Sunday Sandwiches – revisit edition: Spam and Egg Banh Mi at Cali Express (Convoy) and the Blairsteak at Monkey Paw

 So….I have a category for Banh Mi and one for Cheesesteaks, so why not both in a post, especially since they're revisits, right?

So here goes…….

Cali Express:

**** Cali Express is now Cali Banh Mi

One of the good things about having to work on weekends….well, if there actually is a good reason for working on weekends is that I don't have to get in as early as on weekdays. I'm usually in by about 6am during the week, but heck, I'm working for love during the weekend so I'm going to sleep in a bit. And my choices are a bit better at 830 am than they are at 540am.

I love a good Banh Mi Trung for breakfast, so I stopped by for a nice egg banh mi.

The egg was nicely fried, the baquette, light, crisp, and warm, a touch of Maggi brought it all together with the pickled vegetables. I should have felt great, right? Well, not really, since when picking up my banh mi, I noticed the sign posted to the right…….

Spam Banh Mi??? Spam? Banh Mi? And an egg? Why didn't I see the sign before I ordered? I wasn't going to miss another chance at a Spam Banh Mi…….

Another week went by and another weekend of work. I went and got my Spam and Egg Banh Mi and brought it back to the office to eat.

In all honesty, the previous banh mi trung was better. The Spam wasn't browned enough, leaving it without a nice crisp texture. This was Spam Lite, heresy I say….. I mean, really, if you're going to blow your day's worth of nitrites and sodium on a canned meat product, you might as well go all the way. Also, something was not right with the bread on this day……you can just tell by the color, it was cold and doughy…definitely not the banh mi that I've come to expect from Cali Express.

Oh well…. While it looks like having to put in those weekend hours may be coming to an end, there's still a few more ahead for me. So maybe I'll give this another shot. Though Spam Lite……maybe not.

Cali Baguette Express
4425 Convoy Street
San Diego, CA 92111 

I'd been hankering for a cheesesteak for several weeks. So on the weekend after Christmas, I talked the Missus into grabbing a bite and a beer at Monkey Paw. I'd really enjoyed the cheesesteaks on my previous visits. It's also a favorite of my buddy Candice, who spent part of her childhood in Philly…

Monkey Paw:

**** Monkey Paw has closed

So, what I get here is the Blairsteak. For some reason, the combination of sauteed onions and bell peppers, with the milky, melted cheese on a nice Amoroso makes this a favorite of mine.

I'm not the biggest fan of waffle cut fries and these weren't prepped well. Limp and dry, lacking any sort of crispness.

One of the reasons that I'd never brought the Missus here is because bread is on the Missus's do not eat list. And other than the cheesesteaks, I haven't found anything else particularly good. On my previous visit, I tried the chicken wings, which I didn't care for…..so this time, I went with the frenched pork shank item they call "Monkey Bones",

I'd had this before and thought it was decent……I went with the sauces on the side, which was a nice move as none of them were really interesting. The pork lollipops were dry and the interior cold. So now I've got to think of something else on the menu to get the Missus down here for my next cheesesteak fix. Though the Missus did say She enjoyed the "vibe", so maybe…..

Monkey Paw
805 16th St
San Diego, CA 92101