Hello!
We took a month off and we’re back better than ever… and it’s SANDWICH MONTH!
Who doesn’t love a good sandwich? Maybe you’re a PB&J purist. Or maybe you like something more exotic like cream cheese and lox or a Vietnamese Bahn Mi. What goes inside is entirely up to you. And the bread? Rye, wheat, white, pumpernickel (OMG pumpernickel!)
What I love most about the sandwich is its versatility. The sandwich is truly all things to all people. As a kid I was strictly bologna and cheese or PB&J. (grape jelly only!) But as my tastes changed, so did my sandwiches. And I’m sure it’s the same for you.
I’d tried to think about what sandwich I would write about… prosciutto and provolone in the streets of Florence, pressed cuban sandwich in Miami, or a croque monsieur in Paris- all great sandwiches. But at the end of the day I chose to tell you about a sandwich from Hoagie Haven in Princeton NJ.
It was St. Patrick’s Day 2004 and I was working on season one of Supernanny. Our contributor-family bailed on us so we had the afternoon to kill in this idyllic college town. We grabbed some tables at the Alchemist and Barrister Pub and spent a good solid eight hours soaking up one of my favorite holidays. Around midnight we started wandering the streets looking for the perfect late night snack. We followed a trail of drunk people until we came to a surprisingly long line. That’s where we discovered… Hoagie Haven.
It’s nothing fancy; in fact it’s kind of a dump. But the sandwiches are huge and unapologetically bad for you. I had the large Heart Stopper- it’s a gigantic philly cheese steak topped with bacon and scrambled eggs, then covered in fixins and lathered with hot sauce. By the cruel light of day that sandwich might be gross … but on that one drunken March night it was the greatest sandwich of my life. It’s been 20 years and I still remember it.
Now I’m not saying you’ve got to make a Heart Stopper. But put some thought into it. Some love. Choose your favorite meat or spread with care. Choose good bread. And remember, the right condiments make all the difference! Make these sandwiches like you were making them for your family, your friends, or even better, the 8 year old version of yourself.
As always, anything you can do to help will be appreciated. We are hoping for 200 sandwiches this month. It’s a lot but that’s 200 people who will get something good to eat.
Let me know if you can make sandwiches. We can set a pickup or drop off. And if you can’t and you still want to help, dropping off ingredients is wonderful. Finally, if you can make even a small financial donation, it will make a huge difference.
We have venmo now @manyhandsproject. (took us long enough)
Thanks for everything you’ve done and continue to do for your Atlanta neighbors!
Vince Rotonda
Executive Director
Many Hands Project
“Many hands make light work”