Comfort Food, Damn the Calories: Miracle Mile Deli's Straw Sandwich

By JK Grence Tue., Jul. 3 2012 at 11:00 AM

Categories: Guilty Pleasures

JK Grence

Straw sandwich, macaroni and cheese, matzo ball soup, cherry pie. Life is good again.

The Guilty Pleasure: Straw sandwich (with accoutrements)
Where to Get It: Miracle Mile Deli
The Cost: $10, give or take
What It Really Costs: Your entire afternoon.

There are some days when you feel like you're on top of the world. Then there are those days where you want to find a high vantage point so you can tell the world to stick it where the sun don't shine. I had a couple in a row of the latter last week. It was time for serious comfort food. I could do only one thing: I hightailed it over to Miracle Mile Deli for lunch. I knew any recent efforts toward healthy eating were going right out the window, and I knew that it was going to be worth every bite.

I keep telling myself that one of these times I go to Miracle Mile, I'm going to branch out and try more of the menu. But I can't stay away from the Straw sandwich. It's a simple affair: hot pastrami, sauerkraut, and melted Swiss cheese.

Health-conscious folks may wish to try the Straw with turkey instead of pastrami; those people are crazy. A dab of horseradish from the little to-go tubs at the register brings some zip. They have several breads; you want the Straw on an onion roll. Any of the sliced breads surrender under the Straw's juicy heft.

This is a beast of a sandwich; I have to be at the edge of starvation to finish off the whole thing. My usual order is to get it as part of the Miracle Mile Special: half of a sandwich, and salad or a cup of soup. I'm partial to the matzo ball soup. While I've had better in town, Miracle Mile's gets the job done, with a light, tender matzo ball.