My Quest for the Perfect Sandwich

Endless driving to fulfill that craving for just the right sandwich. The Tuesday after the Fourth weekend. Hmmm. Lunchtime. Call Sparkytown, answering machine, must be closed. It was closed on Monday. I drive by and it is open but looks crowded. Don’t want to wait. Gentile’s is serving lunch now, why not check out their menu to go go go. Park in back of restaurant and walk around to front. From the corner I could see the sign on the door. I knew. On closer inspection, Gentiles closed for extended holiday. Getting frustrated. I drive to Asti’s to see what is on the sandwich board. Sounds good. Capicolla and cheese. Chicken parmesan sandwich. I am thinking I want turkey and maybe ham though. Not a big Italian sandwich. Walk a little farther down the street, same block, to oh I can’t remember the name of the restaurant but I did have good fried haddock sandwich there once. I walk into the cool air conditioning and grab a menu. Typical looking sandwiches. Afraid they might be boring. Must have zip, zang, tang. Is it a full moon? Wait! Poppy Garden Café. Boar’s head ham on rye. Done. I arrive at Clinton Street and the Poppy Garden is closed. I mean I think permanently closed. I did not get out of the car to read the handwritten sign on the door, but had a feeling it wasn’t just a vacation note. I don’t know what to do now. Lao Village? Not exactly a sandwich joint. I have to stick to my original mission, otherwise I may face utter culinary or cosmic disappointment. Dinosaur. Grilled chick sand. Diablo? Cajun? Two sides. Yeah, get platter. So my dear reader. I ordered a Diablo Chicken Sandwich with a side of black beans and rice and coleslaw. (Is there Dino BBQ sauce in the coleslaw? Tastes like it.) My long-awaited sandwich. Not turkey. Not ham. But bi bim bap, wowza! And all packed in the most adorable Dinosaur BBQ to-go bag. I left there swinging my purchases in my lil bag. A happy girl. Wee, wee, wee all the way home.

Viva Italiano, Viva Syracuse (New York)

Why is the Olive Garden parking lot always packed? It's amazing when there are so many outstanding Italian restaurants in Syracuse. Of course, advertising has a lot to do with it. People feel a certain comfort knowing what to expect. Although the true comfort is in authentic Italian cooking. Family recipes. Tangy red sauce you can sop up with crunchy Italian bread. Perfectly baked eggplant parmesan. Crispy calamari. And the prices at many of Syracuse’s Italian restaurants, of which there are many, are comparable to or less than the Olive Garden. Let’s talk atmosphere too. Does Olive Garden have a certain ambience? An intimate, romantic setting or a mama’s kitchen feel? Are you pulled in by the smell of simmering tomatoes and fragrant garlic when you first enter? I truly judge restaurants on those warm aromas that tease your senses and create excitement before you even look at the menu. Anticipation, oh yeah. How about dinner at home instead? Stop at Columbus Bakery or Pasta’s for bread. Make moist flavorful meatballs with a mix from Liehs and Steigerwald or Ascioti’s. Buy Gianelli sausage or homemade sausage from many North Side stores. Buy cold cuts and cheese from Lombardi’s. Pizza, we won’t even go there. OK, I really like Shifty’s pizza, but it's inconsistent. "Who's got the best pizza?" causes as much debate as does what makes the best tomato sauce. We are talking about those days when you want someone else to do the cooking. It’s here and it's real in Syracuse. If you're not sure of where to go, ask around. Folks love talking about their favorite spots and when the topic is Italiano cuisine--look out. Be adventurous. Skip the endless baskets of bread sticks and bowls of soup. Treat yourself to an authentic Italian restaurant, ala Syracuse, where you'll really feel like family.

What Happened to the Syracuse Music Scene?

Syracuse had the coolest music scene in the seventies. I remember, because I was there. My high school years. Jamming at the Jabberwocky, Tony Trischka, trucking, sellout War Memorial concerts, "Rock and Roll Hootchie Coo," Loew’s State Theatre, Firebarn fun. Fast forward to 2008. Where’s the music? Check the club listings every week and you see the same old bands listed. Syracuse’s favorite son, Colin Aberdeen; the pop kings Frenay and Lenin; music dignitaries Roosevelt Dean and Bobby Green, and the blues, blues, blues. Is Simple Life Syracuse’s answer to indie rock? How many bands don’t do covers? It surprises me that a larger venue like the Palace, Landmark, or Center for the Performing Arts doesn’t bring in any of the acts that play say in Buffalo, Albany, or even Binghamton. Plenty of room here for Neil Young to stop while on tour. And why don’t the bars get the exciting, eclectic bands that might play in Ithaca? Syracuse is a college town after all. I saw an incredible amount of amazing bands and performers in the seventies. Many of whom are still on tour. In eighth grade I saw Ravi Shankar and John McLaughlin in an electrifying performance on the SU lawn. And the Jabberwocky was still going strong after I left Syracuse in 1976 (not to return until 2004), where I saw the likes of Martin Mull and Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks. (Yes, I was underage, but I had older friends.) My very first concert in 1971 was Black Sabbath at the War Memorial. In 1972 I saw 10 shows at the War Memorial alone, including Frank Zappa and Tim Buckley, John Mayall, and Procol Harum. What about Jeff Beck at the Loew’s State Theatre in 1973 for a whopping $4.50? One of my favorite concerts was B. B. King at the Civic Center, probably around 1973 too. My friend Peggy and I, a couple of 16-year-old white suburban chicks sitting at a show with a mostly older, well-dressed black audience. I remember a woman in the opera box elegantly standing and tossing a single rose to B.B. on stage. B.B. picked up the rose and blew her a kiss. And then recently I heard the Firebarn used to get well-known punk and new wave bands in the late 1970s. I had no idea. I saw Taj Mahal there and the Firebarn had probably exceeded its fire capacity because the floor was shaking and sinking with the weight of the swaying bodies. It was so crowded, I watched the show from the fire escape. People would travel to Syracuse from all over if we had a better music scene. I am sorry but as much as I love many of Syracuse’s music staples, I am tired of them, particularly when they play at every downtown festival, bar, and benefit. I miss the diversity and excitement of the seventies music scene and wonder if I will ever get a chance to experience it again.