Epic Sandwich: The Armatage Room's colossal Turkish Sandwich

Teddy Hobbins

The Armatage Room's Turkish Sandwich

​The Armatage Room on Penn Ave. in Southwest Minneapolis has worn many hats in its short existence. The space originally opened as a private event venue for those who adored Café Maude (sister restaurant of the Armatge Room) but wanted to capture its spirit for larger groups and private entertaining. The Armatage Room has also been used as a wine bar and most recently, has taken on a Monday-Friday lunch service that is totally up my alley.

The founders of Café Maude and The Armatage Room promote their venues as "set in European tradition" and although I'm not 100% sure what that means, I do know that you can expect an exciting meal from a diverse menu. The Armatage Room has a solid lunch menu with many enticing options, but the Turkish Sandwich ($10) featuring spicy lamb, tomato, cucumber, ezme (think onion and herbed tomato paste), garlic mint yogurt and a fried egg all sandwiched between a toasted English muffin quickly won my favor.

This colossal sandwich was served as Turkish tunes vibrated through the crowded lunch hall brining to life the traditions that the proprietors preach in their promotional materials. I did my best to stack the sandwich together and hold on for the initial bite, but the beast was far too large for civilized dinning. What it lacked in construction, it totally made up for in flavor. The ezme was strong and aromatic and proved a nice compliment to the cooling mint yogurt. The spicy lamb patty was thick, juicy and flavorful with a rush of spice followed by the soft patient sweetness of currants. Despite the well-done edges, the runny yolk from the fried egg provided not only richness, but also served as the perfect instrument for transferring all of the strong flavors as it ran through the different components of the sandwich.

Sandwich rating: Killer. The flavors were as loud as a Turkish bazaar and the end result is totally craveable. I am by no means against serving burgers on an English muffin (112 pulls it off phenomenally), but I do feel that a little flat bread or pita may have served this sandwich better, although with a sandwich that big, you are often left to its mercy.

Epic Sandwich Copyright 2009 by Teddy Hobbins