Sandwich safari, german beer

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Good morning,

As we enter Oktoberfest season, specialty beers will be flowing and we have a few of those German imports for your drinking pleasure today.

It’s also the final installment of the Sandwich Safari and I’m happy to report on one of the best sandwiches of the year. You'll find it in Kanata, just a short drive from one of Ottawa’s finest brewers of German style beer: Kichissipi Beer Co.

Now let’s start lubricating our elbows and hoisting glasses. Ein Prosit!

PS — Beer lovers may know the German style of beer known as Gose (goes-uh). It’s made with salt and coriander and dates back to the early 1800s. At this writing, I’m drinking the best example I’ve yet had. It’s called Rittersgut and is available at the LCBO.

Ralf Joneikies, food and drink editor. [email protected]

SANDWICH SAFARI

Three sandwich shops worthy of a bite

In Haus Cooking

I reported on In Haus Cooking chef/owner Michael Hauschild a few weeks ago as he ended up competing in the Canadian Culinary regional championships held at Raphaël restaurant last night.

What I was keeping to myself in that report is how fabulous I found their Deli sandwich to be. Hauschild confessed that while his sandwich options rotate frequently, it’s the Deli sandwich that you’ll always find on the menu. 

He also proudly told me that the sandwich was created by 18-year-old culinary graduate Jackson Hall. On my visit, Hall had also served me one of the nicest lobster bisques in memory, you can read the original story here.

He’s assembled a sandwich that has all the elements in proportion from the selected combination of deli meats to the freshest vegetables and a delicious housemade Italian dressing.

The fillings were moist on beautifully baked in-house bread and came with a crisp side salad, all for only $15. 

At the moment, I’m still debating whether the In Haus Deli sandwich may not be the Sandwich of the Year.

Holly’s Gem

So I’m tooling about looking for the new location of a business I frequent in Holly’s Lane industrial park (on Walkley) and I’m coming up empty. 

I ended up at the last building  (2435 Holly Ln #100) on the southeast side when I noticed a sign for Holly’s Gem. I entered the building and was directed by another sign to the second floor. Now I was curious.

The sandwich shop is little more than a food counter, part of a nicely appointed kitchen area for the various businesses that share that floor. It’s a little surreal, but given rising commercial rents, we can expect to see more of these creative food businesses cropping up in unusual places.

Holly’s Gem is a Halal establishment and, I may be going out on the proverbial limb, but it owes not a little to the sandwiches of the great 50 Two Sandwiches. At first glance, the Holly’s menu had echoes of the 50 Two menu, including the eponymous Holly’s Gem sandwich.

This sandwich has chicken, candied Halal beef, cheddar and jalapeno lime aioli and an assortment of usual veg suspects. Save for the beef bacon, it’s identical to the 50 Two Candied Club sandwich, which made their reputation.

It’s a properly fresh and delicious construction using moist chicken breast and good “bacon”. You have a choice of free toppings and sauces as well as breads (as at 50 Two) and I selected the jalapeno cheese bun.

It was very enjoyable. Given the jalapeno aioli and my choice of jalapeno bread, I was surprised at how relatively mild it was but it did add that extra dimension I enjoy in a sandwich. Just a hint of heat.

The prices are just a few cents higher here than at 50 Two, and the sandwiches are less generously filled. They use very good bread, but unlike 50 Two, it’s not baked on site. 

Holly’s Gem was a surprise find in an unusual location and if you’re in the vicinity and need a good, quick lunch, this spot will satisfy. 

The Sandwich Stop

The Sandwich Stop at 2285 St. Laurent Blvd Building C #10, is another in a long line of informal eateries servicing workers in industrial parks. 

Brothers Tom and Manny bring 37 years of hospitality experience to their latest venture. After a series of restaurants in Kanata, and still hoping to enjoy greeting customers, they opted to downsize with a sandwich shop. 

In addition to their menu of 17 sandwiches, they also offer salads, soups and home-baked cookies. Eating here is a value proposition as sandwich prices range between $10.40 and $15. I ordered two sandwiches, the Italian Hero and The Bull.

As I have a meatball recipe that took years to get my hands on (a story for another time) I wanted to see how these Italian brothers fared with their meatball recipe. It was better than I was expecting. That included the bread, which they get from the in-house bakery at the Italian grocery store Farmer’s Pick. 

The meatballs were freshly made (with no fridge taste) with a mix of beef and pork and just the right amount of garlic and herbs. They were not too dense and tasted as if they’d been stewed in tomato sauce. 

The sauce too was fresh and house-made and although there was a blanket of mozzarella the sauce did its job of brightening and lightening the eating. Easily one of the best meatball sandwiches I’ve had in Ottawa.

The most expensive of their sandwiches is The Bull. This was a hefty Canadian AAA roast of top sirloin sliced and then layered with horseradish aioli, red onions, Havarti, lettuce and tomatoes. No deli meats here.

It was succulent and dripping with beef flavour and no one needed to tell Tom that red onion and horseradish are the sine qua non for a beef sandwich. An essential seasoning seemingly always missing from a beef sandwich is that “roast” character but here it was and along with the general tender quality, it made a world of difference.

In my talk with him, Tom proudly pointed to his vegetarian sandwich, emphasizing that he roasts the vegetables himself and that he feels this sandwich is one of the best veggie versions out there. 

I’ll take up that challenge and report back.

Suggested vegetarian and vegan stories

• District Deli is a neighbourhood sandwich shop star

• Fifty reasons you’ll love 50 Two Sandwiches

• Sweet and savoury sandwiches at new shop Korean Mother’s Meals

• Ottawa’s hidden sandwich gem

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BEER

German brews, just in time for Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest doesn’t need to be the excuse for drinking German beer, perhaps just a little more of it. This time of year certainly sees extra German brews landing at the LCBO and for me, that’s just fine. 

Andechs wheat beer doesn’t come along often. In fact it seems that I only find it once a year in the run-up to Oktoberfest. I can only recommend that you get your hands on it. It’s a truly delicious, unfiltered, cloudy and complex monastery brew. 

The Andechs monastery has existed since 1455 and is a stop on the German pilgrimage route. With that much tradition, it’s little wonder that the beer is heavenly. 180 bottles in the Ottawa market.

Weihenstephaner is recognized as the world’s oldest brewery. It’s no surprise, therefore, that they have scooped so many global awards this year alone, as you can read here. 

It’s a brand generally available at a number of LCBO shops around the province and if you haven’t tried it, I recommend you sample this benchmark German wheat beer. 

Hofbräu Original is one of the best-known lagers coming out of Germany. It’s a brewery with more than 500 years of tradition in Münich. 

Lagers are one of the easier styles to drink one after another which is why Hofbräu Original is one of the most consumed brews during Oktoberfest in Munich. 

To understand a little of its history watch this documentary on one of the most visited tourist destinations in Germany.

A benefit of recent liquor law changes allowing shops to carry wine and beer, is that you will often find items not available at the LCBO. For retailers, this is the right strategy.

This is a selection I found at everyone’s favourite import food store Duke Fine Foods in Kanata. I first wrote about Duke Fine Foods three years ago and in that time, they’ve expanded their product mix mightily. Apart from beer and wine they also now have a sandwich and hot food counter. 

With Oktoberfest coming up, it might just be time to try something new from their beer fridge.

Urpiner Exclusive 16 is a Slovakian Bohemian Pilsner with a little 7% alcohol kick to it. It pours a deep golden colour and has a soft mouthfeel with less carbonation than I expected. It’s very malt-forward with a bready finish.

The Benediktiner beers are pure German classics. They are made at the Ettal Abbey in Bavaria and have a 400 year history. Their brews are confined to a lager, wheat beers (original, dark and alcohol-free) and the occasional Fest (celebration) beer.

Hell is not a taste descriptor but the German word for “pale” or “light” in colour. This is a (in North American parlance) "crushable" lager that is a fresh and balanced everyday brew. 

Wheat beers are heavy on wheat and top-fermented meaning that fermentation takes longer due to the nature of the yeast. This develops greater character and a fine, persistent carbonation. 

This is a refreshing and complex wheat that will match the richness of roast pork hock with sauerkraut and boiled buttered potatoes. Let Oktoberfest begin.

QUICK BITES

• In the spirit of Oktoberfest, enjoy this video of the famous Munich Hofbrauhaus. [YouTube]

• Next stop on your German beer tour is Weihenstephan, the world’s oldest brewery. This is not just a lesson about the brewery but about the German Beer Purity Law. [YouTube]

• The final stop is the Andechs monastery brewery. An ancient brewery that now produces 10 million litres of beer each year. [YouTube]

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