Episode LII: Weinberger Deli (DFW)

It has been too long, my friends; I have missed you.  Reuben aficionados have been wandering the streets not knowing what to do or what to order.   For those of you who lost faith in the Reuben and ended up playing it safe and ordering a Turkey Wrap, I apologize. You should never have to do that.

I’m back and I hit up a Reuben next door in Grapevine at Weinberger’s Deli. This place has 180 Google Reviews (4.5 stars), 293 Yelps (4.5 stars) so I am not discovering a hidden gem here, but they seem to be known for the Italian Beef and not necessarily the Reuben.  It’s a big risk ordering a Reuben when apparently the Italian Beef is so good and fun to order.

WEINBERGER REUBEN

“Hot Corned Beef and Pastrami, Melted Swiss Cheese, Russian Dressing, Sauerkraut, Grilled Marble Rye”

Appearance – (3.7/5.0)

Nothing spectacular here.  I think the chip portion could have been more generous. I held it up to give a better view. It looks like the volcano of sauerkraut has displaced the section of meat and shifted it over.  The Swiss cheese is present and accounted for and there is just a hint of the dressing. 

Quality of Ingredients – (4.4/5.0)

I was really pleased with all of the ingredients on the plate. I even ate the pickle and I’m not usually a pickle person. The Russian Dressing really stood out. I thought it gave a great kick to the Reuben. There was a lost diced onion piece on the first picture of the Reuben. I thought it meant the product was homemade. Then I looked up at the shelf.  Nope.  They must have a good supplier but for some reason keep the label hidden. Company secret.  

The meat and cheese is also bought and displayed in a deli case when you walk in the door. The Swiss Cheese was thick and good.  I was impressed they were able to get a good melt on all the cheese without completely burning the bread. I like a bit of char but it’s a slippery slope.

The sign said Corned Beef AND Pastrami.  I can’t really tell if I got both. I know. I’m a fraud. I think it was Corned Beef. Either way, I liked it.

Price – (4.2/5.0)

$8.99 is pretty good. I think a few more chips could have gone a long way here. The portion of meat is fair but not huge. We are in North Texas but in “downtown” Grapevine so I understand if the price is a bit higher.    

Je Ne Sais Quoi – (4.7/5.0)

This place has a great vibe. I don’t know of too many Chicago delis in town (Don’t call it a New York Deli). The owner was very friendly and it had a great Mom-n-Pop feel to it. There are signs everywhere about the Italian Beef so I felt strange not ordering it. It also gets extra points for the super melty cheese stretching across the table as I took the first bite.

Taste – (9.5/10.0)

Hello! So it may not be much to look at but this was a great Reuben. Solid execution and put together with love. You don’t need excessive piles of meat or needlessly fancy ingredients. There are a few basic ingredients that they handled well. The Panini press was used to perfection. It melted the cheese and warmed the meat up just right.

Overall – (26.5/30.0)

Would I order it again? Yes, but I may have to come back for the Italian Beef first. I got a taste of the Rachel on my way out the door and that was great too. They put it on Pumpernickel bread.  Downtown Grapevine is a great little place, Main St USA. I hope to be back soon!

Episode XIV: The Woolman Café (ATL)

I like the employee cafeteria. I may have already lost a few of my colleagues by saying that, but I do.  We do not actually run the cafeteria, a private third party does, which I think is odd because we can run an airline, an oil refinery, but a BLT is a little out of our league.

The last time I was down there I was surprised to see the sandwich bar was advertising a Turkey Rachel Reuben.  I have to say that I was skeptical.

According to Wikipedia the Rachel is, “a variation on the standard Reuben sandwich, substituting pastrami for the corned beef and coleslaw for the sauerkraut. Other recipes for the Rachel call for turkey instead of corned beef or pastrami. In some parts of the United States, especially Michigan, this turkey variant is known as a "Georgia Reuben" or "California Reuben," which sometimes uses barbecue sauce instead of Russian or Thousand Island.”

Here is the sign

Appearance – (3.9/5.0)
Green and red are not the accent colors you expect from a Reuben. I am scrolling through old posts and I don’t see any green or red coming from inside the sandwich. Sure you have pickles and ketchup on the side but look at this one. The green from the spinach – wait, I think this guy must have slipped in some spinach. That was not on the sign. Anyway, not the visual presentation I am used to for a Reuben.  It looks like a clean cut turkey sandwich. No toothpicks and I appreciate that they cut it in half.

Quality Of Ingredients – (4.0/5.0) The individual ingredients were solid and generally are at this place.  The tomatoes and spinach were fresh.  It seemed like pretty standard turkey and Swiss cheese.  The pumpernickel bread was s ok, but I prefer the taste of rye. I think all of us already know that.        

                  

Price– (3.3/5.0) $6.19, no bueno.  I think this is the biggest complaint about the cafeteria, it is expensive.  The same company that runs the cafeteria also runs all of the vending machines so there is no escaping them. 

Je Ne Sais Quoi – (2.6/5.0) I have to admit I was intrigued when I saw this sign.  The intrigue ended after the first bite. It was a good turkey sandwich but not much more.  The magic of the Reuben is taking a whole bunch of ingredients nobody likes and putting them all together in one bite and somehow it tastes amazing.  No magic like that here.  You look at the turkey sandwich, you know what is in there and it tastes like a good turkey sandwich. End of story.

Taste – (7.9/10.0) This was not a bad tasting sandwich, it just want not a Reuben.  The fresh tomatoes really tasted good.  I have been told that is what you are supposed to do with fresh garden tomatoes, slice them up for a sandwich.  Do not even think about making them into salsa. No sir. 

Overall – (21.7/30.0)I think this is the same story from Which Wich.  If you want to attach the word “Reuben” to a sandwich that has to mean something. Toast the bread, heat up the meat, put in the effort!  This sandwich was just too far off base to call it a Reuben.  Maybe they could have gotten away with just calling it a Rachel but they chose to add Reuben on there to try and lure in unsuspecting Reuben aficionados.  I would have known better but I see this as my duty to try it and let all of you fine people know so you can make informed decisions.  All and all it was ok but next time I am going back to my Buffalo Chicken Wrap (easy on the Blue Cheese and extra hot sauce).