Buying the dip

Welcome to the 10th edition of the Club:Sandwich Newsletter! Give yourself a pat on the back for making it this far, or better yet, treat yourself to a sandwich.

This week I went down a rabbit hole researching wet or dipped sandwiches. I feel like this is a pretty divisive category where people either:

a) Lika da juice

Or

b) Wonder why anyone would want to eat a soggy sandwich (like Jerry from Chicago who won’t touch a drippy Italian Beef even after the popularity of The Bear.)

Interestingly, many people who like wet sandwiches will still be offended when they unwrap a cheesesteak or parm and find a soggy roll. And many who don’t care for the dip are just fine with the squishy hoagie roll that you sometimes get with regular sandwiches. These are very complex issues that we’ll unpack here, which is why you’re #blessed to be part of Club:Sandwich. 🙏

So how did we get here? A few things happened. 

First, an LA-based club member sent the link for Phillipe - one of two LA restaurants that claim to have invented the French Dip sandwich. Drama.

Then, I had a conversation with a club member who said the Mexican sandwiches he’s had have all been on dry, crumbly bread. This hasn’t been my experience at all so I started to look into Mexican sandwiches a bit more, and eventually took an unexpected turn to something I’d never heard of - the Pambazo. 

The Pambazo has a few variations but the one that stood out to us featured a roll dipped in guajillo salsa and then grilled. It’s stacked with chorizo, potatoes, shredded lettuce, crema, and queso fresco.

But wait, there’s more! I also discovered a sandwich from Guadalajara that I’ve never had the pleasure of eating, the Torta Ahogada. The name of this one translates to “drowned sandwich” which as you can see from the picture is a worthy moniker.

Meanwhile, in New York, another member was waxing poetic about getting hyped-up Pho sandwiches in the East Village. 

And yet another club member sent me the 15th anniversary announcement for Mile End Deli in Brooklyn (mazel tov). I remember going when they first opened and ordering their version of Beef on Weck - roast beef and nostril-clearing horseradish served up on a kimmelweck roll and dipped in au jus.

Needless to say, these are all now added to the list of 2025 sandwich targets. If you go and find or make one for yourself be sure to let us know in the MSD!

Prior to this research I would have classified myself as a wet blanket when it came to wet sandwiches, but this rabbit hole made me wanna go out and get my dip on. For any naysayers still out there, I ask you this: How does a grilled cheese dunked in tomato soup sound during these chilly days? 

Glad we could work through that together.