Blog Wed Feb 27 2008

CB&J on Sourdough

My friend asked me what I was going to order. There's nothing vegan on the menu, he told me. The CB&J on sourdough drew my eye: "house-made" cashew butter and fig jam on sourdough, pan-fried. But it's got cheese, he said. So I order without. What about the macaroni and cheese it comes with? I ask for fries.

I'd been craving Hopleaf's fries, their greasy softness and crispy ends, ever since I found that I'd be going there, and even though they would certainly seem excessive on a plate next to the house-made, wafer thin and crispy potato chips, which the sandwich comes with. My friend reflected that there weren't many vegetarian options - you might as well be vegan. Our server nodded her head with certainty after I asked for the changes, as she took to her notepad.

The bread was perfectly crispy in certain places, yet soft, and reassuringly warm and oily. Its holes emitted fig jam. I think I felt the tiny, gentle seeds of the fig, adding more texture to the viscous jam. Cashew butter made the sandwich, giving a needed gooeyness and richness, yet subtle enough to nod to the figs and sourdough.

- Chris Brunn