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Thread: Best Reuben

  1. #1
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    Best Reuben

    Where? How much? Any special additions? I'll take best and worst at The Waldorff Astoria. Best was with a money'd relative. I think it was $18. Came out piping hot, crisp, greasy as fuck. Worst was at the same, with my two brothers, hungover. Food took forty minutes, was cold and soft. Disgusting. I'll also take Frussies in Knoxville, TN. He bakes his own bread. I think it's $9.

    I'd love to hear about a griddled Reuben in the Bay Area. Nobody griddles sandwiches here!!
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    Second from left top row.
    Actually posting to find out where the best Reuben sandwiches can be found. I hope that you get plenty of replies.

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    I can't order a Reuben anymore. I've tried many times; I've tried the $20 Reuben from overpriced restaurants, the $5 Reuben from the local lunch spot.... the sad thing is, no one has gotten it right. Too greasy, kraut that hasn't been drained, off the shelf Russian dressing, cold pastrami, fucking wheat bread... you name it. Why can't it be mastered? Granted I haven't had one in Bavaria.

    Dressing:
    -Shallot/yellow/vidalia onion graded to a liquidy pulp. I prefer using a steel wasabi grater.
    -Horseradish. Fresh, clean and burn-the-nose pungent. Best grocery store brand I've tried has been Boar's head brand.
    -Worcestershire sauce. Yes, there is a difference between store brand and Lea & Perrins. Always go with the latter.
    -Ketchup
    -Full fat mayo.

    Kraut:
    Most store bought brands are passable, Boar's Head is meaty and well seasoned. Whatever you do make sure it's well drained.

    Pickle:
    Pick your brand of refrigerated pickle. Claussen pickles work for me. Slice thin.

    Cheese:
    I prefer a mix of mild and sharp swiss. Mild on one side, Sharp on the other.

    Pastrami:
    Home made pastrami can be incredible, granted taking 5 days of prep and 10 hours on the smoker can be a little much. Boar's Head pastrami is awesome.

    Bread:
    Pick your Rye.


    Assembly:
    Dressing, cheese, pastrami, pickles, kraut. Mirror that on the other side of the bread. You can toast the side you apply dressing to prevent the dressing from sogging the inside.

    Cooking. Preheat oven to 375. In a skillet/ flattop, melt butter over med-low heat. Apply sandwich to pan. Place some sort of weight on the top. Golden brown crispy bread is what you are going for. Cook time is about 4-5min per side depending on the heat. Key is to re butter pan for the flip. Place in oven for 8-10 min on a pre-heated cooking sheet. Done and Done.

    anyone else?

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    Quote Originally Posted by pointedem View Post
    Granted I haven't had one in Bavaria.
    Not sure why you would - it's an American sandwich.

    I enjoyed the Katz's version (but I definitely wouldn't consider it anywhere near the best available). It used salt beef and corned when I would have preferred pastrami, was an open sandwich and the bread was terrible (and the cheese wasn't much either) but the overall effect was damn tasty. And it was vast. Kept me going for 3 days. That said, for $25 you'd expect either something epically good or something of behemoth proportion or a bit of both.

  5. #5
    Bobby Stainless Guest
    My favorite is actually made with fried grouper, and served at a little seafood spot.

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    Quote Originally Posted by pointedem View Post
    Pastrami:
    Home made pastrami can be incredible, granted taking 5 days of prep and 10 hours on the smoker can be a little much. Boar's Head pastrami is awesome.
    This is not a fucking reuben. Take your disgusting perversion of a sandwich somewhere else.

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    Patrami?? Grouper??!??

    wtf

    Reubens are my favorite sandwich. Most places they suck. Why?

    More on Sandwiches.

    The op got it right, though: crispy, greasy, hot. Good corned beef, kraut, and bread are the keys but really everything matters. Even loading it with way too much meat can wreck it. It's in the ingredients AND the proportions.

    Brooklyn's Deli near me makes a very good one most of the time. But why not always? arrgh. Damn expensive, too.

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    The best reuben I've ever had was from the Whitetooth Bistro in Golden.

    The only thing that stands out about the ingredients that go into it is the pretzel loaf it's served on. Fan-fucking-tastic.





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    Harolds Deli. Lyndhurst New Joysey.
    Click. Point. Chute.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Caucasian Asian View Post
    The only thing that stands out about the ingredients that go into it is the pretzel loaf it's served on.
    Pretzel loaf? Pastrami? Pickles? You people need some education about what a reuben actually is. Corned beef, sauerkraut, swiss, and russian dressing on rye, griddled till crisp and melty. I'm sure your pastrami and pickles on pretzel loaf is delightful, but it ain't a reuben.

    To me, the key to a great reuben is that the corned beef should be high quality (preferably housemade) and piled at least an inch high. Too many places give you more sauerkraut than meat, which is just sad.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuben_sandwich
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  12. #12
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    A #4 at Langer's, 7th and Alvarado, L.A. Brown mustard sub'd. for Russian dressing. Dark rye.
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    For the pastrami sandwich thread jackers, doesn't the #9 at Togo's satisfy? It's the most ordered sandwich there three times over.
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    Langer's and Canter's in L.A., Rein's in Vernon, CT, Darwin's in Cambridge, Mass.

    The San Francisco Reuben scene is pretty lousy, although Max's in the Financial District does a reasonable job.

  15. #15
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    Other Coast Cafe here in Seattle makes a decent one. And Goldberg's but I never find myself out that way.

  16. #16
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    Star Provisions in Atlanta - every ingredient made in house and w/ all the local-organic whatnots.

    Izzy's in Cincinnati - good Jewish deli that really only does corned beef and pastrami sandwiches, and killer potato pancakes too.
    I still call it The Jake.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by iceman View Post
    Patrami?? Grouper??!??

    wtf
    Made an awesome Reuben at my house last night.

    Home smoked/pulled pork butt, piled high with homemade slaw and doused in vinegar-based sauce. No bun, but I did make some wheat-free hushpuppies that I used as mini buns.

    Tonight I think I'm gonna make a Reuben with some seasoned chicken. Put it in a corn tortilla with some lettuce, tomato, cheese, sour cream and salsa...mmMMMMM!
    Remind me. We'll send him a red cap and a Speedo.

  18. #18
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    ^^Eeeeeegcellent. I'm going to 7-11, buying an Oscarr Meyer sandwich pack, putting the meat and cheese on the crackers for my Reuben. I really don't care if it's pastrami or corned beef, light rye, dark or marble. I prefer corned beef on marble. Once you start throwing in pickles and mustard, you've lost your course.

    Dallas, you're totally right about Max's. I stopped going there because it's so damn inconsistent. Maybe it's time to go back. Haven't eaten here in years, but I think it was decent: http://www.refugesc.com/

    I tried the Canters in Vegas and I'd say it was good. Not all time, but really good.
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    I'll second Izzy's in Cincinatti. I spent a week there last October on a project and it was as good or better then most of the Reuben experts in NYC where I also work quite a bit. I have to admit I was surprised.

  20. #20
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    Never had a Reuben worth a damn in the PNW after Brenner Brothers closed down.

    I've asked places to grill and press the damn thing but they just don't get it. They always come back dry and fluffy, not greasy and squashed like they should be.

  21. #21
    Hugh Conway Guest
    goose hollow inn in PDX

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by iceman View Post
    Patrami?? Grouper??!??

    wtf

    Reubens are my favorite sandwich. Most places they suck. Why?

    More on Sandwiches.

    The op got it right, though: crispy, greasy, hot. Good corned beef, kraut, and bread are the keys but really everything matters. Even loading it with way too much meat can wreck it. It's in the ingredients AND the proportions.

    Brooklyn's Deli near me makes a very good one most of the time. But why not always? arrgh. Damn expensive, too.
    might try the Woodside Deli if you end up in Silver Spring. Been awhile, but it rocked...
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    I like Jacob Wirth in Boston

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    Monte Carlo in Minneapolis is the one for me. Hot, crispy and greasy, but not completely squashed. Side of simple hand cut fries.

  25. #25
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    Anyone had one at The Zing? Everything I hear about that place is incredible. I just can't justify a trip to Ann Arbor.
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