Stewart’s Turkey at the Rackhouse Pub

Today, October 31, 2009, was the big day.  The Rackhouse Pub opened today and unveiled what will probably be one of the hottest attractions in Denver.  No, not the 20-some-odd Colorado craft brews or the Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey.  The hot attraction is their “Stewart’s Turkey” sandwich.

Although we were not the first lunch patrons in the pub’s existence, I was the first to have the Stewart’s Turkey – see video below:

more about “Stewart’s Turkey at the Rackhouse Pub“, posted with vodpod

My reaction after eating the rest of the burger/sandwich – it’s really good and worthy of the Stewart name.  I was not consulted on the creation of this sandwich, but I’m proud to have my name associated with it.

Here’s an ingredient-by-ingredient break down of Stewart’s Turkey:

• The Turkey Burger itself – solid.
• Cheese – i’m not a HUGE brie fan, but this was a very mild brie and it was better probably because it was melted.
• Tomato – I have a weird thing about tomatoes. I hate them when they are plain, but I love salsa, spaghetti sauce and bruschetta.  In other words, I like tomatoes when they are seasoned.  The tomatoes on this burger are awesome.  They seriously make the sandwich.
• Balsamic drizzle – I don’t know if I have had a Turkey Sandwich with balsalmic vinaigrette on it.  It’s not a combination you hear about everyday.  I’m a big fan of balsalmic though.  In fact, I usually get it on the salad that I order once a year.
• Bun – don’t act like the bun’s not a big deal.  It is. I like the fact that it’s a MULTI-GRAIN bun.  Kind of like me. I’m MULTI-TALENTED.

That’s it.  Go get yourself a Stewart’s Turkey at the Rackhouse Pub.  Think of it as a tribute to the Turkey Sandwich Report.  Oh, and tell ‘em Stewart sent ya.

Robots want to know: Is a Turkey Bologna Sandwich a Turkey Sandwich or Bologna Sandwich?

more about “Robots want to know: Is a Turkey Bolo…“, posted with vodpod

 

Turkey Sandwich Report Mailbag: Cheese Edition

From time to time, the Turkey Sandwich Report gets a some questions about sandwiches.  We are a full-service blog and we want to make sure our loyal readers get the answers they need.  So, let’s open up the ol’ Turkey Sandwich Report and see what people want to know.

What kind of cheese would you suggest for someone who is new to the different kinds of cheese? I just want to know what would be best for a plain turkey sandwich – turkey, lettuce, pickle, mayo, etc.

-Jenny

Jenny, I always tell people to start simple.  I’ve seen too many people go nuts with their cheese selections in the early stages and go off the deep end they’re never able to recover.  We don’t want that to happen to you.  I think Swiss is a nice, easy going cheese and pairs well with a lot of different kinds of Turkey.

From there, your progression should be: Provelone, Mild Cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Colby Jack, Mozzarella, Havarti, Pepper Jack, Medium Cheddar, Cream Cheese, Asiago, Port Wine, Gouda, Smoked Gouda, Brie, Sharp Cheddar, Gorgonzola and finally White Stilton.

IMPORTANT NOTE: BEGINNERS SHOULD FOLLOW THIS LIST EXACTLY. NO DEVIATIONS.

You might be asking about Feta cheese and wondering why it’s not on the list.  This is on purpose.  Feta and Jarlsberg don’t belong on Turkey Sandwiches. 

The Turkey Sandwich, with a Touch of Class

Fancy Turkey Sandwich, originally uploaded by nealdstewart.

Not all Turkey Sandwiches come from shit-hole delis, gas stations or dirt bag taverns. Even the Turkey Sandwich Report steps up in class every once in a while.

We really stepped it up last night in Seattle after seeing Ben Folds perform with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the TSR dined at local hot spot, Purple Cafe. Sure they offer “syrah poached mission figs with prosciutto di parma” and “roasted new zealand pork chops”, but they also offer a Turkey Sandwich.

This particular Turkey Sandwich comes with Harvari, crisp bacon (fucking good bacon, too),  red pepper mayo and a nice mixed greens salad on the side.  As you can see from the photo, it’s a nice presentation.  I chose to pair my Turkey Sandwich with a nice Pinot Noir from Napa.  I thought that the roasted turkey and salty bacon did a nice job of bringing out the citrus flavor of the dry pinot.  Very nice.

See, even the Turkey Sandwich can class its ass up every once in a while.  You didn’t think we had it in us did you?

Next up, we’ll be debating whether Turkey Bologna is really a Turkey Sandwich or Bologna Sandwich.

Denver Awaits the Arrival of STEWART’S TURKEY

Big news people.  My protege, Chris Rippe is opening a bar in Denver called the Rackhouse Pub.  It’s in the same building as the new Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey Distillery.  That’s all fine and dandy, but the really big news is that he will be serving a Turkey Sandwich called “Stewart’s Turkey.”

Yes, that’s right – there is now a Turkey Sandwich named after yours truly, the Founder of this Turkey Sandwich Report.  I visited Chris today and talked to him about this epic sandwich. Click here or on the video below to view why he named it after me.

The Rackhouse Pub opens on 10/30/09.  You can follow them on Twitter here.

She’s Mrs. Turkey Sandwich for a Reason

We’re down in Texas this week visiting some friends and for you loyal readers of the Turkey Sandwich Report, you know that means one thing: a Turkey Sandwich from the Gristmill.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to accompany Mrs. Turkey Sandwich as she made the trek from Austin down to New Braunfels for dinner at the Gristmill last night.  But when she came back from the journey, she delivered a perfect Turkey Sandwich.  And THAT’S why she’s Mrs. Turkey Sandwich, people.

To Grant a Reader’s Wish, I Ate at Capriotti’s

Capriotti’s Turkey Sandwich, originally uploaded by nealdstewart.

A while back a loyal reader of the Turkey Sandwich Report pratically begged me to try a place in Vegas called Capriotti’s. Not only did she want me to eat there, she implored me to try a particular sandwich: The Bobbie.

Well, dreams do come true. I was in Vegas this week and just as we were about to settle and have In N Out, I remembered her plea for me to eat at Capriotti’s. Sure enough it was about 5 blocks away and all of the sudden, I found myself on verge of fulfilling this reader’s wish.

The Bobbie is what I like to call a “Faux Thanksgiving Sandwich” which will draw instant comparisons to the PJ Gobbler at Pat’s Philly Cheesesteaks in Denver. Here’s the tale of the tape on the two sandwiches:

Bread – edge, Capriotti’s
Stuffing – edge, Pat’s
Turkey, edge, Pat’s
presentation, PUSH (they both wrap their sandwiches in brown paper, which I like

So, a slight edge to Pat’s, but not by much. They are both solid sandwiches. Capriotti’s had just a little too much dark meat for my taste and that’s what won it out for Pat’s.

Dibella’s Old Fashioned Submarines

Dibella’s Old Fashioned Submarines, originally uploaded by nealdstewart.

DiBella’s is a cute little place. They have a bunch of those old fashioned Coca-Cola signs on the wall and their people are dressed as if they are working at a New York Deli in the 1940s.

But there is something wrong with this picture. If you look closely, you’ll notice that this sandwich (which happens to be the Dagwood) is served cold. I would think that workers at a REAL, old fashioned sub shop would have made for damn sure to ask whether I wanted my sandwich “hot” or “cold”. I would have chosen “hot” if I was given the chance, but I wasn’t.

You might be think that I am over-reacting, but I’m not. The Dagwood is on the hot and cold sandwich menu. Mr. Shop was throwing mustard on my sub before I could even tell him that I wanted it hot.

You might notice a pattern here. I had the same problem at QFC a couple weeks ago with what has become to be known as “The yellow mustard incident.” Same thing happened here. This guy was in a hurry to put the mustard on the sandwich and be off and running.

Once again, the lesson to be learned is to get your shit together before answering what condiments you want on the sandwich. Unless you want a complete mess on your hands, a sandwich cannot be heated up once the condiments are on there.

Please do not let this happen to you. If I can save one sandwich from being ruined, I’ve done my job.

As it turned out. the sandwich was still pretty damn good. Their version of the Dagwood is Turkey, Ham and Corned Beef. I could have done without the Corned Beef, which was a little fatty for my taste, but the bread was good. But it would have been better served hot.

The Biggest Turkey Sandwich Letdown of All-Time

For the last couple weeks, I’ve been talking up the Turkey Sandwiches from the QFC Deli.  For those of you not in the Northwest, QFC stands for “Quality Food Centers” and most of the stores have a nice little deli featuring Boar’s Head meats and cheeses along with some REAL Turkey breast slices.  I visit a lot of grocery stores for my full-time job and QFC has been a reliable source of Turkey Sandwich pick-me-ups.

Until today.

To order a sandwich from the QFC deli, you fill out a sheet of paper and tell them exactly what you want (a la Which Wich).  In the past, I’ve had really good luck matching up Boar’s Head Pastrami-seasoned Turkey with a nice Deli Mustard, so that’s what I went with today.  But here’s what I got:

Does this look like DELI MUSTARD? NO, because it is fucking YELLOW MUSTARD.  The problem with mustard is that once it’s on the sandwich, it’s on the sandwich.  At least with Mayo you can scrape it off and get rid of most of it.  Not with Yellow Mustard.

On top of that, the Whole Wheat Ciabatta sucked too.

The lesson learned here: It’s better to be the asshole who asks to see the mustard before it’s applied to the sandwich rather than the asshole who says “that’s the wrong mustard!” after it’s already hit the bread and they have to start over.  But whatever you do, don’t be the dipshit that I was today and just accept their mustard and hope that it’s going to turn out.

Horseradish is the New Mayo

You heard it here first.