31 Los Angeles sandwiches that will make you fall in love

I'm not going to name the sandwich shop I'm referring to in this article, because I don't believe in casting a shadow that eclipses the sun. But the locations in Italy are world famous and the restaurant has since opened stores in Los Angeles, New York and Las Vegas.

Never underestimate the appeal of things between bread. Videos of the sandwiches have racked up millions of views on social media. Visitors wait in line for more than an hour. It is reputed to be the most famous sandwich shop in the world. Maybe it's the trifecta of Italian sunshine, romance in the air, and general aura of vacation vibes that gives sandwiches a little magic.

That magic never came to Venice, California. After waiting in line at a recent lunch and reading countless rave TikTok reviews, when I finally got my hands on “the best sandwich in the world,” it was average.

There is a perpetual line at the Abbot Kinney Boulevard store and it is a slow process. No less than three people behind the counter prepared my sandwiches. One person slid a serrated knife through the restaurant's signature schiacciata bread (imagine the lovechild of focaccia and ciabatta). Another person took meats from a lunch box and cut them into slices for each sandwich, while another spread a slice of bread with pistachio cream and prepared the various toppings.

I tried three sandwiches, all served on bread shiny with olive oil and large enough to serve two. One was filled with thinly sliced ​​mortadella, thick pistachio cream, and stracciatella. Another was a tangle of salty bresaola and arugula. And if you blink, you might miss the filling of the third, with a thin layer of salami, a bit of pecorino cheese, and what tasted like a drizzle of truffle honey.

The bread felt heavy but not exactly chewy, soft or crunchy. I was trapped in bread purgatory with a curious intermediate texture that hardened as it cooled. Where was that bread I had seen in all the videos? The one that makes an audible crunch when someone takes a bite?

To be fair, I spent about three minutes taking photos of my sandwiches for this article. It was less than the time it might take to find a table during lunch or walk back to your car. But the bread was still warm when I took my first bite.

The fillings and spreads were the excellent type that can be found at a specialty market or the best Italian restaurant. And the meats were cut incredibly thin. But the bread was like a gray cloud that swallowed up the lush stracciatella and blurred the meaty flavor of the mortadella and salami. It eliminated any chance of having a large sandwich and any chance of me driving west of the 405 to get back in line for a sandwich.

But I would sit in traffic eating any of the 12 sandwiches on the menu at Lorenzo California, the little sandwich shop I featured last summer. There, the crust cracks and it is difficult to resist the Parmigiano-Reggiano sauce. I'd cross the 405 freeway for all 18 sandwiches on our list of the best Italian sandwiches in town. And I'd drive across town to pick up the Sasto, a new sandwich with slightly dubious origins from Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis at Saffy's.

Sasto from Saffy's Tea and Coffee Shop.

The Sasto sandwich from Saffy's Coffee & Tea Shop in East Hollywood.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)

The sandwich is named after Saffy's manager, Nick Sasto, who told a little white lie that ensured his name would forever be known in the realm of great Los Angeles sandwiches. Menashe remembers that Sasto told him one day that his name meant sexy. A few days later, someone commented that Menashe's new Italian sandwich, introduced at Saffy's Coffee and Tea Shop bakery in mid-December, looked sexy.

“So we called him Sasto,” Menashe said with a laugh. “However, he lied to me. It doesn't mean sexy. But we continue to call him Sasto.”

It's a sexy sandwich, or as tempting as the layers of cured meat and cheese can be. The attraction begins with the bread, a square of focaccia speckled with voluptuous dark brown bubbles. The crust is super thin and crispy like glass. The middle is pillow-soft with noticeable bounce. Menashe attributes the texture to the use of two starters, milk, a touch of honey and three types of flour.

As your eye scans the sandwich, you notice the plump tomato slices, the mound of tender romaine lettuce and red onion slices, the pale pink striations of prosciutto, soppressata and coppa, and a layer of house-made ricotta hugging the bottom. . piece of bread.

Not visible are the pickled and candied serrano chiles that pierce each layer with a pleasant spiciness.

The sandwiches are placed pre-assembled in the bakery case, but before serving each square, it is properly lubricated with a drizzle of oregano vinaigrette.

Okay, I'll call it sexy.

El Sasto is available from 11 am while supplies last. Note that the sandwich is from Saffy's Cafe and Tea, the daytime restaurant attached to Saffy's. If you show up for dinner and order a Sasto, prepare for heartbreak.