Be'wiched Deli

If you haven't discovered Be'wiched yet, this post is for you. If you have, this is a reminder to go again. Now.

Be'wiched is a deli in the North Loop neighborhood of Minneapolis, in the same building as one of our other favorites, Bar la Grassa. The North Loop is an up and coming, primarily warehouse area that has been revitalized by a number of factors, multiple innovative restaurants, a ton of lofts and condos and, oh yeah, Target Field. That little thing.

Minneapolis really doesn't have much of a deli scene, in fact, for the most part, you might as well ship in lox and bagels from New York, they'd be better a few days old than anything we have here. I don't want to confuse you, Be'wiched is not a Jewish deli, we're still waiting for that. That said, it is a really great place to get a sandwich, brunch or happy hour. Everything is made from scratch, all their meats are smoked on-site and all bread is fresh. They use a mustard that actually has horseradish heat and make their own soups that are always well spiced. They have daytime hours and an early happy hour. They have a few tap beers and a nice wine list.

We started going on the weekend for lunch, in between running errands and going to the gym. The first time we went, we were very impressed. AC generally gets soup and half sandwich, while I usually get a sandwich. The combo- half sandwich and soup, or three salads with a soda is $9. Very affordable, and truly worth every cent. Whole sandwiches and brunch items are from $7-$14 depending on what you get. Also very affordable. So now you want to go, but what should you order? You're lucky you have me.

Sandwiches: For traditionalists, the pastrami, hands down. Even though I made the "this is not a Jewish deli" disclaimer, the pastrami begs to differ. Made in-house, it's a really good example of why Be'wiched is doing so well. Served on perfectly chewy, flavorful, soft rye bread with sour kraut and house-made pickles, it's really good.

Egg salad: It's traditional enough to flood your brain with happy childhood memories, but with that extra special something that clearly reminds you that you're eating it in a fabulous restaurant. Highly recommended for the day that you just want really tasty comfortable food.

Smoked ham: Sounds boring, but it's anything but. Served on a toasted, soft baguette (very easy to bite into) with brie (yum!), hot mustard and (the best part!) apple compote. The ham is far from your average deli ham, it's actually smoky and cut very thin. The brie is soft and melty, the mustard gives a kick of hot horseradish balanced by cinnamon-y, sweet apples.

Turkey: A safe choice, but at Be'wiched, there will always be a twist. In this case it's not unexpected, add bacon and a savory, tangy cranberry chutney.

Soups: The soups are fresh and always good, I promise, just last weekend we enjoyed a pork with yams and cinnamon soup, which was amazing and inspired both of us to dream up new ways to make French onion soup. What's better than food that inspires? Every time we've been in there's a new, innovative, inspiring soup, usually a cream based and broth based option, to make everyone happy. To the left you'll note the turkey sandwich and cup of chicken wild rice soup. You can get a bowl or a cup, the half sandwich, cup of soup combo, referenced above, is a great choice for those of us who like to have a little of this and a little of that. In general the portions are generous, but reasonable for a healthy person ie: they pack a lot of flavor into a reasonable size, so you can actually eat it all without being stuffed, just completely and totally satisfied. Another note, the sandwiches come with a couple tablespoons of their salads, just a taste for your amusement, its a nice bonus. Above is a beautiful chickpea salad. They also have an Israeli couscous salad with Moroccan spices that is fabulous. 

Specials: Every day there are brunch specials, written on a blackboard below the standard menu. The specials are always a bit unusual and hit-or-miss. They are for the adventurous, which we are, and will either end with a monsterous pay-out or disappointment. They always look beautiful though. AC is a fan of the pastrami hash, you have the pastrami again, the can-do-no-wrong pastrami, with a wealth of vegetables, potatoes and eggs. Very hearty, very solid. Then you have the beautiful pork hash, to your left. The first bite was unbelievable. Truly. Very, very flavorful. Then a bomb goes off, it's the rosemary. Way, way too much rosemary. Damn. Very disappointing. It's possible someone just dumped a little too much, but part of me thinks they just thought very highly of the rosemary/pork combo and got carried way. I can see how it can happen, it's all about the editing.

The other special I tried was a crab cake eggs benedict, to the left. Also amazingly beautiful. Maybe I don't eat enough poached eggs, or benedicts for that matter, but the perfect whipped eggs and beautiful yolk had me smitten. I am also a huge fan of crab cakes, so I thought this was a no-brainer. It was good, but again, not as perfect as it looked. The crab cakes were a little dry, I was really expecting a light, moist crab barely held together with a batter. No matter, the eggs were perfect, the house-made English muffin was well done and the spicy, tangy hollandaise was rich and so flavorful (I had it on the side, so it's not pictured).

Finally, I have a little bit of a preoccupation with the women's bathroom, rather the picture on the wall in the women's bathroom. I may be strange, but every time I see it I am transported to Mexico or Europe, you choose. It's just a picture of a store front from a place that is definitely not here. The kind of place you might not notice if you were walking by, but brings memories back when you see it later- long after you've returned home. So yes, I brought my camera into the bathroom and took this picture.