1. Phnom Penh Combo (Annie’s Cambodian Cuisine, Eureka) – deliciously spiced meats (chicken, pork, beef) on a crusty roll with pickled vegetables. Only served at lunch, and only about five bucks. They’ve got like three different hot sauces on the table if you need more spice. I’ve written about this place before, and I have yet to be even mildly disappointed with a single dish there.
2. PLT (provolone, lettuce, and tomato – Amelia’s, Garberville) – This sandwich, I’m told, was a spontaneous late night creation frying up thin slices of provolone cheese to a bacon-like flavor and texture, and making a play on the classic BLT. It’s served on a great roll, and with a salad.
3. Chicken Torta Sandwich (Speedy Taco, Eureka) – That trailer restaurant you drive by in the Broadway Theater parking lot has some good food. Their spicy chicken torta sandwich is a favorite of mine. Very reasonable, nicely spiced, quick, and yummy.
4. Chicken Parm (Damato’s, Redway) – Love their chicken parmigiana on a Santo Roll (worth the extra buck for the right bread!). One in a line of great sandwiches and possibly the best pizza in the county.
5. Roast Beef, Avocado, Veggie, and Horseradish Sandwich (Wildberries, Arcata) – I don’t know what the sandwich is called, or even if it has a name, but my wife bought one for me one time and brought it to me while I was working, and it was delicious. I’ve just never made it back to get another one. Does it ring a bell for anyone?
So what great sandwich experience am I missing?
45 comments
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June 5, 2011 at 5:36 pm
Andrew Bird
I had a tofu sandwich at Amelia’s last year that might be the best sandwich I’ve ever had.
June 5, 2011 at 5:42 pm
Eric Kirk
They have some great sandwiches there. My second favorite of theirs is the chicken curry on great wheat bread.
June 5, 2011 at 5:50 pm
Sally
The turkey wraps from Chautauqua’s Cafe Minou are good – and a perfect “fast fix” if you need a quick lunch, since they are freshly pre-made, and available to grab from the fridge. If you let them sit at room temperature for awhile, the flavors are enhanced. They stuff so many veggies into it, it truly feels like a balanced meal. Amellia’s “reuben dog” – local all-beef hot dog on an organic bun, with thousand island dressing, melted cheese, and Bubbie’s Sauerkraut, is a wonderful guilty pleasure for lunch, as well!
June 5, 2011 at 5:53 pm
Sally
Oh wait… I forgot to mention my Mom’s home-made hoagies. She lives in Fortuna, and makes them for friends and family… a labor of love, which can’t be bought.
June 5, 2011 at 5:57 pm
WTF
“1. Phnom Penh Combo (Annie’s Cambodian Cuisine, Eureka)” Eric I thought you said dogs were excluded from you top 5 list?
June 5, 2011 at 5:58 pm
Eric Kirk
Well Sally, I was referring to sandwiches to purchase. I have a great melted cheese with cashews sandwich, but I didn’t include that either.
Chautaqua has some excellent sandwiches. I once bought a mango chutney brie cucumber sandwich there which knocked my socks off.
June 5, 2011 at 6:03 pm
Eric Kirk
“1. Phnom Penh Combo (Annie’s Cambodian Cuisine, Eureka)” Eric I thought you said dogs were excluded from you top 5 list?
WTF – Maybe I’m succumbing to political correctness here, but don’t you think that comment was just a little bit racist?
June 5, 2011 at 6:13 pm
Sally
Eric, sorry I didn’t play by the rules.
I guess my tummy is talking, since we are about to eat dinner. In spite of the rules, I miss the Chimney Tree. That was an iconic bit of SoHum seasonal dining I feel lucky to have experienced… that, and Pelican’s Landing in Shelter Cove, in the 1980′s when the Mosquito Fishing Fleet still thrived here.
June 5, 2011 at 6:18 pm
tra
mango chutney brie cucumber sandwich
Damn that sounds good! Is that something they have all the time, or just an occasional special?
June 5, 2011 at 6:25 pm
Ettersburg local
It’s appears you have not eaten any of the gourmet sandwiches from
Caffe Dolce located in the Whitethorn Construction yard. All of their
sandwiches are great, but the Cobb is my favorite: Diestel turkey,applewood smoked bacon, avocado, tomatos, & red onions on Focaccia bread with a Pt. Reyes bleu cheese mayo, mmm.
I love the California,too…roast beef swiss cheese, spinach and horseradish mayo, with balsamic marinated onions.
They also make a great Reuben. They make all their own sauces.
They do all the coffee drinks, and homemade pasteries.
My wife says they make the only $10 sandwich that’s worth $10….(and some are cheaper)
They’re only open til 3:30 M-F, I think…..
I’ve eaten sandwiches all over this county, and IMHO Caffe Dolce
is the best…
June 5, 2011 at 6:36 pm
mresquan
Whatever you order at Deo’s on Grotto St. in Henderson Center…always good.
June 5, 2011 at 6:46 pm
Eric Kirk
I haven’t been there E.L., but I have to take a series of trips to Shelter Cove over the next few weeks on business. I’ll give them a try.
Damn that sounds good! Is that something they have all the time, or just an occasional special?
They have different sandwiches all the time. I think all of their sandwiches are “specials.” I only ate the one sandwich, but if you know you’ll be there on a particular day maybe call them and request it. They usually have a couple of sandwiches and they make them all in the morning. Once they’re out, they’re out. I’ve never been disappointed in a sandwich.
June 5, 2011 at 7:20 pm
brian
Z & J Subs, across the street from Target…..very yummy.
June 5, 2011 at 7:28 pm
Samoasoftball
I am hungry! What about hole in the wall? Or the CO-OP in Eureka? Great sandwich post Eric. The God Father at Mazzoti’s or any sandwich at Babe’s Pizza. Many others.
June 5, 2011 at 7:37 pm
Bolithio
Z & J Subs, across the street from Target
Second. Best pulled pork in the county.
June 5, 2011 at 8:03 pm
Hank Sims
Z&J, by all means. A bit pricey, though.
The SE Asian at Don’s Donuts.
And the official sub of Lost Coast Communications — Ferndale Pizza’s capicola. Goddamn, that is a sandwich.
June 5, 2011 at 8:09 pm
Eric Kirk
The SE Asian at Don’s Donuts.
You’ve told me about those sandwiches before, and still I haven’t tried one!
June 5, 2011 at 8:09 pm
Hank Sims
Oh wait — the muffuleta at Hole in the Wall Arcata.
Carmen Asada torta at the taco truck behind bar row in Arcata.
Luke’s Joint’s pork things are insanely good, but maybe don’t technically count as sandwiches.
June 5, 2011 at 8:13 pm
Hank Sims
When you finally do get around to Don’s, I strongly advise you to kick in the extra 50 cents for BBQ pork or chicken.
June 5, 2011 at 8:21 pm
WTF
“racist?” that’s a reach. It is a phact that dog is served and eaten in Cambodia, just like in many parts southeast asia and elsewhere. Been there done that! You need to buy a sense of humor. I still can’t believe you can only pick 2 of the 5 best sandwiches from SoHum, maybe you should move to where the food is better?
June 5, 2011 at 8:42 pm
tra
These sandwich descriptions are literally making me salivate…and I just ate dinner about an hour ago!
June 5, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Lodgepole
Yep, Z & J’s. Fuckin’ killer.
June 5, 2011 at 9:48 pm
M.E.
The Caffe Dolce is also open on Sats. now. They have a menu and the sanwhiches ettersberg local spoke of are some of the regulars. They also do sushi but that is a special and time to time. They have yummy deserts and do make a great sandwhich.
June 5, 2011 at 9:59 pm
Eric Kirk
“racist?” that’s a reach. It is a phact that dog is served and eaten in Cambodia, just like in many parts southeast asia and elsewhere. Been there done that! You need to buy a sense of humor. I still can’t believe you can only pick 2 of the 5 best sandwiches from SoHum, maybe you should move to where the food is better?
Well, back in high school when my friends told black jokes they also said that I needed a sense of humor. I just don’t appreciate humor made at the expense of an ethnic group of people. I guess that’s just how I was raised.
June 5, 2011 at 10:36 pm
WTF
Glad to hear you have not changed much since High School. Maybe if you were Black or Cambodian you could appreciate the humor. Sorry to hear about how you were raised.
June 6, 2011 at 12:07 am
Anonymous
Cambodians eat dogs Eric. Don’t you get it? So you better watch out because if you go to a Cambodian restaurant you might get served dog. It’s funny! Really it is!
June 6, 2011 at 12:18 am
tra
Perhaps 30 or 40 years ago, most people would have considered the “dog” remark to be harmless, and at least some might have considered it witty.
But nowadays I think most people would consider it a racial slur. I certainly do. Either way, it was neither original, nor clever. Don’t quit your day job, WTF.
June 6, 2011 at 8:15 am
Plain Jane
Another vote for Z & J’s. And their wraps are wonderful too.
June 6, 2011 at 8:18 am
Plain Jane
As to Z & J’s being a bit pricey, their subs are huge – really 2 generous sandwiches for most people.
June 6, 2011 at 9:03 am
Eric Kirk
On the dog meat comment, as a teenager living in Pacifica we did a lot of business with a Chinese-owned butcher. My grandmother and step-grandfather also lived in Pacifica, and my step-grandfather was a nice old man who could never quite let go of old racist tendencies. He would not do business with the butcher because of the owner. He said it was “unclean” and “you never know where the meat is coming from.” As a retired truck driver, he was also very generous with his opinions on Chinese drivers.
He also refused to watch basketball because there are “too many jigs in it.” When I pointed out that there were plenty of black people in baseball and football, both of which he watched religiously. But they were different because they “didn’t have the same attitude.”
I’m sorry, but I think WTF comes from that same generation, or is heavily influenced thereby.
June 6, 2011 at 9:33 am
WTF
tra~Okey dokey, will do, roger and out! Next time I will only poke fun if it’s a Swiss sandwich/restaurant and are serving Hundeschinken or gedörrtes Hundefleisch. bon appétit………..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_slur
June 6, 2011 at 10:00 am
WTF
Yes, that made perfect sense, thanks for sharing. Please stay tuned for the next edition of Psychic Friends Network, with your host, Eric Kirk…..
June 6, 2011 at 2:34 pm
Not A Native
WTF’s comment is just pure racism. No two ways about it. Using legal principles, its prima facie racist. There’s no need to explain or justify calling it out for being exactly what it is (period).
And yes Eric, its the kind of adolescent thing you thought everyone leaves behind with High School. But you forget that for many around here, High School was the pinnacle of their achievement.
June 6, 2011 at 3:17 pm
Fred
You’re fine by me, WTF. I once had someone tell me I made a racist comment because I referred to the Japanese as Japs. I get more than a bit annoyed with that sort of thing.
June 6, 2011 at 10:23 pm
Eric Kirk
I forgot the excellent chicken salad sandwiches at Bella’s Cafe at Dazey’s in Redway. To my knowledge, the only chicken salad sandwich available in Sohum!
June 7, 2011 at 8:09 am
Jon Brooks
I kinda like McIntosh’s on Giuntoli Lane in Arcata, the balt (bacon, avacado, lettuce, tomato), and the tri-tip are good choices. Close to my work, and they passed the health/safety inspection too, according to the NCJ.
June 7, 2011 at 4:09 pm
Eric Kirk
and they passed the health/safety inspection too, according to the NCJ.
Well, that’s a plus!
June 7, 2011 at 7:49 pm
Bolithio
I worked in a Chinese restaurant and the owner openly told me that they ate dog in his home province of china and had no apologies about it. He told me Americans have an attachment with animals like dogs or cats that “his people” simply did not have. Meat is meat, what the problem?
Ive eaten at amy’s and there was no dog, but the other food was a good!
June 7, 2011 at 11:37 pm
Not A Native
Bolithio, I do’t understand what is the point you’re making here?
Lets say someone alluded to a potential Eureka South American restaurant serving human flesh. Would you remark that you know that there are indiginous tribes in South America that ritually consume human flesh and also point out that a Catholic Communion is a similar ritual, so its really no big deal and there’s no basis to call the allusion a racist slur?
June 7, 2011 at 11:50 pm
Anonymous
The test of a bigoted statement is whether it stigmatizes. Clearly it does.
June 8, 2011 at 8:28 am
Violet
Flavors in Garberville has excellent sandwiches, especially the chicken club.
June 9, 2011 at 9:08 am
Bolithio
I wasn’t making a point really, just sharing an experience. But I guess I feel like its a stretch to call the comment a racist slur. Ethnic foods are almost always strange to other ethnic groups no? They eat a ton of whale meat in Norway (blubber butts). Snails and frogs in France (dirty frogs!!). Dogs in Asia (dogeaters?). Americans eat yellow #5 and genetically “enhanced” corn (cracker!). I personally watched people in Bangkok feast on cockroaches served up in a street market (I ate a few!!). How many racial slurs have I just made?
I agree we cant ignore racism, but bringing attention to an ignorant comment doesn’t seem to help either. Whats happening, is WTF really trying to alienate Cambodians – or did he just simply make a raw joke about se Asian food? We all know that 1) they dont serve dog at Anies; and 2) dog is commonly eaten in Asia. So what? Im not offended.
BTW if they did have dog, Id try it for sure.
June 9, 2011 at 12:45 pm
Not A Native
But you’re missing the implications of the point you make Bolithio. The remark is about a meal in Eureka, not Bangkok or Phnom Penh. It was a message to remember that people of that culture are ‘the other’ and if they come here can’t ever be relied on to be “American” like us.
They have ‘a taste for dog’, and always will, so don’t forget that.. They’re different from you and me and maybe, just maybe, even if they don’t have it in the restaurnat they eat dog at home and probably do other unspeakable, disgusting unAmerican things. The remark is pure racism.
June 9, 2011 at 5:57 pm
gauri635
The “Black Forest Ham with Brie & Raspberry Chipotle Sauce on Croissant” at Cafe Bella’s (at Dazey’s) in Redway is pretty amazing and very popular!
June 10, 2011 at 9:09 am
Eric Kirk
Oooh, that sounds good! Cafe Bella only has a few food items, but what she does, she does well.