NEW ORLEANS, Aug 17 — A quirky, counter-service-only sandwich shop in New Orleans that serves their sandwiches on collectible McDonald’s and Disney plastic plates has been named America’s best new restaurant 2017, by the tastemakers at Bon Appetit magazine.
For the 2017 edition of the publication’s Best New Restaurants in America awards, the small, nondescript sandwich shop, Turkey and the Wolf, made the most lasting impression on editors Andrew Knowlton and Julia Kramer for their wildly inventive sandwiches.
Along with reinventing old classics like the bologna sandwich, chef and owner Mason Hereford is credited with creating the best sandwich Knowlton said he’s ever eaten in his life, a meatless collard green melt made with slow-cooked collard greens, Swiss cheese and coleslaw on rye bread.
“Turkey and the Wolf serves the best sandwich I’ve ever crammed into my mouth, with a mastery of flavors and textures way beyond what you might expect from this fun, unconventional, casual joint,” Knowlton said in a statement.
The classic bologna sandwich on soft white bread is also reinvented with locally-made, fried bologna, American cheese, hot-mustard, mayo, shredded lettuce, and vinegar-brined potato chips.
Diners sit at Formica tables, and food is served on mismatched china or plastic plates bearing images of the Hamburglar and Disney characters.
It’s a bold declaration, editors acknowledge, but one that was unanimous.
“Were we prepared to call a quirky, nostalgic, counter service-only sandwich spot our No. 1 new restaurant in America? A place that serves what some might call, for better or for worse, stoner food?
“...We looked at each other and grinned. Yes, we were.”
Earlier this month, the magazine declared Chicago the restaurant city of 2017 in the US.
The list also includes a dim sum-slash-flower shop in Raleigh called Brewery Bhavana and a members’ only Italian eatery Palizzi Social Club in Philadelphia.
The full list appears in the September issue of the magazine and at http://www.bonappetit.com/best-new-restaurants.
For the collard green melt recipe, visit http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/the-collard-green-melt.
Here are the winners:
1. Turkey and the Wolf, New Orleans
2. Elske, Chicago
3. Mister Jiu’s, San Francisco
4. Palizzi, Philadelphia
5. Hart’s, Brooklyn
6. Giant, Chicago
7. Spring, Marietta, GA
8. Kemuri Tatsu-Ya, Austin
9. Nixta, St. Louis
10. Brewery Bhavana, Raleigh, NC. — AFP-Relaxnews
