandwiches as simple food, ready in seconds. Open the fridge, put some cold cuts on bread, and you’re done. But, for a chef as passionate as Brian Ashworth of Ace Biscuit & Barbecue, a great sandwich can take hours or even days to make.

For his Ace Dip, Ashworth transforms an ordinary pork barbecue sandwich into one that some call the best sandwich in town. He starts by smoking whole pork shoulders for 8-10 hours, placing them in a half pan as they smoke, to capture all the drippings, the condensed essences of pork and smoke. When the pork shoulders are done, he removes the bones and makes a stock from the bones, drippings, and aromatics like mirepoix, black peppercorns, garlic, and bay leaves. To that he adds roasted garlic, crushed red pepper, house-made hot sauce, vinegar, and brown sugar, brings it all to a boil, and thickens it with a simple roux of flour and butter. He then purees it and, voila, “smoky gravy.”

Meanwhile, Ashworth cooks yellow onions over very low heat for up to eight hours, slowly removing all of their water, and gently caramelizing them. For sandwich assembly, he smears house-made parsley-garlic butter on a bun and griddles it. On that, he piles pulled pork shoulder, caramelized onions, and provolone, and serves it with a cup of the smoky gravy for dipping.

Pork smoked all day. Eight-hour onions. Gravy redolent of smoke and swine. A bun with toasty butter and garlic. One bite of the sandwich dripping in gravy and you’ll never call sandwiches simple again.

The genius of smoked pork in liquid smoked pork dates back even further than Ace Biscuit & Barbecue’s opening in 2012. When Ashworth was a sous chef at Zocalo, he would lie awake at night and dream up ideas for a restaurant of his own, sometimes jumping out of bed to jot them down so he would not forget. Thank goodness for the Ace Dip he didn’t just roll back over.

#11: Ace Dip – Ace Biscuit & Barbecue
The Charlottesville 29 of Sandwiches

Others of Note: The Hot Mess at Vision BBQ Vegetarian Alternatives: The Vegetarian Option at Vision BBQ, BBQ Jackfruit Sandwich at Firefly (GFA)