Official Homepage of The Howie Sandwich

I'm B-Side Myself

2009-06-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

The venerable B-Side of www.bsideblog.com sampled The Howie and covered it in his own inimitable style.

BTDUBBS - The "B" stands for "Big Time Blogger."

Howie Sandwich Photos

2009-06-08T01:20:00.000-07:00

Some pictures from The Artisan Cheese Gallery. If you missed your shot at The Howie, you can ask the Artisan Cheese Gallery to ask if they'll have it again.

A few pics to hold you over

2009-06-06T17:46:00.001-07:00

More to come...

Post-Artisan

2009-06-06T17:39:00.000-07:00

Wow. Way to knock it out of the park to all involved. Artisan did a phenomenal job with the sandwich. Their Gorgonzola was unbelievable. And a strong showing from you, internet!

Thanks to everyone who came by, called, emailed, and tweeted. They told me that The Howie was the top selling sandwich of the day. Of course, they were referring to me as Crazy Sandwich Fanatic Guy when they said it, but still...

If you couldn't make it today and want it on the menu full time, let 'em know! Their website is www.artisancheesegallery.com

And don't worry. Pictures are to come.

Victory!

2009-06-05T18:04:00.000-07:00

Dreams do come true!

Prepare yourselves, because I have some history making news. Tomorrow, Saturday June 6, THE HOWIE goes bigtime at the Artisan Cheese Gallery. AND YOU CAN BE THERE!

Years from now, when The Howie dethrones The Reuben and you can walk into any restaurant you want and order it off the menu, you can tell your mutant, irradiated, astrograndchildren that you were there when it happened. When The Howie was introduced to the public.

For those of you who don't know, The Howie is my signature sandwich. It came to me in a vision, like a waking dream... roast beef, gorgonzola, sauteed onions, pressed like a panini and served with a side of au jus. The details are all at www.thehowiesandwich.com.

As if the Artisan Cheese Gallery wasn't already the best panini shop in LA, they're making The Howie their special sandwich of the day and I'm beyond excited. Now the next step is to make it a full time item. If you can make it, go in tomorrow and order one. I'm sure it'll rock some socks off. Artisan Cheese is located at:

12023 Ventura Blvd in Studio City, just east of Laurel Canyon.

There's some parking in back and meters all over the place. Even if you can't make it, please call/email/fax/telegram them asking how long The Howie will be available and if you can order it at another time. Even if you live thousands of miles away and never really plan on going. Let's make them think they've gone viral! If you're a denizen of the Twitterdome, you can tweet them @artisancheese.

Thanks, all. Hope to see you there tomorrow.

Peace, love, and flaky crusts --

Howie Kaplan

Artisan Cheese Gallery

2009-06-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

Besides being the best sandwich shop in LA, The Artisan Cheese Gallery is having a sandwich contest.

THAT'S RIGHT! Check it out.

Obviously, I've already humbly submitted The Howie for their approval. But follow them at www.twitter.com/ArtisanCheese and request... nay, DEMAND that they follow their hearts and make The Howie a Saturday special.

Tweetwich

2008-08-14T01:04:00.000-07:00

So now we wait and see...

Memo

2008-07-14T22:00:00.001-07:00

TO: DALE EARNHARDT, JR;
CC: (NASCAR)
DATE: 6/28/08
SUBJECT: "BIG MO", CONFUSION

Mr. Earnhardt:

Congratulations on your new candy bar, "Big Mo"!

I understand how exciting it is to get your name on food. However, it ought to be brought to your attention that on this side of the electoral divide, "Big Mo" means something COMPLETELY different than your intended meaning of "Big Moment." Unless, that is, you wanted to imply that your candy bar is packed full of fudge...

Meet The Howie and The Ira

2008-04-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

There you go, eateries of the world. I've done all the work for you. All you have to do is put it on your menus and MAKE A BILLION DOLLARS.

Thanks, overeager Facebook Newsfeed!

2008-04-01T18:04:00.000-07:00

One of the creepiest things about the internet is... well... how creepy it is. Especially the Facebook Newsfeed, which has somehow infiltrated my girlfriend's internet to the point that it told me about the surprise gift she ordered for me off Overstock.com.

A Panini Press.
To be specific, this press. The Wolfgang Puck Panini Maker with Removable Plates. Which is a perfect gift for me, because I love paninis and hate to clean things by hand.

So very soon, The Howie experiments will begin in full force. If only I could get that bread from Il Tramezzino...

So thank you, Totally Creepy Facebook Newsfeed That Ruined The Surprise. And thank you girlfriend, for your contributions to bringing The Howie to menus everywhere.

P.S. Once the press arrives, I'm considering modifying The Howie into a pressed wrap, for the occasions when you want a low-carb Howie. I'm thinking of calling it The Ira. Any thoughts?

Art's Postmortem

2008-03-29T22:16:00.000-07:00

OK... I may have set Art's up for failure. "The Howie" might be a little out of their wheelhouse.

Art's is a great deli, but as far as caramelized onions go, they leave something to be desired. The woman taking my order told me that she'd never even heard of a caramelized onion. And they didn't have gorgonzola on hand, so we made do with blue cheese. And even though I asked them to grill it, like they do the Patty Melts and Reubens, they didn't.

(Reuben, by the way, is my model in this sandwich endeavor. I want you to be able to walk into any restaurant in the world and order "A Howie" and have the waitress know exactly what you want.)

So with all that said... The Howie's first outing was a ROARING SUCCESS. Even in the face of careless To Go orders, it was delicious. Though with the uproar in the kitchen it caused over whether a grilled onion was the same as a caramelized, and the argument between line cooks as to bleu cheese dressing versus bleu cheese crumbles, the waitress was too annoyed to consider putting The Howie on the menu full time.

Next time, I might ask for the manager.

The Story So Far: "Attention all Restaurateurs"

2008-03-29T22:12:00.000-07:00

My name is Howie Kaplan, and I'm a passionate man. But my passion isn't romantic, or political, or even for a sports team. My passion has always been for sandwiches.

Perhaps it's a symptom of growing up Jewish. Not synagogue Jewish, mind you... that is, we eat our milk and meat on the same plate and even on the same delicious, artery clogging meal. My people were Deli Jews. I still remember being no taller than the door latch on my Grandmother's Lincoln and hoisting myself onto the booth at delis with names like "Pumpernickels,""Bagelmania," and "Matza Hut." I'd pour over the menu, studying sandwiches with names like The Woody Allen ("lotsa corned beef plus lotsa pastrami,") The Ted Knight (patty melt with russian dressing,) and The Neil Diamond (Lots of ham and cheese)

My lifelong dream had always been to be like my heroes. To have my name on a sandwich. And just yesterday, it came to me, as if in a dream. What my sandwich would be.

Thus, I am looking for an enterprising restaurant owner who wants to make a name for himself with what may be the greatest sandwich idea of all time.

There's just one catch. I don't want a cut of the enormous profits I'm sure you'll make off this idea. I just want to fulfill my destiny.

Yes. The Howie Special is ready for testing. Will you be the daring young risktaker to bring it to the world?

INTERESTED PARTIES ONLY NEED APPLY.

*** UPDATE! 8:38 PM***
I've just ordered The Howie from Art's Deli! The woman taking my order wasn't clear on the difference between caramelized and grilled onions, but I'm optimistic! Will let you know how it turns out.