Actually, while we’re at it, you can include the beef & sausage combo sandwich on there (simply known as a “combo” at any place that serves Italian beef.) It’s exactly what it sounds like: an Italian beef sandwich with an Italian sausage nestled in it. You can read about it here. Best had at Johnnie’s in Elmwood Park.
You might also want to throw in Chicago’s Maxwell Street pork chop sandwich. It’s the only pork chop sandwich I’ve ever seen that is served bone-in. The more famous Maxwell Street Polish might also qualify, but I might be persuaded that it’s not distinct enough.
Others (as long as we’re counting in-a-bun concoctions as sandwiches, which I’m fine with), there’s the mother-in-law and humdinger. The mother-in-law is a Tom-Tom tamale (or similar corn roll tamale; you can read about them here) served in a hot dog bun with chili and hot dog toppings over it. The humdinger is the same thing, with cheese added for good measure. More on the mother-in-law.
And, to finish, there is also the rare Jim Shoe sandwich, which is roast beef, corned beef, and gyros meat served all together as a sub, topped with lettuce, tomato, tzatziki.
Most fast food does not look appetizing served in its natural state. (To me, though, that is beauty.) How do you make something slathered in barbecue sauce, french fries, and coleslaw look sexy? Without looking at the frou-frou Polish boys, this is about as best as I can do.
I don’t eat them much anymore because they’re terrible for fir you but the NJ Signature Sandwich has to be a Pork Roll, Egg and Cheese. Pork Roll is a NJ breakfast staple and it’s really only found here.
Also, in North Jersey in the 15 years or so places have taken to calling a triple decker sandwich with meat (usually turkey), Swiss cheese, cole slaw and Russian dressing a Sloppy Joe but to me, a Sloppy Joe will always be Manwich.
I might nominate the white hot, as well. First thing I think of when I think “local Rochester food.” (Granted, that’s not a thing I think about a lot, but enough to have a category for it. Your aforementioned garbage plate is the only other thing in that category.) I do realize they’ve spread a bit beyond there, but they originated there, as far as I know, and my strongest connection with the white hot is Rochester.
…Huh. I’ve never had one served that way around here, either. The only Polish Boys I’ve ever had are the ones served by street-cart hot dog vendors, and those don’t even have fries or slaw available. They’re basically just hot dogs with a larger and slightly higher-quality sausage.
Maybe it’s an East Side-West Side thing? The only brick-and-mortar places I’ve ever seen advertising a Polish Boy are on the East Side, and I’ve never gone in, but just assumed that it was basically the same thing the street vendors were selling.
No idea, but the Polish boys I’ve had in Cleveland are the ones like in the picture. Not sure they all came with fries inside, but definitely with a barbecue sauce and a slaw-like concoction, not the usual mustard & onions you get around here.
I should add the one my wife brought back for me a few months ago was from a streetside vendor, not a brick & mortar place. It definitely was barbecue sauce & cole slaw on that. (I think fries were on the side, but he packed them that way because he knew she was traveling back to Chicago to bring her husband a Polish boy. )
Oh, sure, Chicago-style dog. I tend to forget about that, since I don’t tend to eat the fully dressed style, just mustard, onions, relish, and optional sport pepper.
There’s also a variety of double cheeseburger here on the south/southwest side that is pretty local:the big baby. Sesame seed bun, two patties with a slice of cheese between them, lots of well-griddled onions served on the top half, and pickle, mustard, ketchup on the bottom bun. Greasy as shit, but the fat and onions make it. One more of my favorite burgers.
Along similar lines as the Coney dog, there’s a sort of soft pita gyro sandwich that’s served by Olga’s and all the Coney Island chains. It usually only has gyro meat, tomato, onion, and usually a trademarked variant of tzatziki sauce. There will also be a version with grilled chicken, or with breaded chicken and cheese.
What sets these apart from gyro sandwiches elsewhere is the pita bread, which is buttery and much softer than normal pita.
In New England, there’s the lobster roll, but those are now ubiquitous. There are all the fried-seafood-in-a-bun standards, but the one that I haven’t found elsewhere is the whole belly clam roll.
Your aforementioned garbage plate is the only other thing in that category.) I do realize they’ve spread a bit beyond there, but they originated there, as far as I know, and my strongest connection with the white hot is Rochester.
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