Name: Hoagie review by Yehanoha at Shoku Sandwichbar, Çankaya/Ankara, Türkiye
Item: Hoagie
Rating: 4
Author: Yehanoha

United States

A long Italian roll with a thin crackly crust, split and layered cold with sliced meats, provolone, shredded lettuce, tomato and onion, dressed with oil, vinegar and oregano, and never heated: the hoagie is Philadelphia's sandwich, and the city regards the word, the roll and the order of assembly as its own. The name is usually traced to Hog Island, the shipyard on the Delaware where Italian workers ate these sandwiches during the First World War, though competing stories involve a jazz musician and a street vendor, and none is settled. The city council named it Philadelphia's official sandwich in 1992. The classic Italian hoagie carries Genoa salami, capicola, prosciutto or ham and sharp provolone; the roast pork, turkey and tuna hoagies follow the same build. A cheesesteak on the same roll is a separate dish, hot and griddled.

The roll is the argument. It should be a seeded or plain Italian loaf about thirty centimetres long with a crust that shatters slightly and a chewy, open crumb, baked that morning; Amoroso's, Sarcone's and Liscio's are the names Philadelphians argue over. It is cut lengthways but hinged, and some delis pull a little of the crumb from the top half to make room. Meats are sliced thin to order and laid in overlapping sheets, provolone on top or beneath them, and then the vegetables: shredded iceberg, thin tomato slices, thin raw onion, hot or sweet peppers if asked for. The dressing is olive oil and red wine vinegar with dried oregano, salt and pepper; mayonnaise is available but a Philadelphian will tell you it does not belong on an Italian. The sandwich is closed, cut in half and wrapped tightly in paper, which compresses it and lets the dressing soak the lettuce for the five minutes it takes to get outside.

Judge the roll first, because a hoagie on a soft hot-dog-style bun is not a hoagie: it should crackle, have chew, and hold the filling without tearing or going soggy before you finish. The meats should be fresh-sliced, with clear flavour from the salami and capicola, the provolone sharp enough to notice, the lettuce cold and crisp, the oregano and vinegar present in every bite. Mark down a stale roll, pre-sliced meat dried at the edges, a sandwich drowned in oil, one assembled an hour ahead and wilted, mild provolone, lettuce that has gone warm and limp, and a filling padded with lettuce to hide a thin layer of meat. A whole hoagie is a meal for one with appetite; a half is a lunch. Served hot or toasted, it should be scored as a different sandwich.

Hoagie

Türkiye

Shoku Sandwichbar

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Hoagie review by Yehanoha at Shoku Sandwichbar, Çankaya/Ankara, Türkiye

Hoagie

Shoku Sandwichbar

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