Muffuletta, Muffoletta, Muffaletta… I’ll Take All Three!

This article has been published in the February 2011 issue of Town Favorites Magazine. You can visit the Town Favorites website at http://www.townfavorites.com/, follow them on Twitter @TownFavorites, "Like" them at Facebook.com/TownFavorites, and find their magazines at over 150 restaurants and businesses around Baton Rouge! Pick up a copy today!

Muffuletta, Muffoletta, Muffaletta… I’ll Take All Three!
By Jay D. Ducote

While there may not be a lot of agreement about the spelling of the famous sandwich’s name, there is hardly any argument about the greatness of the muffuletta. Many suggest that the New Orleans specialty is one of the best sandwiches in the world, and I wouldn’t care to disagree. The muffuletta gets its name from the Sicilian bread loaf of the same name, but it was Central Grocery in the French Quarter that gets credit for first turning the bread into the sandwich that it is today. Combining the flat, round loaf with a unique olive dressing, ham, salami, and other meats and cheeses, the muffuletta has become a staple of New Orleans cuisine. Though it is hard to find them anywhere other than the Big Easy, Baton Rouge has its fair share of delis and restaurants that serve their own version of the classic Italian-style sandwich.

Anthony's Italian Deli's Muffoletta

The Red Stick’s most famous spot for a muffuletta is Anthony’s Italian Deli on Florida Boulevard. Home to the “best muffoletta since 1978,” Anthony’s version resembles its New Orleans counterparts closer than most. Anthony’s wife Maria and son Marco run the hole-in-the-wall, authentic Italian deli, which is actually the oldest in Baton Rouge. The muffoletta itself combines homemade olive dressing with mortadella, ham, genoa salami, capicola, and provolone cheese. The deli still uses the same recipes that Anthony started with in 1978. The bread is baked to his specifications and the olive dressing remains unchanged over the years. Anthony’s muffoletta is plenty to feed two people, though I’m tempted to try to tackle it by myself one day. The sandwich is loaded with substantial amounts of fine meats and cheese to give it a true Italian flavor. The muffoletta is then placed on a sandwich press and toasted to warm the provolone and slightly crisp the bread. It is deliciously and texturally magnificent.

A muffoletta wedge at Anthony's

There is no doubt about the passion and authenticity inside Anthony’s Italian Deli. The tiny restaurant also plays home to an Italian grocery store. It is impossible to fit much more imported ingredients inside the building, and customers often find little room to sit down, but that is part of the special appeal of Anthony’s which has clearly built a loyal clientele. The atmosphere is like stepping back in time, and nobody seems to mind. Every customer in the restaurant when I was there bragged about the muffolettas. Every single person claimed that not only is it the best muffuletta in Baton Rouge, but that Anthony’s also triumphs over New Orleans’ Central Grocery. That’s a bold statement, but having had both in the past couple months, I have to agree!

Maria, Marco, and Jay at Anthony's Italian Deli

Anthony’s might be a local favorite for muffulettas, but it is far from the only place to grab the exceptional sandwich in town. Monjuni’s has two locations in Baton Rouge, and I stopped by the Highland Road spot to sample their muffaletta with General Manager and Executive Chef Blair Kornegay. The Monjuni’s original muffaletta varies from the more traditional versions, but is exceptional in its own right. The Monjuni’s muffaletta is first highlighted by the bread. The roll is shaped like other muffuletta breads, but the Monjuni’s version is sweeter, softer, and downright delicious. On top of the bread Chef Kornegay piles ham, salami, provolone, Roma tomatoes, and porcini peppers then cooks the sandwich open-faced in the oven before adding their own olive mix. While the tomatoes and peppers aren’t quite the norm, they still help make the Monjuni’s muffaletta different, unique and pretty freaking tasty.

Monjuni's muffaletta

Monjuni’s also gives their customers an interesting twist on muffulettas. The turkey and vegetarian versions are rather enjoyable in their own right. The turkey muff replaces the ham with turkey. They will also remove the salami if you don’t want any pork products at all. The vegetarian version would be vegan if you removed the cheese. Instead of ham and salami, it features Portobello mushrooms, roasted artichoke hearts, and red bell pepper. The veggie muffaletta is certainly different from other varieties, but it is also a really delicious sandwich. I can see myself ordering more in the future and I certainly recommend it to any vegetarians out there.

The veggie muffaletta at Monjuni's

I also checked out the muffaletta at George’s under the Perkins Road Overpass. Unlike other muffulettas, George’s scraps the traditional bread and just makes theirs on poboy style French bread. George’s keeps it simple with plenty of ham, salami, Swiss cheese, and their homemade olive spread. While a far cry from the original New Orleans style sandwich, the poboy (interestingly enough, also a famous New Orleans sandwich) still packs plenty of that well known flavor.

George's Muffaletta Poboy

Baton Rouge has quite a few other places to choose from when it comes to muffulettas. Several other Italian delis serve their own, and quite a few restaurants run one on their sandwich menu or as a special. No matter where you find one, the saltiness of that olive dressing will keep licking your lips and going back for another bite. There’s a reason that the muffuletta is considered to be one of the great sandwiches of the world, and we should feel fortunate that we have so many to choose from right here in our great city! 

Jay D. Ducote is the author of the blog Bite and Booze, which chronicles his culinary and indulgent cultural experiences around Baton Rouge, south Louisiana, and the world. It can be found at www.biteandbooze.com. You can also reach him by email at jay@biteandbooze.com, like the Bite and Booze fan page on facebook.com/biteandbooze, and follow him on Twitter @biteandbooze.

Thanks to Eric Ducote of BRBeerScene.com for taking pictures for this article.

New Orleans Original: a Muffuletta at Central Grocery

The Central Grocery in  New Orleans is said to be the "Home of the Original Muffuletta."  Not too long ago, Jeremy of Faire Les Courses and I had a chance to check it out!  Located in the French Quarter right down the street from Jackson Square and Cafe du Monde, Central Grocery is still first and foremost a tiny specialty grocery store.  However, that's not what gets tons of tourists and residents alike to flock there like sheep on any given lunch break.  Central Grocery is famous for the Muffuletta sandwich that they originated a long, long time ago.

What really sets the Central Grocery muffuletta apart from others is the olive salad.  Theirs is chunky and deliciously marinated.  The olives add a generous amount of flavor and saltiness to the sandwich that makes it stand out to the eater.  Other than the olive salad, I honestly wasn't that impressed with Central Grocery.  I didn't find the muffuletta bread to be anything special.  I also found the meats and cheeses to be just ordinary.  Sure, it is a good sandwich, but in my opinion far from the best I've ever had.  Still, the Central Grocery probably is worth a trip for historic reasons if nothing else!

Central Grocery's Muffuletta

Seattle Part I: The Pike Brewing Company

I'd like to thank my cousin Erin for getting married in Seattle and giving me an excuse to revisit the Pacific Northwest.  Seattle is a town that is in the heart of the organic and sustainable food movements.  They also pride themselves on fresh, local seafood.  Oh, and don't forget about craft beer!  Yeah, I knew from the start that this was going to be a good trip.  My brother Eric, author of the BR Beer Scene, and I made sure to have a little extra time outside of the wedding festivities in order to check out the local scene.  Our Friday will be split into three separate blog posts, all chronicling our culinary and indulgent cultural experiences before we made it to the pre-wedding barbeque.  It was a long day, and you'll soon understand why I couldn't stomach a drink at the wedding reception the next day!

Our Friday started in downtown Seattle.  After a morning stroll down the hill we made it to the famous Pike Place Market.  The clock read 10 am, but the market already buzzed with fresh seafood, fruits, vegetables, cheeses, and, of course, tourists.  One thing that sucks about tourism is all the tourists.  Especially knowing that in the grand scheme of things, I'm one of them.  Still, I make a conscious effort to not travel like a stereotypical tourist, but alas, there are some things you just have to see.  The Pike Place Market is probably one of them.

 The Pike Place Market in Seattle, WA

Fresh Seafood at the Pike Place Market

After a quick tour, avoiding some crowds, and eating a few samples of fresh fruits and cheeses, we made our way to the neighboring Pike Brewing Company.  After patiently awaiting the opening establishment at 11 am, we took our seats at the bar and placed a beer order.  We both started with beer samplers to get a taste of what The Pike had to offer.

The Pike Brewery and the Beer Sampler

The sampler featured six 4oz brews arranged from light to dark on a wooden tray.  It started with the Naughty Nellie Organic Golden Ale and then continued with the Pike Pale Heirloom Amber Ale, the Pike IPA, the Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale, the Tandem Double Ale and the XXXXX Extra Stout.  The Naughty Nellie had a good malt and hop balance for a light beer, but it still left me thirsty for more flavor.  I really thought that Pike's beers got better as I moved down the sampler.  The Pike Pale has been brewed since they opened in 1989 and was a pretty decent American Pale Ale.  The Pike IPA had an extra burst of hops and a more floral nose.  I found it to be considerably better than the APA, and I don't think I'm alone.  Author Roger Protz called this beer one of "300 Beers to Try Before You Die."  I don't know if I'd go that far since it wasn't my favorite at The Pike, but it was still a good Pacific Northwest hop-fest.  If you'd like to check out the book, you can get it from Amazon here:

My favorite beer from the sampler may have been then Pike Kilt Lifter.  This Scotch Ale wasn't shy about the peated whisky malt that blended with the other malts and hops to give the beer excellent character.  At 6.5% ABV, the brew had plenty of kick to match the peat flavors.  The Pike Tandem Double Ale also impressed me.  It had a few add-ons like coriander and candy sugar to give it a more complex flavor while still allowing the malt and hops to shine.  Finally, the sampler finished with the XXXXX Extra Stout.  The dark roasted grains were evident in the chocolaty tones of the stout.  I found the beer to be particularly well flavored and balanced; a fantastic stout which I don't get every day in Louisiana.

The Pike's Ploughman's Plate

Needing something to snack on, Eric and I ordered a charcuterie platter, the Ploughman's Plate.  The gorgeous spread came with an assortment of artisan cured meats from Seattle's Salumi (ran by the parents of celebrity chef Mario Batali) and from La Quercia Artisan Cured Meats in Iowa.  The pate also included three local cheeses all from Washington and a homemade olive tapenade with crostinis.  Salumi's meats are incredible.  The salty and savory coppa is cured in sugar and salt and the spiced with cayenne and chili peppers.  But as good as the coppa and salami were, the proscuitto blew me away.  The La Quercia proscuitto provided amazing flavor and bold textures that usually aren't present in store bought meats.  It is salted, dried, and aged with only sun-dried sea salt added.  Delicious!  The cheese and olive spread rounded out the platter nicely.  After polishing off the Ploughman's Plate, the time had come for one more brew, then off to the rest of our Seattle adventure.

Pike Monk's Uncle Tripel Ale

Eric and I finished our Pike experience with a tasting of the Monk's Uncle Tripel Ale.  This beauty of a brewsky has a 9.00% ABV.  It is made with Belgian yeast and organic malt to produce a sensational ale in the style of the Belgian Abbey ales.  The beer is crisp and fruity with that distinctive Belgian taste.  The monks would be proud.

After leaving The Pike, we headed to the stadiums to give the Pyramid Alehouse a try, but you can read about that in Seattle Part II.

Things To Do
Seattle

Maxwell's Market for a "Business" Lunch

Maxwell's Market now has three locations in Baton Rouge.  The original is on Corporate Boulevard near Jefferson Highway, another is across from Pennington on Perkins Road, and the newest spot is right off of Highland Road near Ruffino's.  On a nice sunny day in Baton Rouge I joined Laura and Natalie for a nice "business" lunch at the Perkins location. 

Maxwell's Market on Perkins Road

Maxwell's is a locally owned market that carries premium meats, fresh seafood, a great selection of beer and wine, specialty foods, and local produce.  Additionally, they offer a delicatessen for patrons that would like to dine in.  Their slogan is "Bake. Grill. Chill."  Not bad, considering I like all of those things!  We took our lunch breaks from busy downtown government life and headed to Maxwell's to sample the deli menu.  Maxwell's offers a variety of poboys, burgers, soups, and salads.  I decided to go with the Cuban, a poboy style sandwich with a little kick.

Cuban Sandwich from Maxwell's Market

The Cuban sandwich came with layers of roast pork, ham, turkey, salami, Monterey Jack cheese, pickles, mayo, and Creole mustard served hot on French bread.  Naturally I ordered mine sans the pickles and mayo.  I habitually despise pickles to the point that my hatred would lead to anger and my anger would lead me down the path to the dark side of the Force, but I'm actually ok with mayo in small amounts.  Still, when I'm eating at a restaurant, deli, burger joint, or sandwich shop, I typically order my food without mayo because I find that it is rare to find someone who knows my definition of a "thin" layer of mayo.  The sandwich tasted fine but I would have preferred a more generous portion of meats and cheeses than what they served.  One of my very few complaints about poboys is that often times the bread overshadows the filling.  I enjoy overstuffed poboys, and this certainly did not fit that bill.  Still, the meats and cheeses were freshly sliced Boar's Head brand and certainly gave a good flavor to the sandwich.  The Creole mustard complimented the spicy Monterey Jack perfectly, so all in all I was a happy eater.

Basket of Sweet Potato Fries at Maxwell's Market

During the Fall and the holidays, one thing that I find hard to resist is sweet potato fries.  These crispy wedges of sweet potato goodness make me happy that yams are so plentiful around here.  They are such a terrific stray from the usual French fry.  I shared this basket of fries with the other guests at the table and we were certainly not disappointed.

Overall the trip to Maxwell's ended successfully.  I'm glad I went in and saw what this local market has to offer.  Although the deli did not blow me away, I'm going to make sure that I do some wine, beer, specialty foods, and meat shopping there.  They had some pretty cool stuff!