When Substitutes Work

In my blog post “No Substitute for the Real Thing”, I spoke about how popular sandwiches should just be left alone, without overdone variations. Most of the time it simply does not work out and you are left disappointed with your order. However, there are times where a variation on a popular sandwich can have positive results.

Yesterday, I took yet another risk on a variation of a popular sandwich. I wanted to prove that not all variations are bad and that establishments can pay homage to a classic in their own little way. House of Reuben does just that; they have several variations of Reuben’s, hot pastrami sandwiches, hot corn beef sandwiches, and many other old time favorites. In all they have about 30 different sandwiches on their menu. That is not a far cry from their original menu from 1969-1970 that boasted 20 different sandwiches.

I had decided to go with a Reuben that had a slight variation to the original. Since I am not the biggest fan of  Sauerkraut, I decided to go with their sandwich called the Lamp Lighter. The Lamp Lighter is made with hot corned beef, swiss cheese, coleslaw, and Russian dressing all on grilled rye bread. The real only substitute is the coleslaw.

So how did this stack up to the original? Was I disappointed again with yet another decision to go with a variation on a classic? This time I was not disappointed at all. The hot corn beef had the right amount seasoning to it and was not overly salty. The swiss cheese provided enough sharpness to contrast the seasoned beef. The grilled rye bread was very flavorful and the coleslaw and Russian dressing tied everything together. I actually prefer this variation than the original, again I am not the biggest fan of Sauerkraut and the coleslaw was a really good substitute for me.

I enjoyed every bite of the Lamp Lighter; every stomach filling bite because not only is this sandwich delicious, it is also pretty big. House of Reuben stacks this sandwich with a lot of hot corn beef and coleslaw in between two thick slices of rye bread. This sandwich definitely fills you up for $6.75.  If you are really hungry, you can order a king size for $8.15; I wouldn’t want to know how filling the king size is.

So if you are in a mood for a traditional Reuben sandwich, hot pastrami, hot corn beef; check out what House of Reuben has to offer. They definitely live up to their name by providing several variation of the popular classic sandwich. I haven’t tried their classic Reuben from their menu, so if you do try it, let me know what your thoughts are.