Shack Stack

Shack Stack at Shake Shack

shakeshack.com

A

Compared to pretty much every other burger joint—especially the much-hyped ones here in Las Vegas—Shake Shack is decidedly sane. Logical. Rational. Simple, even. I mean, you could say the same thing about In-N-Out, but they've got that secret menu stuff, Animal Style and Four-By-Fours and all that, and that's pretty crazy. Shake Shack is not crazy. Until you find your way to the Shack Stack, the only insane item on the menu. It basically slaps together the standard, delicious Shack Burger with the Shroom Burger, which is (laughably) the Shack's vegetarian option: crispy fried portobello mushroom caps filled with gooey, molten muenster and cheddar cheeses. Maybe it's vegetarian, but it certainly doesn't eat like something that's supposed to be better for you. Anyways, put the Shack's melty-cheese-topped Angus beef patty under one of those crunchy, explosive portobello pucks of glory—and put it all between the puffy bun with lettuce, tomato and Shack Sauce—and you've got a cheese-messy, wonderful accident waiting to happen. It's silly, but it's good. It might not be what you go to Shake Shack for, but mix it up sometimes. Keep it interesting.

Sandwich Sundays presents: The Raab and Sauce

The Raab and Sauce

homemade

B+

Looks sharp, eh? So we had a big spaghetti night and these were the leftovers: Rich, slightly spicy meat sauce made with ground turkey, mushrooms and whole black olives; and garlicky, bitter-delicious rapini. We made a quick jaunt over to Siena Deli to grab some slightly crusty, super-tasty hoagie rolls, layered it all together, tossed it in the oven for toasty fun, and sprinkled some finely grated parmigiano reggiano on top. It looked nice and neat for the picture, but believe this thing smushed and exploded and got messy fast. All good though. Nothing wrong with a messy sandwich, especially when you made it yourself and it tastes this good.

Green Hulk

The Green Hulk at Truffles N Bacon Cafe

trufflesnbacon.com

B+

Home to one of our favorite burgers in Las Vegas, Truffles N Bacon Cafe likes to tout that it's about more than truffles and bacon—it means the menu offers more than indulgent comfort foods. But what the place actually does best is takes simple ingredients and presents them in a way that results in indulgence and utter satisfaction. Take the Green Hulk. It's just grilled chicken with smashed-up avocado—lots of it—plus roasted red peppers, provolone cheese and tomatoes on thick slabs of sourdough toast. You've had a million sandwiches with different combinations of these ingredients. But together, through the crunch of the sourdough and the velvety luxury of all that avocado, they become something greater and something very delicious. It's also a very filling sandwich, and you'll feel bad about eating more than half of it. But you'll still do it.

Breakfast Rye

Breakfast Rye

homemade

B-

The best breakfast sandwiches are the ones you make. Dark rye toast, soft scrambled eggs with a fuckin' Kraft single melted on top, and a layer of pre-cooked turkey sausages sliced in half so they they won't roll around. That's it, dude. That's all you need.

Snappy Griller

Snappy Griller at Pizza Forte

pizza-forte.com

A-

So the family behind one of the best and longest running Italian restaurants in Las Vegas (Ferraro's) decided to get into the casual pizza game, and the result is Pizza Forte, which has already opened two stores at off-Strip casinos Sunset Station and the Hard Rock Hotel. The pizza is great ... but this ain't allpizza. Forte brings the special dog goodness, exclusively serving up Hofmann hot dogs and sausages and it's the only place in Vegas with this product. For our first taste, we couldn't resist the Snappy Griller, a creamy colored pork and veal sausage with a crisp texture and smooth, satisfying flavor. In fact, it tastes unlike any other sausage we can remember chomping into. The buns here are toasty, buttery New England-style things, the kind of bread you typically associate with a lobster roll.  They're substantial and delicious. Forte is kinda cool and old school, which means you can grab your wiener and slide over to a well-stocked condiment bar to load that thing up. We packed it with mustard, onions, tomatoes, banana peppers and bacon. (Yep. Bacon.) The topping combo was solid, but this thing would have been scrumptious with just mustard.

Debris Po-Boy

Debris Po-Boy at Zydeco Po-Boys

zydecopo-boys.com

A+

Let me just say this: When I took my first bite, "We Are The Champions" started playing in my head. This is exactly the rich, fresh, ideal po-boy we were expecting when we first visited Zydeco, and the debris is the sandwich that seals the deal. That's just the way it is when you find a sandwich you want to eat every day. It starts with Leidenheimer bread, of course, but the oven-roasted brisket is the star, well-spiced, unbelievably tender, falling apart and saturated in the gravy-ish drippings from the pan it was cooked in. Please give me a whole plate of this stuff? Add Swiss or provolone (I chose the latter) plus fresh lettuce and tomato, and the secret weapon: jalapeño mayo. It's no joke. Creamy and zingy, its brightness magically weaves in and out of each rich, meaty bite, providing the perfect foil for the brisket's fatty flavors. Now time to stop typing and head Downtown to Zydeco. 

The Winston Cooper

The Winston Cooper at The Sandwich Spot

thesandwichspot.com

B

Back to the friendly neighborhood Sandwich Spot for this mega meaty bite. We're not sure who Winston Cooper might be or may have been, but his sandwich is certainly satisfying. Hot pastrami, salami and roast beef mingle as an ultra-savory, slightly oily and spicy combination, with the addition of your cheese choice (we did Swiss) and the standard SS toppings of mayo, mustard, the garlic-herb-oil "secret sauce," lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions and peppers. It's basically the sandwich equivalent of a meatlover's pizza, for those who just can't get enough. This is enough, trust me.