You know how people have a separate dessert compartment in their stomach, meaning no how matter full they are, they always have room for a bite of something sweet? I’ve got that, but now I’m thinking I may have an additional compartment: a Cuban sandwich compartment.
I just ate a huge dinner. I’m stuffed. I have no desire to eat anything else. But then I started writing this post, recalling the Cuban sandwich at The Bakery at Four Corners, and suddenly my mouth is watering, I’m feeling pangs of hunger and a more than mild craving. Could I make room for a bite or two (or twenty) of this sandwich? I sure could.
Why? Because the sandwich is pheeeenomenal.
Who could have guessed that this relatively inconspicuous bakery on Boston Post Road in Pelham, was churning out Cubans rivaling those found anywhere. I mean, the name says “Bakery”, after all — I’m thinking apple turnovers and pies. And they have all that; on one side of the shop is an array of enticing desserts.
On the other side is the deli.
The sandwiches are listed by number. There’s the usual stuff: ham, turkey, roast beef, etc. But #46 — that’s the traditional Cuban sandwich.
Cubans tend to look unimpressive and dry in photographs (at least in the photos I take). It looks like meat on bread. But what doesn’t come through in the picture is all that’s going on here.
You’ve got your sliced ham, pickles and Swiss cheese. That’s standard. But then The Bakery kicks it up to a whole other level: thick cuts of fall-apart tender, juicy roasted pork — from a roast, not slices shaved thin; a light coating of garlic mayo that gives the sandwich a gentle garlicky zing (and to think I almost asked for mustard instead of mayo); and the coup de grace, a fresh, crusty baguette, brushed with butter and pressed to perfection until piping hot and impossibly crunchy.
Who in his right mind wouldn’t love a symphony of a sandwich like that? I actually licked my fingers to get that last little bit of pork juice and garlic mayo.
I adored the Cuban at Katie’s in Stamford, but I’m retracting my statement that it was possibly the best Cuban I’ve ever had. In fact, I’m not going to make claims about what’s “best” anymore. I don’t even know what best means. All I can say is, this thing rocked. Try it.
And now I’m starving.
The Bakery at Four Corners
4668 Boston Post Rd.
Pelham, NY
914-738-8604