Ugh.
I made my annual pilgrimage to the Midddleburg Film Festival, and I got myself to Hammerdown to try the pastrami. I’ve been to their food truck for bbq before they had a brick and mortar location, and I wasn’t impressed back then. But that was B.P. (before pastrami)
Woe is me. Unfortunately, I found this sandwich to be repulsive. It is served on a toasted and buttered (?) bread which made it extra greasy. It came with an unannounced russian dressing (not 100% sure what it was), heavy on the mayo . I salvaged some of the meat with no sauce. It is thick sliced, tender, but still manages to be a bit dry and very salty which dominated the flavor. I took two proper bites and tossed the rest.
As usual, I went to Arno’s Food Truck for his baked goods at Gilberts Corner. He had a rare raspberry tart, and it was the finest I’ve had. Always go for the fruit here. And if you are lucky enough to get raspberry, it is a truly special treat.
On the way back to Arlington, I made my best food discovery of the year at Taco Lagos, which I put in a separate report.
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Most bbq places seem to serve their pastrami as a Reuben (with grilled bread). I alway make a point to ask for it deconstructed (sauerkraut, etc. on the side) and with mustard. It make a big difference to me – and at HammerDown the mustard is very high quality. The Russian dressing is one reason I rarely order Reubens. I did order one in Buckets (and loved it). I didn’t notice any Russian dressing.
Yeah, i wont do ranch, russian dressing, thousand island, etc.
Have you tried the kosher style deli in navy yard with the long name? its same company as mi casa and they had a popup there. at the popup, i tried pastrami, brisket, and corned beef and only the CB was decent.
Hi Steve, glad Arno saved the day. He is really a treasure. Pro tip: Ordering a full-siza Arno dessert for the holidays is ALWAYS a good move.
As for Taco Lagos, I’m happy to report that I tried them soon after they opened a couple years back. It’s a great little place and I’m glad you enjoyed it. Even with a Taco Zocalo in the same plaza, Taco Lagos is definitely worthy of support.
Arno had a full size raspberry tart, but I balked. Now that I had the slice, I am pining for the full size, which in this case would be totally worth it.
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The tart not taken.
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Finally got to 2fifty for their Thursday-only pastrami. No doubt, a great sandwich. It has gone up significantly in price, (now $17.50). Note, it doesn’t look as good as John’s sandwich, but I was in no meed to quibble with deliciousness.
I might, maybe, and perhaps prefer Silver & Sons as I noted upthread, I think it has a lot of flavors going on.
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For that kind of comparison – two excellent meats similar in quality-- a side-by-side comparison would be ideal.
those kind of thick slices just don’t appeal to my inner pastrami eater . . .
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Note that I rated 2fifty’s the best sandwich … after they start4edd using Manifest Bread’s rye rather than (ugh) Texas toast. Silver and Sons may have better pastrami (I mean really, short ribs pastrami!) but the challah just can’t compare to that great rye from Manifest
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I didn’t notice anything special about the rye. I mean, it’s toasted. That takes it down a notch for me.
Toasted? That’s new. I wonder if they changed the bread vendor. That would be a setback
Although there is no mention on the signage, they sell the pastrami sandwich by default with sauerkraut and cheese, like a reuben. I protested when a guy pulled out a torch to melt the cheese on the sandwich and had them scrape off the sauerkraut too. But yes, the bread is toasted by default, like it would be on a reuben, as you can see from my photo. They say the bread is from Manifest…
Quite frankly, the bread in your photo upthread looks like it was toasted as well. That’s what accounts for the dark brown side of the bread next to the meat.
The cheese and sauerkraut are on the menu description on line. I’ve asked for it deconstructed. I just about always do that.
I think the putative darkness is shadow, but I’ll take care to specify untoasted bread next time
this was at the Stage Door Deli (MGM, Las Vegas)
- since moved it to the Luxor (?)
one of the best I’ve had - they say the pastrami is “imported” from New York - it was absolutely fabulous!
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For those. interested, I just uploaded a post on the difference between cold smoked and ht smoked pastrami --Pastrami Better than Katz’s
I expect universal agreement.
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what is with the term “sando”? it’s apparently a borrowing from japanese “sandoitchi”
and has absolutely nothing to do with pastrami. however, today i saw “birria ramen”
at a place on 14th st, so what do i know…
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Better pastrami than Katz’s isn’t surpising as for example Langer’s is significantly better. But just to add a few things to the post on your blog - not only BBQ place hot smoke pastrami but so does Langer’s and other delis. In addition, as you write pastrami should be eaten as a sandwich with on rye - the problem with many places is that for them the bread is just an afterthought and not much care is given. I haven’t eaten at any of the places you mention in the post but just a quick look on some photos of their pastrami, it looks like they all serve it with this awful soft, flabby, mass-produced rye bread which ruins most pastrami sandwich. Langer’s uses some local bread which they double bake to make an outstanding pastrami sandwich
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