Downtown LA: Bottega Louie’s Sandwich Makes No Sense

Jan 28 2011 · 7 comments · Brunch, Downtown LA, Sandwiches, Vegetarian

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A food grudge is hard to shake. I should know because I’ve been holding one for a couple of weeks. The object of my rancor is the Vegetarian Club from Bottega Louie. On the menu, it sounded so good: zucchini, avocado, hard-boiled egg, whole grain mustard and curry aioli on 7-grain bread. Yes, please, I’ll take that!

When the sandwich came to the table, it was beautiful—from their high ceilings to their meticulous plating, presentation is where Bottega Louie shines. But take a closer look. Camouflaged by the appetizing color scheme and cute little cups of veggies is a sandwich that makes no sense.

I’m not a stickler for tradition, but the whole point of a club sandwich is that it has two layers of filling and three pieces of bread. That’s its point of distinction. This, however, was just a series of tea sandwiches speared by a wooden stick. Unless you’re willing to chuck a few slices of bread, most mouths aren’t big enough to eat this in proper club fashion. Plus, since there are 5 pieces, you’d be left with an extra layer.

Are you grasping the gravity of the situation?

I decided to eat the sandwiches piece by piece, and that was a mistake. The two egg-filled pieces were a real treat—curried egg salad and avocado are a taste combo made in heaven—but the other pieces were just filled with cucumber, onion, tomato and mustard. Blah.

In an attempt to salvage the meal, I asked for some more avocado, pointing out how uneven the sandwich’s distribution was. The waiter looked at me like I was nuts and then charged me for the extra essential avocado. Are you kidding me? Insult to bad-sandwich injury.

I did, however, enjoy the tangy tomato soup. The croutons and crème fraiche were a nice touch.

Thanks for listening.

-Valentina

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7 Comments

  1. Gastronomer

    On:

    LOL! Your argument makes perfect sense, unlike that poor sandwich you were served.

  2. Eastside Food Bites

    · author

    Thank you for your kind words, Cathy. I knew you’d understand.

  3. Tweets that mention Downtown LA: Bottega Louie’s Sandwich Makes No Sense — Eastside Food Bites -- Topsy.com

    On:

    […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Steph, Valentina . Valentina said: I had a bad sandwich experience at a certain DTLA restaurant. I'm still holding a grudge…http://eastsidefoodbites.com/?p=2561 […]

  4. the Minty

    On:

    I can’t believe they charged you for extra avocado! Blasphemy! As much as I used to love Bottega Louie, it’s gone downhill for me ever since they changed the recipe of the peanut butter terrine and the portabello fries. They don’t even offer the PB terrine anymore. And I refuse to order the monsters the fries have become.

  5. Eastside Food Bites

    · author

    I agree, Minty. I hadn’t been there in awhile, and I was shocked at how “Disneyland” it had become. On my first few visits I thought the food was fine, but now, it seems like their main focus is volume not quality. There are too many great restaurants in DTLA for me to put up with these kind of shenanigans. Haha.

  6. sippitysup

    On:

    Hmmm. I have a pet peeve bout calling things by names in which they are not. Anything vaguely chocolate and a bit like pudding is called a mousse. No matter where the creamy texture came from. GREG

  7. Eastside Food Bites

    · author

    @GREG-It’s downright blasphemous. They could have just called this “tea sandwiches on a spear”…and yes, mousse and pudding are not interchangeable. The world is a crazy place.

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