Open Instagram and you’ll likely see images of gourmet sandwiches with thinly sliced meats, rich cheeses and unusual greens dripping with sauce. While sandwiches have always been a rather common menu item, Charleston seems to be undergoing a sandwich renaissance.
Gourmet sandwich shops like The Pass downtown, Cold Shoulder Gourmet in West Ashley and Island Provisions on Johns Island, and now downtown, have opened up in the past year and a half, giving Charlestonians many more options than a standard chicken salad sandwich.
For Tim Edwin, owner of The Southern General on Johns Island, “sandwiches have always been pretty popular,” he said. “I’ve definitely noticed a lot of other places branching out, but in my mind, sandwiches have always been pretty fun.”
The Southern General has been slinging sandwiches of all types for 10 years on Johns Island, away from the rising trend of gourmet shops on the Charleston peninsula like Bodega, Island Provisions’ second location and The Pass.
The John’s Island joint serves classics like A Good ‘Ol Chicken sandwich with chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, red onions and pickles on a brioche bun. But that doesn’t mean it hasn’t dipped its toes in the gourmet scene. Take the J.I.3., for example, a grilled honey white bread sandwich stuffed with spicy sweet potato cream cheese, Swiss, cheddar, tomato and candied pork belly.
Not-so-PB&Js
The fun part of creating sandwiches is that they are like a blank canvas for many chefs, said Alec Gropman, director of culinary operations for Uptown Hospitality Group, which owns Bodega, Share House and Uptown Social.
“I might just be speaking for myself, but my earliest memories that I have of actually cooking — if you can even consider this cooking — is making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich,” he said.
Now, Gropman is making much more intricate sandwiches for Uptown Hospitality, like the Arthur Ave. sandwich at Bodega, stuffed with salami, prosciutto, pepperoni, fresh mozzarella, provolone, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion and topped with an oregano vinaigrette. And the bread of choice? “Always a Kaiser roll,” Gropman said.
Craig Edmunds, owner of Cold Shoulder Gourmet in West Ashley, serves his sandwiches exclusively on focaccia bread from Saffron Bakery downtown, a conscious choice when building his gourmet sandwich menu with European-imported cheeses, fresh greens from King Tide Farms and smoked meats from Smoking Goose Meatery in Indiana.
“Charleston was a very French-based sandwich town, like everything was baguette, baguette, baguette,” he said. “And all of a sudden, we had a flip and everything we’re getting now has a super big Italian influence.”
Edmunds added that he likes to give people what he calls “accessible luxury,” using ingredients like black truffle in his house made truffle cream or wagyu beef bologna, things that are commonly found in fine dining restaurants. It’s safe to say, if you’re a fan of truffle, Cold Shoulder Gourmet is the spot.
Nostalgia in bread
Dining in the pandemic era encouraged takeout, delivery and home cooking. And while dining out is back in full swing, there are still many who’d much rather eat their favorite foods and binge watch the hottest Netflix or HBO Max show at home.
“I think part of [this renaissance] has a little bit to do with the pandemic,” said Anthony Marini, owner and chef of The Pass downtown. “I think there’s a lot of people that still like that familiarity [of takeout]. We do a hell of a lot more takeout business than in-house business. That’s part of it. But I think people also just like the familiarity of having a good sandwich.
“I think that sandwiches hold a very special place in people’s hearts,” he added. “Whether they even realize it or not, for those nostalgic reasons.”
Edwin, who’s been in the sandwich business for 10 years, agrees: “The two senses, they say, that recall the most memories are smell and taste. So, when you’re dealing with the individual components [of a sandwich], those are the things that take you on a journey. It can take you to your past and you say, ‘Oh, that flavor or that smell just reminded me of when I was 10 years old.’”
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