The Sandwich Board

Sandwiches are a sign of spring.

My favorite part of spring beginning, other than being unburdened by the necessity of a heavy coat but still being able to enjoy the coziness of dressing in layers, is the return of spontaneity in my life. It’s hard to be spontaneous in the winter—weather that fights back necessitates efficiency in movement. So for the colder months, I move about the city how Google Maps wants me to, walking and turning with absolute efficiency.

The beginning of spring sneaks up on you. It’s going out with your parka on only to realize that you’re way too warm, when a week ago in the same outfit you were freezing. It’s tearing apart your closet to find a dress you haven’t worn since last spring, because you suddenly, inexplicably, feel compelled to wear it. And, it’s Viraj and me ducking out of the house with the plan to grab a sandwich to bring home to eat, only to feel so inspired and invigorated by the unexpected, beautiful, sunny weather to spend the entire afternoon out and about, twisting and turning throughout Lower Manhattan.

I’ve written about my stance on sandwiches before. Increasingly, I find myself really enjoying a good sandwich after years and years of being a staunch hater, and I have a new favorite sandwich spot in New York: The Sandwich Board. (Bedford Cheese might be tied.) Maybe a little embarrassing to admit, but they first landed on my radar thanks to some light TikTok virality, which must always be approached with a hefty dose of skepticism. Though they have sandwiches inspired by all types of cuisines, I was especially interested in their Asian-adjacent ones, which were intriguing and unique enough to convince me and Viraj that we needed to venture further than our neighborhood for a sandwich.

Almost literally a hole in the wall on Eldridge Street in the Lower East Side, The Sandwich Board is sandwiched between two storefronts, noticeable only because of the red framing of the small door and window. On this unexpectedly gorgeous Saturday at noon, the block was quiet and empty, save for a couple enjoying their sandwiches on two of the red metal chairs placed on the other side of the sidewalk, facing the storefront. Viraj and I quickly ordered—I got the Banh Mi with grilled chicken and Viraj got the Austin Chinatown.

As someone who finds eating messy foods very stressful, especially when balanced atop my precious, precious jeans, it speaks volumes about this sandwich that I found this entire experience thoroughly enjoyable. It only took one bite for my to realize that this was a fucking good sandwich. This is by no means a traditional banh mi, but this version captured my favorite parts of the sandwich (which is, by the way, my favorite type of sandwich): bread that’s pillowy soft but also has a crust that shatters upon biting into and the acid of pickles mixing with the sweetness of hoisin. The Sandwich Board’s banh mi really takes their pickled radish, carrots and… normal pickles seriously, and the final sandwich has an overpowering sweet and sour-ness along with that unique crunch that pickles tend to always have. It’s the perfect flavor profile for me, a sandwich that screams into your taste buds as you eat. Perhaps not the kind of meal you’d want to be eating all the time—by the time I reached the end of the second half of the sandwich I was stuffed and overwhelmed by flavor—but when I have a serious craving for a sandwich, this is where I’ll be turning from here on.

The Banh Mi

Between their normal sandwich menu and their breakfast menu (served until 4 p.m.), there are too many sandwiches for me to reasonably try. (I like keeping you all informed, but not that much!) And though not all the sandwiches are hits, in my opinion, there are wonderful twists and turns throughout the menu to discover: the Spam & Eggs on the breakfast menu is spectacular and served with nori aioli. For almost all the breakfast items, add a hash brown and thank me later.

Similar to the Banh Mi, I found The Puebla (chicken tinga with red onion, black beans, queso fresco, lettuce, tomato and chipotle sauce on a hero) to pack a serious punch, though this time in a way that was less enjoyable. Though the bread and heft of the sandwich was just as excellent as the Banh Mi, the chipotle sauce overwhelmed the sandwich and I couldn’t taste anything else. Viraj liked the Austin Chinatown, which he ordered during our first visit, and thought the addition of the dan dan BBQ sauce was a cool twist on the classic pulled pork sandwich. But, he found the sandwich to be lacking spice or acid to cut through the richness of the sauced up meat. Overall, it seems like each sandwich’s flavor is dialed up to an 11—sometimes in a delightful way, and sometimes not.

The Puebla

I tried to return to The Sandwich Board at noon yesterday for the sake of additional research, but was confronted (for the first time) with a sizable crowd waiting outside. On a Tuesday! There seemed to be quite a few people picking up online orders, which was backing up the kitchen. So, I was told there would be a 30-minute wait if I wanted to order in person. I bailed—I do have… a job—and unfortunately didn’t get to have the Tsangwich, which is next on my list to try. It’s another Asian-inspired sandwich, where The Sandwich Board seems to excel, and it’s served on a bolo bao, also known as a pineapple bun. It was my favorite breakfast growing up, and I used to love picking at the crunchy, sweet bits on top and eating that first. I suspect that a sandwich with such a sweet bread will be a bit much for my palate, but I do want to give it a try sometime. I guess I just can’t go on a Tuesday at noon!

It seems like writing all of this down has revealed my true mixed feelings about The Sandwich Board. (The highs are high, and the mids are… mid.) But, there’s no denying that their sandwiches are thought-provoking and unique and stimulate your taste buds in weird and new ways. And that’s a lot more than we can hope for from the ordinary sandwich. So go outside and enjoy the weather, and go enjoy a sandwich hunched over in a bright red metal chair on Eldridge Street. After all, it won’t be spring for long.

<3

Bite It!

Order ahead at The Sandwich Board here, or stubbornly refuse to buy into this whole “ordering ahead” business and risk the consequences like me.