Sandwiches for all situations
The 1am kerbside: a cheese toastie from The White Lady. Whatever the filling (simple cheese and onion is my pick), it’s pure hot, melted late-night bliss. The cheese dreams will be worth it.
The hangover cure: all other hangover cures are myth, but the chicken salad sandwich from Federal Delicatessen truly does the trick: a juicy mix of roast chicken with mayo, herbs and capers, a bit of the crisp skin (I will never truly relate to anyone who eschews chicken skin) with crisp iceberg lettuce and a side of unctuous gravy.
The snack size bargain of the day: the jambon baguette from La Voie Francaise. Cured ham, Swiss cheese, mayo and a few rocket leaves in arguably this city’s best baguette. When you don’t want a behemoth of a meal, this $5 deal will plug the gap nicely.
The nostalgia trip: Mustard Kitchen do a mean white bread, egg and cress sandwich. Classics never die.
The cultured sandwich: at Te Tuhi Gallery in Pakuranga you can get an art fix followed by a delicious sandwich at Small Fry Cafe. Owner Ruby White makes her own sourdough rolls and fills them with such delights as chicken marinated in laksa paste, with tamarind mayo, Ruby’s nasi lemak dukkah (crushed peanuts and a secret ingredient), bean sprouts and coriander.
Missing in action: try as I might, I’ve not been able to find a honourable rendition of the British classic, the ploughman’s. Whether served up already in the bread, neatly cut into two, or with the components laid out on a chopping board in an assemble-your-own fashion, the ploughman’s is a pub lunch staple (best enjoyed with a packet of crisps and a pint of ale) that’s mysteriously absent on these shores. If you know where the best ploughman’s action is at in Auckland, please let us know.