# Cannibal sandwiches **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 6, 2013, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675 "2013-12-06T15:03:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/1 "2013-12-06T15:03:41Z")
[‘Cannibal sandwiches’ sicken Wisconsin residents](http://www.nbcnews.com/health/cannibal-sandwiches-sicken-wisconsin-residents-2D11703492) > [@](#): > > The appetizer, also called “tiger meat,” “steak tartare” or simply “ground beef,” is usually a simple dish of lean ground meat seasoned with salt and pepper on rye cocktail bread with sliced raw onion… Occasionally, a raw egg will be mixed with the meat. As a kid in San Diego, I heard of cannibal sandwiches. I don’t think I ever saw one, though. Not too long ago (i.e., within the last two years) someone either made and ate one in a movie, or else the narrator on a documentary described someone (Pancho Barnes?) eating one. Everything I heard growing up was that a cannibal sandwich was an actual sandwich, and not an appetiser. That is: Two pieces of white bread, some mayo, raw ground deadcow with salt, pepper, and an egg mixed in (or not), and a slice of raw onion. As a teenager I always wanted to try a cannibal sandwich; and whenever I think of them now, I want to try one. I never seem to get to it. How about you? Cannibal sandwich, anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/2 "2013-12-06T15:25:46Z")
It would be ok if they just cooked it. Otherwise, NO. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/3 "2013-12-06T15:32:18Z")
Another “no” and for two good reasons. One, the ick factor is just too high to overcome. Fear of some form of food poisoning would prevent me from enjoyment of the taste and in fact would likely trigger a gag factor. Two, a cooked, seasoned hamburger is so damn good why would I choose any other option? Give my cannibal to Hannibal. ---
**Author:** ![wedgehed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8edcca/32.png) [@wedgehed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wedgehed)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/4 "2013-12-06T15:35:24Z")
I have a friend who says his dad used to eat sandwiches made with raw ground beef & mayo. His dad also spent 30 days in a lifeboat during WWII - kind of makes you wonder. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/5 "2013-12-06T15:38:46Z")
I’d try it if I could be assured that the ground beef was E. coli-free. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/6 "2013-12-06T15:40:39Z")
I love me some good sushi, carpaccio, or steak tartare, but what they appear to be making is raw ground beef sandwiches. No thank you. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/7 "2013-12-06T15:43:08Z")
When we were teenagers, my cousin ate a cannibal sandwich while on a deer-hunting trip, and he got food poisoning, too – made worse by the fact that he was up in a tree stand, in the middle of the woods, when everything hit him. (And, for the record, yes, we grew up in Wisconsin. 😃 ) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/8 "2013-12-06T16:03:33Z")
Pass. Before it makes me pass…everything. Steak Tartare should be served well-done. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/9 "2013-12-06T16:05:30Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > It would be ok if they just cooked it. So… You’ll eat a hamburger. > [@lieu](#): > > Two, a cooked, seasoned hamburger is so damn good why would I choose any other option? This is the reason I’ve never had one. I’m not going to have a sandwich _and_ a burger. I’ve always chosen the burger. > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > (And, for the record, yes, we grew up in Wisconsin. 😃 ) Is your name Jan Janssen? Do you work in a lumber yard? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/10 "2013-12-06T16:05:34Z")
I’ve never had them served to me with that name but, yes, I have steak tartare regularly. Love the stuff. There’s one bar I go to where there’s nothing else I order, even though they have pretty damned good burgers, too. Gotta have the raw egg. I make an open faced sandwich out of it using the toasted bread that is served alongside with it. Also have had raw pork in the same manner. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/11 "2013-12-06T16:18:59Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Also have had raw pork in the same manner. You’re the bravest man I know. Will you go for the turkey trifecta? ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/12 "2013-12-06T16:32:15Z")
if your football team (USA) gets in a championship game and you want them to win then you eat cannibal sandwiches. it’s a sign of loyalty and faith in your team. if they get in the superbowl then you can add raw eggs to up the stakes. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/13 "2013-12-06T16:43:48Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > You’re the bravest man I know. Will you go for the turkey trifecta? Not gonna do raw poultry anytime soon. Raw pork is not uncommon in certain parts of the world. See the Germans and their [mett](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mett). ---
**Author:** ![Barking\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Barking\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barking_Dog)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/14 "2013-12-06T16:48:00Z")
I have absolutely never heard of such a sandwich. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/15 "2013-12-06T17:06:40Z")
I’ve had steak tartare, in a nice steakhouse where they grind the meat themselves. It was very tasty, but I think my stomach was a little gurgly afterward. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/16 "2013-12-06T17:11:14Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Not gonna do raw poultry anytime soon. I had a roommate who liked to eat chicken breasts cooked only to “rare”. The guy was pretty much a freak anyway, and (no surprise) seemed to have a lot of stomach problems. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/17 "2013-12-06T17:59:21Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I had a roommate who liked to eat chicken breasts cooked only to “rare”. The guy was pretty much a freak anyway, and (no surprise) seemed to have a lot of stomach problems. I know there is such a thing as chicken sashimi in Japan. I assume they must have some special type of quality control for it. But I wouldn’t dare try that with commercial American poultry. Even the _National Poultry Council_ says 4.3% of chicken carcasses contain detectable levels of salmonella. And then there’s this [2010](http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2010/january/food/chicken-safety/overview/chicken-safety-ov.htm) consumer reports study that found 62% of the chickens had clampylobacter and 14% had salmonella. No chicken sashimi for me, thankyou. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/18 "2013-12-06T18:35:28Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > So… You’ll eat a hamburger. With a cooked egg in it. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/19 "2013-12-06T20:53:58Z")
Wisconsinite here, and I’ve eaten hundreds of Cannibal Sandwiches. Always in the appetizer form. Back in the mid 1990s, some friends and I polled fellow college students in an attempt to draw the line across Wisconsin where “cannibal sandwich” becomes “wildcat”. IIRC, it was approximately equal to Highway 28, anyone from north of there used the phrase “wildcat” “Tiger meat” was an outlier that appeared on both sides of the line, bit more often to the north. Anyway, I believe the trick is to use only ground sirloin, and grind it yourself. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/20 "2013-12-06T20:56:20Z")
> [@wedgehed](#): > > I have a friend who says his dad used to eat sandwiches made with raw ground beef & mayo. His dad also spent 30 days in a lifeboat during WWII - kind of makes you wonder. Holy cow. That’s a pretty small group of people. Is/was your friend’s dad someone whose story is somewhat famous (or at least recounted on the internet)? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675.md?page=2)