Happy sandwiches

My journey for a good sandwich led me to Burlingame yesterday. Eleanor, Colin, and I had planned to have lunch together before Eleanor was to leave on a plane for New York, and I was up for a drive down the peninsula.

We ate at Piazza Italiano, a place owned by two older Italian ladies, one of whom greeted Colin warmly and then later pulled a grandmotherly guilt trip on him by asking him why she sees so little of him nowadays. It was a small café in downtown Burlingame where everyone looked happy eating sandwiches.

I wanted to be one of those happy sandwich munchers, especially after the recent sandwich disappointment, and was ecstatic to see so many pressed paninis on the menu. I ordered the prosciutto coppa with mushrooms and provolone on foccaccia. Eleanor ordered turkey with tomatoes and spinach on a hard roll. And Colin ordered a caprese open-faced sandwich thing. And we all split a large salad with mozzarella, corn, tomatoes, and greens. (Colin and Eleanor are great dining buddies, I might add. Food gets shared and rotated and no one is afraid of coodies.)

My sandwich arrived on a sheet of wax paper in a basket. It was toasty and warm. The bread was light and buttery but not the least bit greasy (even for foccaccia). The crunch of the bread gave way to a soft, creamy middle of prosciutto, provolone, and sautéed mushrooms. It was such an insanely awesome mélange of textures and flavors, almost heavenly. Colin's and Eleanor's sandwiches were great too.

Dessert was yummy too. I had eyed a fancy-looking berry thing on some other diner's table earlier in the meal and wanted it without even knowing what it was. It was a refreshing raspberry and blueberry frozen gelatin layer that topped a berry ice cream-ish middle and wrapped in a striped cake. I think it needed to be defrosted a little bit, since when I bit into it, it was a bit hard. The last bite was the best though, as it had time to warm up slightly. Colin ordered a chocolate tartufulo that was drizzled with espresso and topped with whip cream. And Eleanor had an almond horseshoe with ends dipped in chocolate. All very delicious.

I need to find a way to befriend those ladies and make them my mentors. Maybe they'll take me under their sandwich wings.