# 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:** 2
**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, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/21 "2013-12-06T21:39:40Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > 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” [Hwy 28](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin_Highway_28), or [Hwy 29](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin_Highway_29)? I ask because I’m from Green Bay (which is north of 28, but south of 29), and never heard the term “wildcat”; we always called it a “cannibal”. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/22 "2013-12-06T21:40:52Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Is your name Jan Janssen? Do you work in a lumber yard? 😛 Ja! Dey pay me two dollars a day! I go see my Lucy… ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/23 "2013-12-06T21:46:49Z")
My mom used to talk about eating cannibal sandwiches when she was a kid. She grew up in Pennsylvania, so presumably it was there. I’d eat one if I was sure it was safe–I prefer my beef mooing, but the fear of food poisoning (especially for things like ground beef) make me go for a more done version. Chicken, of course, is treated like toxic waste and cooked completely (as is fish–wouldn’t touch fish sushi, thanks) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/24 "2013-12-06T22:06:29Z")
I’ve got 4 pounds of Angus beef in the refrigerator. I’m going to freeze a batch tonight, just adding salt, pepper and chopped onion. Of course I’ll do some tasting along the way. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2013, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/25 "2013-12-06T22:59:30Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I’d try it if I could be assured that the ground beef was E. coli-free. Yeah, you have to get that at a real butchers where they let you watch them grind it, even. None of that 'chub" crap. But if it’s fresh ground, it’s tasty. ---
**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, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/26 "2013-12-06T23:40:45Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > Ja! Dey pay me two dollars a day! I go see my Lucy… I don’t know that verse! ---
**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, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/27 "2013-12-06T23:52:49Z")
I’m of the opinion that tartare should not be ground. Cannibal sandwich, do what you want, but steak tartare? Filet/tenderloin cleavered into small pieces with capers, dijon, shallots or red onion, parsley, raw eggs, salt, pepper. Man, I want some right now. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/28 "2013-12-07T00:01:20Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I don’t know that verse! …she gives me some pucy and takes my two dollars away! ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/29 "2013-12-07T00:15:13Z")
Guess I could give it a bite. Very, very fresh and highly seasoned. It doesn’t sound like a good idea, though. Have to be wearing one of those Jean Harlow dresses and a white fur to manage raw hangaber with any class. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/30 "2013-12-07T00:31:44Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I’m of the opinion that tartare should not be ground. Cannibal sandwich, do what you want, but steak tartare? Filet/tenderloin cleavered into small pieces with capers, dijon, shallots or red onion, parsley, raw eggs, salt, pepper. Man, I want some right now. OK - give it up! Where’s this bar and why have you been holding out on us? ---
**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 7, 2013, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/31 "2013-12-07T00:43:15Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > OK - give it up! > Where’s this bar and why have you been holding out on us? Oh, Paramount Room. I don’t even know if it’s the best steak tartare in Chicago, but it’s exactly as I like it, and I’ve never felt the need to find anything better, nor am I sure how I could possibly improve on it. Plus good beers to boot. Not my photo, but [here’s what it looks like](http://kiplog.com/food/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/paramounttartare.jpg). ---
**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 7, 2013, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/32 "2013-12-07T00:50:44Z")
And, quite literally, except for the very first time I was there about 3 or 4 years ago, I don’t think I’ve ever been to the Paramount Room and not ordered the steak tartare, and I’ve been there about 15-20 times since. I just love their steak tartare so much, even though the rest of their dishes (which I’ve tasted off my wife’s plate) have been quite good. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/33 "2013-12-07T01:03:38Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Oh, Paramount Room. I don’t even know if it’s the best steak tartare in Chicago, but it’s exactly as I like it, and I’ve never felt the need to find anything better, nor am I sure how I could possibly improve on it. Plus good beers to boot. Not my photo, but [here’s what it looks like](http://kiplog.com/food/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/paramounttartare.jpg). Just checked their site - very reasonably priced. I think a visit is in my very near future not only because I now crave tartare but now I’m intrigued by the idea of a Duck Stuffed Chile Relleno. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/34 "2013-12-07T02:17:07Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > [‘Cannibal sandwiches’ sicken Wisconsin residents](http://www.nbcnews.com/health/cannibal-sandwiches-sicken-wisconsin-residents-2D11703492) > > 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? I’ll give the raw meat thing a pass. Discovering how to use fire to render food safer and tastier was definitely a good move. ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/35 "2013-12-07T02:21:30Z")
ate them all the time as a kid when my parents had parties.😃 Never occurred to me that there was anything wrong with that until my MIL, daughter of a butcher, threatened to boycott the wedding if we served them.:rolleyes: But what did she know? She was from Illinois. These days, knowing all we know now from the internets, it would take a lot to get me to eat one. ---
**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 7, 2013, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/36 "2013-12-07T02:22:31Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > I’ll give the raw meat thing a pass. Discovering how to use fire to render food safer and tastier was definitely a good move. Fire and cooking is a good thing. But sometimes, nothing beats raw fish and raw meat. As far as fish is concerned, I think I like it better raw than cooked. (Though I don’t object to cooked fish–I just think it tastes better raw.) ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/37 "2013-12-07T02:34:07Z")
Aside from food safety concerns, the texture would bother me (certainly does with ground beef that’s less than fully cooked). ---
**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 7, 2013, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/38 "2013-12-07T02:42:16Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > Aside from food safety concerns, the texture would bother me (certainly does with ground beef that’s less than fully cooked). Yeah, it definitely has a different texture than cooked beef. I totally understand how people could get squicked out by that, especially if they’ve always associated beef with being cooked all (or most) of the way through. But I grew up on beef tartare (which is odd, since my mother will absolutely not eat steak unless it is cooked to death, resurrected, and cooked some more, yet _loves_ steak tartare) so I don’t have any textural associations with it. As for food safety–I eat a lot of stuff I shouldn’t if I followed those guidelines. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/39 "2013-12-07T02:49:53Z")
Never had it and it doesn’t interest me but growing up I’d see it out as an appetizer from time to time and my dad would usually have it. Also, there was a teaser for the news a little while ago mentioning something about the CDC specifically warning people in Wisconsin about them. I assume it’s something beyond not just eating raw meat. ---
**Author:** ![wedgehed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8edcca/32.png) [@wedgehed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wedgehed)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675/40 "2013-12-07T03:00:09Z")
> [@bup](#): > > 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)? My apologies, it was 15 days in a lifeboat without food. My friend says his dad skipped the last meal served before the sinking because he was sick of the food. Afterwards, he never missed a shipboard meal no matter what they served. He was on a Merchant Marine vessel when sunk. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cannibal-sandwiches/675675.md?page=3)