A Taste Off The Beaten Path

My restaurant, The Blue Arbor Café, is actually not what I envisioned when I originally thought of opening a restaurant.  At one time I believed I’d open a French bistro with Parisian-chic décor and white tablecloths. I even had a name, The Enchanté Café. So when the opportunity came to move into this small historic town in Virginia, and have my own place, I had a few misgivings about opening a sandwich shop. I mean this wasn’t the grand image of what I had in my head. Not to mention the poor condition of the property that I’d be taking over.

After a lot of work and loads of help from friends, we were able to open “The Arbor” and in retrospect, an eatery where you could get a great sandwich was something I was destined to open.

Growing up, our family liked to eat out. Some of my favorite places were spots my dad took me to and many of those happened to be great sandwich spots. Red Wells, which closed this past September after almost 100 years, was a place that had the best roast beef sandwiches anywhere (served hot with gravy). Barry’s Bagels was another place that had fantastic sandwiches and many times we got “fixins” for tailgating at University of Michigan football games from there. The absolute best place for a sandwich was Zingerman’s in downtown Ann Arbor Michigan. This place was/is always packed, but Saturdays in the fall before a football game…. fuhgeddaboudit.

While it’s on my mind I should mention the name of my café is a reference to The University of Michigan. It’s a mashup of “Go Blue”& Ann Arbor. With relocating to Virginia and being a huge Michigan fan, I felt I needed to pay homage to where I came from and the influences in my life.

Each region of the U.S. has its own identity and unique regional sandwiches. I’ve been lucky enough to travel to 40 of our 50 great states, and I’ve been able to enjoy some of the best sandwiches that embody the spirit of each community and its local cuisine. The Cuban, The Italian Beef, The Hot Brown, The Muffaletta, Lobster Roll, The Fluffernutter, Beef on Weck, The Polish Boy, Sloppy Joe, The French Dip are just some of the fantastic treats that, if you haven’t, you should try in the area that they are known for.

Every once in a while you might find a place off the beaten path serving up something that you didn’t expect to find. I had a Cuban sandwich at Floyds Kitchen in Phoenix AZ that rivaled the one I had in Key West at Sandy's Café (the best ever!). So it makes me feel good when someone from a different region says “that sandwich was the best one I’ve had outside of _____”. That’s something that we’ve tried to do at The Blue Arbor, bring new flavors to the everyday sandwich and favorites from other regions that people may not have tried or even heard of.