There are two different kinds of sloppy joe sandwiches and it's very important that you know which one I am talking about. Most of the world, I believe, recognizes the sloppy joe in the picture below which consists of ground beef, onions, tomato sauce or ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and it is on a hamburger bun.
The other sloppy joe is found mostly in the northeast, more in New Jersey and is referred to as "The Jewish Sloppy Joe." The below picture is a triple decker deli sandwich with coleslaw and Russian dressing and swiss cheese and it's on usually three slices of rye bread. The most popular meats are turkey and roast beef and corned beef, but what's in the sandwich varies depending on the deli.
I am referring to the second sloppy joe pictured directly above this, it is absolutely delicious. If you didn't know, the legend of this sandwich began in the 1930's in a bar in Cuba. I am not making this up. The bar's name in Havana is called "Sloppy Joe's," and they had a sandwich that was recreated in New Jersey and has been a big seller since then. One deli in New Jersey has the map pictured below which shows all the places they have shipped sloppy joe sandwiches to customers.
On Sunday, we had a small party in connection with my Dad's memorial and I ate some of these sandwiches. I'm not going to say how many, but it was more than three and less than ten. When it was time to leave, my sister insisted that I take a couple of these sandwiches for the road and that's when the problem really began-when could I eat them?
I was full and I was thinking, I could just have a light dinner and eat them in a couple hours. However, my wife was hungry and she suggested Cracker Barrel and how could I pass up on southern fried chicken? The two sandwiches went into the hotel fridge and I went to sleep thinking, "when am I going to be able to eat them?"
I woke up around 4 am since we were going to get through Washington DC before rush hour. I knew my wife was going to go to sleep. If I slipped the sandwiches in the space inside the door I could eat them on the way. However, they were in a plastic container which is too noisy and difficult to open while driving on the highway and they are messy to eat in the car. I chose the only option left-I ate them at 4 am. After the first bite I knew I had to take a picture, so here it is. It's not the best picture, but I was in a hurry and it tasted soooooo good!
My wife was in the bathroom and I finished by the time she got out. She said, "Don't forget about the food in the fridge." I said, "I didn't, I took care of it." When I got out of the bathroom she said, "Did you eat that?" By saying I took care of it, it tipped her off. By the way, the top one was roast beef and turkey and the bottom one was corned beef and pastrami. I'd highly recommend this as a breakfast food, I was good for hours.
A map above the register shows everywhere in the country Town Hall has shipped a sloppy joe.
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