The Tuesday Taste: San Francesco Sandwiches

 

 

Baby

you don't know what you're saying

Because you're a victim

of bright city lights

And your mind is not right

You think the world's at your feet

 

Another Tuesday, another Taste! After a previous couple of weeks featuring greasy burgers, soft serve ice cream and fried chicken wings... this edition goes in a different direction to focus on a much smaller chain than Harvey's, Fox pubs or Dairy Queen. It's a Toronto exclusive: The Original San Francesco sandwiches!

To be completely transparent, my experience going to San Francesco before this review was equal to the number of times I've been to Antarctica (that's a big ol zero, in case you thought I was being cute). My knowledge of San Francesco sandwiches wasn't much more: I'd maybe overheard a co-worker six years ago comment how she went to the Clinton Street location often and was a big fan. Beyond that... I'm going in completely blind here! Excitement.

San Francesco has exactly four locations (meeting my exact minimum for these weekly reviews): one in Leaside, this one on the Danforth I went to, one north of Lawrence Avenue on Yonge Street in that weird "void between Midtown and North York"... and then the original location on Clinton. According to their website, the sandwich shop was started by an Italian family that came to Canada after WWII, while their immediate reference to "being around the corner from the Saint Francis of Assisi" church is impressively Roman Catholic even for a place on the windowsill of Little Italy. Also, am I the only one who finds it weird that churches have Google reviews? How the heck does that work? "The pew wasn't very comfortable, the priest had bad breath... one star???" This is an odd reality we've stumbled ourselves into.       

Quick aside, that tiny little stretch of Clinton just south of College is truly delightful: a tiny old community a mere wink away from a major busy street. Beyond the original San Francesco, there's the legendary Bitondo's pizzeria (an old school staple of Toronto pizza that I probably like less than most people... it's very 'okay') and the Monarch Tavern which I vaguely recall attending a staff party at. All these three spots face each other across a street corner... you could lob a baseball and it might bounce off one and come back to your hand as you stand outside another. Don't actually try that, though. Window repair is expensive so I am told. 

 

 

Lets jump into the food itself. I indulged a bit here, with a fried spicy bomba chicken sandwich as well as these garlic parmesan fries you see directly above. We'll start with the fries: they might not be for everybody, but I thought these were great. That parmesan/garlic flavour is very much insistent, especially in this particular dose. Seriously, this is what I had left once the potatoes were stomach history: 

 

 

Very much a presence, but a presence I personally find delightful. It does remind me of a famous San Francisco dish (surely that cannot be a coincidence): the legendary garlic fries. If any of you have been to SBC Park (or whatever corporate barf name it goes by now) where the Giants play, the smell of deep fried potatoes and garlic is very present in certain sections of the concourse, and it's goddamn bloody wonderful. 

 

 

Here, they probably overdid it with the seasoning... but they picked the right person for that to happen to. It really is a lot, but if the flavour is positive I tend to prefer more rather than less. The potatoes themselves work well to absorb the oil and garlic while the texture of the fry maintains a firm quality of crispy potency... even once cold! (rare for fries). As these photos clearly show, these fries are essentially encrusted with this particular seasoning and that aspect truly dominates this side dish to a comical level. I barely even used the garlic aioli you see (which was tasty, like Pizza Nova's garlic dip). These just didn't need anything like that.

 

 

How about the sandwich? Heck, "sandwich" is in the title of the darn place. Straight to the point, this was definitely unlike any spicy fried chicken sandwich I've reviewed before. I'm used to those buttery buns, crunchy biteable chunks of breaded chicken mixing with some seasoning or sauce to provide the punch of heat.

This is very different... first off using a kaiser bun for any sandwich is certainly a bold choice. They tend to absorb anything liquidy or saucey with impressive quickness, which does tie into the weakest aspect of this sandwich for me. But... they smartly use a fresh kaiser bun (after a couple days that thing becomes a crunchy rock, man) and are also smart enough not to overcook this external covering or the contents within. It's light and airy, with a tough roundness to it that reminds you how bread is a crucial element to any sandwich. Beyond the unavoidable sogginess of the inside of the kaiser bun, I'm into it when done like this. 

That sogginess comes from the fact that this is very similar to a chicken parm kind of dish, just with a hollow yet firm bun closing it in and plenty of tomato sauciness trying to spill out. It's a big semi-flat bun, sure, but I do wish there was a bit more chicken in here. Lots of bites that were nothing but sauce, chili spice and edges of bread.

Nevertheless... this is a good sandwich! It's within that tricky area of "I can't fall in love with this, but I do respect and enjoy this very much". Spoilers! I guess you don't have to read the rest of the review. See ya next week!

.....

Okay, thanks for sticking around. There's quite a bit more left. The chicken: flat and tenderized... not what you expect in a sandwich but it really works (San Francesco does veal also, so the technique is definitely naturally executed). It's a tighter texture, lacking that loose juiciness of other fried chicken sandwiches, but it's firmness (and efficient taste) work well with the tomato sauce asserting itself everywhere alongside a finicky bun. The tomato sauce does the job (far beyond anything generic, there's substance and a house-made quality here) but yet I was perhaps hoping for something more. Expecting an 'A-' instead of a 'B' would be the comparison. It has that legit mouth feel, depth of texture of a well made, natural tomato sauce... lots of care and ingredients meshed in... but nothing about it truly jumped out at me. Either with the sandwich or trying the sauce solo. This was very good, yet also somewhat forgettable. 

Finishing with the spice... it is there... much like a chili oil within the tomato sauce that sneaks in on you. Not oppressively spicy (though I'm completely unsure how my tolerance compares to others... I might be a demon or a weakling I seriously don't know)... and the chilies do give the sandwich a much needed kick. It's a stinging spice that sneaks in, not a monster barging on your door. 

Overall... yeah! This is easily the best thing I've reviewed since the Tuesday reviews were revived (take that, okay-ish fast food, pub grub and ice cream burgers!) As said earlier, this is very much in that 'B' range which makes it very hard to truly criticize... since now we are entering more subjective territory. My grading/general enjoyment has always been when something really blows me away in quality... like listening to a favourite song, a connective scene in a film or just any epiphany in general. Yeah, I'm a harsh critic... but like all of us I do love what I love. I didn't love this offering from San Francesco, but I did like it more than enough to want to check them out again. And like I said, those fries were wicked. 

 

Burnt Ends -- I have two things to say on the ol' writing front. First: bonus food review and other stuff coming later this week! Second... I'm done with the Star Trek: Picard reviews. Maaaaaybe once I build up the constitution to watch the final episode I'll write an eulogy for the greatness that was Star Trek: The Next Generation... but dear god I can't do this anymore. I've been beaten. I'd like for fellow Star Trek refugee Mike Stoklasa to sum this all up right here... 

Thanks, Mike. I feel less crazy now.

Smoke Off The Water -- I was saddened to hear of the recent end of the Hogtown Smoke empire. Their original Beaches location had been around for some time (definitely before I moved here in 2014) and successful enough to expand outwards to multiple locations (one outside of the GTA, another near the financial district I think). There's a big ol' "For Lease" sign on their windows now, and so instead of speculating upon the reasons why... I'd like to instead raise a glass to a restaurant in my neighbourhood I really liked. They were pricey, so my visits were limited (I'm just a poor sometimes food reviewer after all)... but gosh they also happened to be one of my very first reviews of these viral virus times. Here it is... hope I don't sound too stupid.

---edit... geez my opening of that piece might've been somewhat too on-point even in 2020. That's depressing.

 

Ride And Not Die -- To be frank, BlogTo has mostly degenerated into trashy click-bait that is barely worth anyone's attention. There is still enough of something occasionally intriguing (historical articles for example) that keep me checking them out in vain hope my brain cells can survive.... which is more than Star Trek: Picard can boast. (Boom! Bringing it back around!). 

I simply could not resist expanding my thoughts upon this recent article... expelled by one of their better current writers no less. Perhaps I was hoping for too much, as this reads like a pamphlet to a 14 year old riding downtown for the first time... certainly not words for an insane maniac like me who probably logs over 1500km on a bike per summer without really trying. Nevertheless! This article has a set of instructions and I'd like to dissect them for your interest/displeasure. 

--edit: I got way too into this, so I'm just going to share the first rule. The rest will come out soon as its own separate piece.

 

Major No: Don't cycle on the sidewalks!

Interesting how this is the very first one. How about wearing a helmet? Buying some good locks? Lights? Being aware of both sides of your vision? Nope. Don't fucking ride on the sidewalks. MAJOR NO!!! HASHTAG HASHTAG.

I am joking, because yeah I do hate assholes who ride on the sidewalks. Even got brushed by one once going full speed (he toppled over, I was fine... what a bum). 

However... I do have exceptions to the "never bike on the sidewalk" rule. And if you're already pissed off at me for even suggesting it, you probably live in downtown Toronto and not where I'm coming from. If I'm riding on any major street between, I dunno... Jane and Victoria Park... or the lakeshore to Lawrence... using the sidewalk durin a busy hour is pretty dickish. But... if you're on a bike going along Birchmount near Eglinton, cars are zipping by faster than you can blink and the road is real damn shitty (pot-holes a foot deep are great for thinner tires)... sorry but I'm taking the sidewalk because I happen to like 'not' dying. I won't go fast or anything, there are still people sometimes... but geez when you get more into the outer reaches of the city some drivers legit have no clue how to deal with cyclists. They never see them! I've ridden enough, both downtown and in outskirts, to know when to get that sense. Try biking up Kingston Road to Morningside and tell me you're cool with cars zooming past you by inches while you cling vainly to the curb. 

All that said... just never bike on the sidewalks of busy downtown streets... and if for whatever reason you really have to, especially don't ride through people like you're practicing for a ski slalom. There's a special level of hell for people who do that.

 

This Week's No Context Looney Tunes Image -- 

 

 

Tuesday Tune -- In my opinion, this album is one of the greatest of the 1960s (which is saying a lot). Enjoy it, just a great darn tune on a timeless record. 

 

That's it for me! Until next time, be kind, keep it simple and don't spill that mustard.