Thursday, October 21, 2010

Grand Slamming the Double Down

Guys honestly I can't hear any more about the Double Down. Since this hype-generating monstristy emerged in the U.S. I have been bombarded with calls, texts, wall posts, smoke signals, smoked meat faxes etc. This Sandwich is famous in a way that Paris Hilton and Snooki have made the norm in the 21st century.


I hereby agree to NEVER review, eat, or otherwise discuss the Double Down on this blog.   


And besides,  if you want a pure monstrosity of artery-clogging Sandwich Hare-Kare, I offer you this recent monstrosity I had at Denny's. Despite the silly political wrangling over the issue, the Double Down seems like lo-cal fair in comparison to  THE GRAND SLAMWICH!!!!.


The Grands Slamwich consists of: 

  • Scrambled Eggs
  • Sausage
  • Bacon 
  • Ham (therefore it contains the Pig Trifecta)
  • Gobs of Mayonnaise 
  • Processed cheese

All between two pieces of maple-glazed thick toast. 




A peek inside the Pork Trifecta 


Here I am  smiling while awaiting the inevitable  Pig-Coma




This thing pretty much equals death weighing it at a COLOSSAL 1230 Calories, with 89!!!!!!! grams of fat. 

vs. the pitiful in comparison Double Down:  



SandwichCaloriesFat (g)Sodium (mg)
KFC Original Recipe® Double Down540321380



Impressions :



  • Really Pork-y. I'm pretty sure "Babe" spoke to me on the third bite. 
  • Due to the varied contents of the Sandwich, each bite offered a different mixture of tastes, textures & salt... lots of salt. 
  • Decent maintenance of Sandwich Integrity. 
  • Sluggishness began to set in by 2nd half of Sandwich.
  • Scrambled eggs reminded me of warming tray eggs at a Holiday Inn Express complimentary breakfast. 
  • WAY too much mayo.
  • Real cheese would have added a much-needed sharpness to this Sandwich. 
Overall Judgment: 

4.5/10 

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Law-Wiches Volume 1

Roughly one year ago I had a discussion with the then Director of Career Services at Osgoode.  I had recently sent her a copy of my Curriculum Vitae and was meeting her for a mock-interview for the O.C.I (On-Campus Interviews) recruitment process. When I got there, the first thing she remarked was:

"I noticed you referenced creator of  'The Great Canadian Sandwich Blog' in your interests section. Is this something you REALLY want to convey to corporate law firms"

I responded
"Well, I'm pretty sure I couldn't work for a law-firm that exhibits an inherent anti-Sandwich bias".

Throughout the recruiting process, my conversations with lawyers were EXTREMELY Sandwich-oriented. One of the most frequent questions was: What's the Best Sandwich near Bay Street. Luckily for me, I managed to snag a job at a terrific firm on Bay Steet. Over the course of the summer I challenged my Sandwich Taste Buds and I now present to you:

LAW-WICHES - A Survey of the Financial District's Tastiest Sandwiches:

Entry #1 - Osgoode Hall Dining Room

Within my first week as a summer student, I was taken on the obligatory tour of Osgoode Hall.


In addition to creating a great deal of location as to the location of the Law School I attend, Osgoode Hall also houses: The Ontario Court of Appeal, the divisional division of the Superiour Court of Justice, the Law Society of Upper Canada and what will be focused on for the purposes of this blog, the Osgoode Hall Dining Room. 

The dining room is run by the Law Society and feels sufficiently lawyerly. Unfortunately, its Sandwiches are more  1st-year associate rather than equity partner.

I ordered a Club Sandwich and was woefully underwhelmed with the result. 


Although the Sandwich was visually appealing, this only contributed to my later disappointment.  The Turkey was dry. The Cheese was underwhelming. The Bread was overly-toasted which gave an extremely unpleasant mouth-scraping sensation. The Bacon was sufficiently smoky but felt overcooked.  The only thing I actually enjoyed about this was the fresh tomatoes.

Also at $16 bucks, I'm pretty sure one needs to bring their Sandwich A-Game to a much higher level than this tepid, uninspired Club. While several of my dining companions thoroughly enjoyed their sweet potato ravioli, clearly the Sandwich did not, on a balance of probabilities, satisfy this court of Sandwich Jurisdiction I feel that this Sandwich could/should be the subject of a complaint under s.23.04 of the L.S.U.C Guidelines - "the prohibition against Sharp Sandwich (bread) Practice".

Overall Judgment: 4/10 Opas.

Entry #2: Petite Thuet 

Petite Thuet is Celebrity Chef Marc Thuet's attempt to bring the patisserie concept to Downtown Toronto. Featuring delicious baked goods such as classic Macrons  (fancy french desert or colourful mini-hamburger... discuss), tasty shots of espresso and of course

SANDWICHES:



The Sandwiches, as seen above, are prepared in a centralized locations, briefly thawed in the microwaved (to bring it to room temperature) and then perfectly grilled on the Panini Press resulting in a criss-crossed of Sandwich near perfect symmetry.

Over the course of the summer I visited Petite Thuet and enjoyed many of their Sandwiches.

My summer selection included but was not limited to

Chicken w/ Provolone, Speck and Pesto (also seen above)




Roast Beef w/ Saurkraut and Swiss on Pretzel Bread:

























Comments:
  • Although pre-packed, these Sandwiches taste INCREDIBLY fresh
  • Fantastic bread
  • Great Content/Topping pairings
  • Very reasonable price for locale (10 bucks gets you a Sandwich and salad) 
  • No ability to customize, for those Sandwich connoisseurs who NEED to have some element of control 
Overall Judgment:
9/10 Opas

I think this place was probably my favorite Sandwich destination within the Financial District. Also there are more locations in Rosedale, Bath & Eg and the St. Lawrence Market District, so you don't need to be on Bay St to eat like you are.

Entry #3 - Pumpernickel's 

Pumpernickel's is primarily known for their deli-ish offerings as well as some decent catering.

While there was a bustling Pumpernickel's in First Canadian Place where my office was located, I preferred the more relaxed location in the TD Centre.

I only went for a Sandwich of theirs once, a VERY serviceable Philly Cheesesteak:


Comments: 
  • I was extremely impressed with the crusty roll. It held up PERFECTLY to the cheese-steak. Definetly a better roll than the ones' offered at previously reviewed Reggie's and my cheese-steak goto Great Steak and Potato. 
  • The beef was clearly the same beef that was used in the roast beef feature. As a result it was tender but far too thick and chewy for an authentic cheese-steak experience. This was the biggest 
  • The cheese, stringy mozzarella, melted perfectly but didn't A) add the flavor of provolone or  B) The Gooey creaminess of Whiz 










Overall Judgment: 7.5/10 Opas