It's been a while since I've done one of these, so I guess it's about time.
Sweet & Savory is a little catering business that does sandwiches between noon and six pm or so during the work week. The location is a bit out of the way, on Mount Acadia Boulevard in Clairemont. There used to be a little produce stand in the this strip mall which closed maybe 8 years ago. I'd been wanting to try the place for a while, so I finally made some time to go there.
It is mainly a catering business; there's a table out front, but the usual drill is to order at the counter right inside the door and take your food to go. The lunch menu is a nice and tight collection of sandwiches and salads. I like that there's "smaller" versions of sandwiches, which at five bucks suit me fine. The larger sizes price out at seven dollar, and there's a size called ridiculous which is $25!
On my first visit; I could not help but take notice of the "Best Tri-Tip Sandwich ever". Ever…..hmmmm….that would mean better than Firestone Grill or even the Prime Smoked Tri-Tip I make at home, huh? Actually, I didn't expect that….and I gotta say, this was my favorite of all the sandwiches I tried.
I gotta say, the coffee rubbed tri-tip was very moist, mild in flavor, adequately tender. The gouda added a nice milky-smoky component to the sandwich, since the tri-tip was obviously roasted not smoked. The garlic mayo was fine, though I'd have preferred something with a bit more pungency. I'm kind of on the fence about the ciabatta….on one hand there's a yeasty component to the roll which adds to the whole package, on the other hand, it was ice cold and maybe a bit too chewy for me.
Overall, this was a nice sandwich!
The next time, I tried the "Cubano:
One of my guilty pleasures is a good turkey sandwich…..I grew up on hot turkey sandwiches….I know, not everyone's cup of tea, but I do like one once in a while. Sweet & Savory has three versions of turkey sandwiches, so I decided to check out a couple of them.
The "Brie" was my favorite of the two, though it's a bit too tart, the combination of of Granny Smith apples and cranberry kind of over did that for me. But if you like that flavor profile, you'd love this. I though all that tartness cancelled out the brie. Same deal as before with the ciabatta…the turkey is formed, but not processed….that is; they cut it from a round "roll"……it still was undoubtedly turkey.
On my most recent visit, I decided to order the "Thanksgiving".
For some strange reason; I love "stuffing" in a turkey sandwich….though I'd like some gravy to dip the whole mess in. This was a bit too sweet for my taste. I wish the Muenster Cheese stood out a bit more.
And while it may not seem that way; I do like this little shop…..I prefer visiting this place than one of those chains. Things are prepared better and the folks are very nice. Plus, you get a cookie with every take-out order.
And while the food ventured too much on the sweet versus the the savory for me; I'll definitely be back for the tri-tip, and maybe a sandwich/salad or two in the future as you can't beat the prices. I do wish they'd open at 11 though, since I usually eat early, but that's just me…..
Sweet & Savory Gourmet
3574 Mount Acadia Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Monday – Friday 12pm – 6pm