Buffalo Meatloaf Sandwich

Buffalo Meatloaf Sandwich at Henry's Pub

henryspubloveland.com

B

The annual Colorado sandwich trip has arrived! First up is a stop at Henry's Pub in beautiful downtown Loveland, a friendly little joint we always visit. This open-faced beauty drops a slab of surprisingly juicy, super tender and utterly delicious buffalo meatloaf on top of a toasted tile of multigrain bread, then covers the whole thing in a rich, garlicky tomato sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. It's a knife and fork job, sure, but it's mighty tasty, simple and satisfying. And a great way to begin the annual Colorado sandwich trip.

Rueben

Rueben at MTO Café

mtocafe.com

A

We're not sure if the fine folks at MTO Cafe spelled this classic sandwich wrong on accident or on purpose, but we don't care. It's probably the best reuben in Las Vegas. One bite and you're overwhelmed by juicy, powerfully flavored corned beef … and then you realize this is corned buffalo. Boom. Mind blown. It's rich and tender and eats like a much fattier meat, and how this kitchen got this lean meat to taste so amazing is an act of pure wizardry. Top this majestic meat stack with melty Swiss, a Russian dressing-like "special sauce" and a bit of crisp sauerkraut, and you've got a powerful package enclosed in toasty rye. Even the fries are great! MTO already impressed us with its killer Hangover Burger; with this "rueben" staying on our minds, we have to wonder if this friendly breakfast and lunch joint—soon to expand to Summerlin—isn't secretly one of our top sandwich shops.

Buffalo Pot Roast

Buffalo Pot Roast Sandwich

homemade

A+

Leftovers = sandwich greatness.

Roasting a buffalo shoulder was something of a Thanksgiving tryout. Buffalo meat has great taste considering how lean it is, but could the texture be manipulated to replicate mom's beloved pot roast? Hoping for the best, I brought in a secret weapon: piggy. So this roast went in the magic blue LeCreuset wrapped with slab bacon, and accompanied by garlic, celery, carrots, onions and red wine. The result was soft and tender meat, slightly gamey taste, but an overall lack of succulence. Eh, good try.

But after piling all these goodies on two slabs of fresh sliced crusty French bread, slathered with my shit Boetje's Dutch stone ground mustard, we've got a super winner. Rustic, spicy, messy, hearty, totally satisfying ... especially with the chewy bacon and glistening, fat-glazed carrots riding shotgun. This is basically having a bowl of stew and a chunk of bread, minus the bowl. Accidental ideas rock.

Buffalo Burger

Buffalo Burger at Burger Bar

mandalaybay.com

B+

I'm tired of writing about burgers. Why is everyone so enamored with such typical foodstuff? I tell ya, it never ends. Every few weeks someone is asking me What's the best burger in Vegas? or What's your favorite burger? For the most part, a burger is a burger. If you go to McDonald's, it's gonna suck. If you go to a place like Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay, it's not gonna suck. It's not complicated. And other than pizza, I can't think of anything more subjective than burgers. There's no such thing as Best Burger Ever; it depends on how you like your burger. Yes, I picked In-N-Out over that famous burger at Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace. Get over it.

To me, it gets a little tricky comparing burgers from a restaurant that serves only burgers to fancy, upscale eateries that happen to do a great version of the hamburger. Burger Bar was pretty much the first gourmet burgers-only joint to pop up on the Vegas Strip, and while there are quite a few more these days, I think it's still the best. You can build your own, like I did with this buffalo, provolone, roasted pepper and bacon burger, or order a signature burger with chef-tested and approved flavor combinations. If you really want something special, I recommend ordering one of the kitchen's creations. But it can be fun to experiment. That's what I did here, and it was a success. Buffalo is my favorite substitute for beef because it maintains so much flavor with a lot less fat. This meat was cooked perfectly, medium rare, juicy and satisfying. The combination of crispy bacon and sweet peppers was a little weird, something I've never had together before. It worked, but I might have been better off using something with a softer flavor for my veggie topping.