How to Start a Sandwich CultNine distinctive sandwiches on the Central Coast.
WORDS Ninette Paloma
First, you are going to need some friends – the kind that don’t mind talking with their mouths full. Gather them around a weathered picnic table in late September and watch as they thoughtfully check off boxes from a long order form; bread options will be weighed, cheese will be considered, and several condiments might even make the cut. When the carefully wrapped bundles arrive and the group sinks into their two-handed selections, memories of sandwiches past will inevitably come to surface. By the time the sun begins to set, and the last bite of a mustard-stained French roll has been devoured, you will have bonded over passionate recollections of a time and place held together by two perfectly dressed slices of bread. You can create a secret handshake on the ride home.
The gratification of a handheld meal dates as far back as 1046 BCE, when Rou Jia Mo – roughly translating to “meat in bread” – were consumed during the Zhou Dynasty days of China. Since then, cultures and people across the globe have been reinventing clever and elaborate versions of a simple grab-and-go tradition. My own favorite sandwich memory begins in the stockyard city of Chicago, where I was raised on Italian beef sandwiches topped with briny giardiniera and hot ham subs soaked in oregano vinaigrette. At 19, I part-timed as a shop gal on Michigan Avenue, and on my first day followed the business lunch crowd to a tucked-away deli for a quick and familiar meal. In front of me, an elegant woman in brown tweed and a printed scarf was pressing her manicured hands against the counter, reciting her order in one succinct breath: A grilled Swiss on rye with Dijon mustard, please. I had never heard of such a sandwich. Curious, I matched her order and slid into a corner booth to consider the modest pairing of spicy mustard, warm tangy cheese, and not a deli meat in sight. Cradling a crisp and caraway-studded slice that danced with complexity and texture, my sandwich game broke open that afternoon. When I study a sandwich menu these days, my pursuit for the unexpected lives on. Bypassing the meat-forward staples of my youth, I search instead for agricultural poetry bookended by operatic bread. It is a tall order for sure, and after decades of exhaustive lunches on the Central Coast, I have whittled my favorites down to nine distinctive sandwiches that manage to activate the senses while looking just beyond the traditional. Lighter than their classic counterparts, they satisfy with subtlety and delight. The Danish Breakfast Oat Bakery Goleta Once the site of neighborhood market La Esmeralda, Oat Bakery’s second outpost has given owners Louise Ulrich and Lou Fontana the space and encouragement to expand on their selection of Scandi-inspired loaves. Queue up for the charcoal sesame sourdough but stay for their simple morning pleasure: The Danish Breakfast. Creamy slices of farmers’ cheese, sour cherry preserves, and a generous slather of Bordier butter dress a warm peasant roll and transport you to the sublime bageris of Copenhagen. The Egg Melt Blue Owl Santa Barbara On the west side of Canon Perdido, the only thing more comforting than Nadia Ajlouni’s Sunday morning focaccia is when it serves as a delicate vise for two wedges of herb-packed frittata, melted provolone, spring greens, and a dollop of basil mayo. Tuck yourself into a vintage booth and enjoy a towering sandwich while taking in the community spirit of this serious downtown charmer. The B.E.A.C. Hook & Press Santa Barbara Known for their Willy Wonka-style donuts and a serious barista game, Hook & Press also churns out some of the most delicious breakfast sandwiches on the Central Coast, with biscuits, brioche donuts, and even potato waffles serving as a vessel for your morning eggs. My hands down favorite is the buttermilk biscuit, baked egg, avocado, and cheddar combination dressed in chipotle mayo and sprinkled with a flourish of micro greens. Maybe it’s the crisp exterior and cloudlike center of their housemade biscuits, or the whimsical terrazzo stretched across the lofty space, but order one of these in the A.M. and it is impossible not to smile through your day. The Eggplant Parm Three Pickles Santa Barbara If an east coast baked sandwich is what you are craving, then look no further than the eggplant parm hoagie courtesy of Three Pickles. It’s all about the French roll, and this freshly baked beauty is drenched in marinara sauce and stacked with slices of breaded eggplant and provolone before sliding into the oven. Finished with a dash of parmesan, this is winter comfort food in all of its red sauce glory. The Black & White Panino Various locations A Central Coast staple since the early 90s, Panino boasts a more- is- more menu of thirty sandwich varieties on four styles of bread. Which is why the elegant black and white sandwich is as refreshing as the Mediterranean vibes it invokes. Housemade Kalamata tapenade is lavishly spread across both sides of a warm baguette before being layered with discs of fresh mozzarella, strips of roasted red pepper, a crunchy blanket of romaine, and a dusting of fresh basil chiffonade. The sound of lapping waves not included. The Falafel Sandwich Tamar Santa Barbara You can’t talk sandwiches in Santa Barbara without bringing up the powerhouse flavors that Logan Jones has injected into the local culinary scene. For decades, a proper falafel sandwich within an 80- mile radius was as elusive as a summer rain storm. The winds shifted in 2022 with the debut of Tamar, Jones’s Middle Eastern pop-up highlighting the virtues of zingy, farmers’ market torshi, sumac-scented onions, and fresh falafel served inside hand-tossed pita and drizzled with a turmeric and mango- laced amba tahini sauce to swoon over. A textured delight that will lure you to the funk zone every single weekend. The Egg Salad Bell’s Los Alamos On the menu since day one, Daisy Ryan’s take on a deli favorite breaks the rules and still manages to hit all of the old school feels. The roughly chopped, jammy eggs are tossed lightly in mayo and peppered with fresh chives before being piled on to toasted and buttery pain de mie smeared with a thin layer of housemade tomato jam. Not an egg salad sandwich enthusiast? Prepare to be converted. The Hippie Sandwich Peasant’s Feast Solvang Made popular by health food stores in 1970s California, the modest hippie sandwich continues to enjoy cult-like status through the universal appeal of its mainstay ingredients: creamy avocado, crispy sprouts, and sturdy bread- all readily available in The Golden State. In the hands of Sarah and Michael Cherney, the veggie classic gets an upgrade with thick slabs of fresh mozzarella, crunchy sunflower sprouts, thinly sliced cucumbers, and a generous slathering of roasted garlic aioli. Inspired by the sandwiches of Sarah’s youth, this is a California classic for a new generation. The Calitalian High Street Deli San Luis Obispo Once a market for San Luis Obispo’s railroad workers and their families, this 1927 gem on the corner of a residential street is worth the drive from anywhere on the Central Coast. Slinging sandwiches for almost a century, the folks at High Street Deli know plenty about flavor pairings and quality breads. From a long order form, I tick off the ingredients for a sub I like to call “The Calitalian”: Swiss and provolone and avocado, of course; shrettuce and mayo and Dijon, too. The tomato/onion/pickles trifecta makes the cut, and a zingy signature dressing called herb juice that sends your lunch soaring to mythical status. Pro tip: pre-order your sandwich online and bypass the two-hour wait time. 
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