Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Hail to the Ham Shop! C.G. Ham's


When J the BF finds something that he really likes to eat, he gets obsessive about it. For years, he harassed me about his favorite spot for lunch - a deli in a strip mall out in Minnetonka that he kept referring to as "The Ham Shop." I was skeptical - in places like Spain, they have crazy joints like El Museo del Jamon which are massive emporiums to ham and other porky curiosities and you can get some decent bocadillos there, but we don't live in Madrid. On the other side are typical American places like Honey Baked Ham where people go for feast meats pre-cooked, sliced, spiced and ready to stuff down the gullets of your family. Nevertheless, not a place I would go for a good sandwich.

Turns out, what he called "The Ham Shop" is actually C.G. Ham's - a local specialty meat place that happens to also churn out some hella-good sandwiches. Once I was finally convinced to try it, I started singing praises to "The Ham Shop." While there are tons of perfectly good places for lunch in my neighborhood, it doesn't take much arm twisting to get me to drive the 10 miles out to the 'burbs on a Saturday afternoon for one of their unbelievable deli creations.

J, true to his obsessive nature, is addicted to "The Unforgettable" and never veers from ordering it - fresh multigrain bread stuffed with roast turkey, bacon and avocado enriched with sunflower cream cheese spread, tomato and spinach. I have been sampling from their hot and grilled sandwich array - a couple of weeks ago, I enjoyed the beauty pictured here called "Fire in the Belly" - hot corned beef and pastrami with melted pepper jack cheese and spicy mustard on a freshly baked hoagie roll that melts in your mouth. They have a good selection of deli salads and fresh baked desserts as well, but I'm usually happy with the little peppermint patty candies that come with the sandwiches.

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