Rock & Brews - Overland Park, KS

I know better. I should have looked. I usually look. One word, coleslaw. Well this wasn't the first time that I would eat my mistake and it likely won't be the last. Usually though when I eat my mistake it is shortly after cooking it.

Let's get this over with. The menu said coleslaw and I didn't read it. My bad. I don't mind slaw on a sandwich when it is supposed to be there. I love a good Primanti's but this is a reuben. 

The bottom of the sandwich was a bit soggy, usually a sign of not cooking things separately. The slaw was cold as it is wont to be. There was a little cheese not as much as I would prefer but in general it was enough. There was real rye bread that was a bit chewy. 

The pastrami was fantastic though. There was a lot of it but not too much. The flavor was incredible. Salty peppery perfection. 

Overall it was what it was. 3 stars out of 5. 

Village Inn - Omaha, NE

The Villiage Inn is a chain of diners much like Denny's. I had high hopes since I knew the sandwich would be cooked on a flat grill which is one of the secrets to a great grilled sandwich.

I saw that it was going to be marbled rye. While not preferred it sometimes yields acceptable results. 

The sandwich came out with a side of seasoned French Fries. The sandwich seemed thin and the bread had an almost polished feel to it. 

I opened it up and took a look inside. I was surprised at how little was in there. Then again in a restaurant that caters to an aged clientele lighter portions are to be expected. 

The sandwich tasted dry and bland and was fairly disappointing. The best thing that I can say about it was that it wasn't soggy. 

1.5 out of 5

Yorkholo Brewing - Mansfield, PA

Boo panini press, hooray brewpub!

After NSO'ing there first home bout of the Dirt Road Dears(lots of sloppy derby, but everyone was new at some point.) the refs and NSO's adjourned to the Yorkholo Brewing Company where I was looking forward to their Pennsylvania Grand Canyon Vanilla Porter. The beer was as good as I remembered it. After looking at wings and fried pickles I went after the reuben. 

My review may be tainted by the excellent one a few days prior but I will endeavor to be fair. 

The bread might have been white bread or may have been a mild seedless rye. It was cooked on a dry panini press so there was none of the crispy buttery goodness I so love. Instead of crispy grilled bread there was a crunch of smushed dry bread. 

The corned beef was dull, the sauerkraut was there, kinda, I remember some cheese and perhaps dressing. This was a shadow of great sandwich. 

That's being said, it wasn't soggy and there was nothing actively offensive. 2.5 out of 5.

Next time I'll get the burger which looked epic!

Local Whiskey - State College, PA

Local Whiskey is a bar above the Phyrst in State College.  I had been meaning to try it for a while, because in addition to enjoying corned beef, rye bread and sauerkraut, I also enjoy distilled aged spirits and local cuisine.

I flipped through to the whiskey and decided on the "Let your rye fly" flight.

All different.  All yummy.

Looking at the menu I saw a ruben.  This was going to be an excellent lunch.  I ordered it with high hopes.  I tasted the whiskey's but saved my palate for the main course.

All on it's lonesome on the plate

It was huge.  There were no sides except for the pickle but I was full eating it.  It was nicely grilled, not to greasy.  The corned beef was pouring off the sides and obviously high quality.

Peeling it open revealed all sorts of goodness.  This sandwich was one prepared by someone who knew what they were doing with high quality components.  I took a bite into it and was pleased.  The bread was soft but dry, not soggy, the meat was salty and flavorful, the sauerkraut was excellent as well.  It was swimming in incredible gooey swiss cheese.

This is one of the best if not the best that I have had.  I highly recommend it. 5 out 5.

Lucky's Cafe - Cleveland OH

Lucky's Cafe is a small cafe in a neighborhood undergoing gentrification in Cleveland.  There are a number of art galleries in the neighborhood which is full of Orthodox churches, lodge halls and small row houses.

Lucky's is proudly part of the farm to table movement which emphasizes local, seasonal foods.  It has also been featured on FoodTV's Diner's Drive-in's and Dives.

When I was eating there I was tempted to try the beef stew since this really has been a winter for beef stew, but I heard that that the reuben here was awesome so I had to try it.  It came with potato salad but the waitress suggested the couscous so I went that route.  I also had the "Sunshine Tea" which was unsweetened iced tea, with some herbal tea components.

The Reuben was incredible.  All of the components were house made, the sauerkraut, corned beef and dressing and bread.  The attention to detail really showed.  The bread was snappy and crisp and crunchy, the beef was hot and flavorful.

My only real complaint was that there wasn't quite enough of the Russian Dressing, but with it off to the side I could have easily asked for more.

5 out of 5 stars