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Published on 10/10/08
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1752 During a long stint at the gambling table, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, John Montagu, requests that his cook prepare something he can eat without stopping the game. The cook emerges from the kitchen with slices of beef between two pieces of toasted bread.
1883 The failing Kolling Meat Market on Chicago’s North Side is leased by Oscar Mayer, along with his brothers Gottfried and Max, and they turn it into a thriving business.
1893 At the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Ambrose W. Staub, a St. Louis doctor, presents the protein-rich peanut paste he offers his patients who aren’t able to chew meat. Oscar Mayer sponsors the fair’s German exhibit.
1894 A composition using three layers of bread—the first club sandwich—is supposedly invented at the Saratoga Club in Saratoga, New York. (Several others will claim responsibility in years to come.)
1918 French immigrant Philippe Mathieu dips a French roll into beef au jus before filling it with beef and, in turn, creates the French dip sandwich at his (still thriving) downtown Los Angeles sandwich shop, Philippe the Original.
1921Wonder Bread hits store shelves.
1930 Wonder Bread begins preslicing its bread, a feat that sets the bar for inventors everywhere.
1930 The first Philly cheesesteak sandwich—thin slices of steak, covered with cheese in a long roll—is served at Pat Oliveri’s hot-dog stand in Philadelphia.
1933 A blend of mayonnaise with less expensive salad dressing, Kraft Miracle Whip, premieres at the Chicago World’s Fair Century: A Century of Progress Exhibition.
1950 Kraft Deluxe processed-cheese slices hit the market.
1960 During a campaign stop in Sullivan, Illinois, Richard Nixon eats half of a buffalo-meat sandwich and throws the rest away. Resident Steve Jenne pulls the half-eaten sandwich out of the trash, preserves it in his freezer and later ends up on The Tonight Show discussing his find with Johnny Carson.
1962Al’s #1 Italian Beef opens at 1079 West Taylor Street in Chicago’s Little Italy neighborhood. The location is still in operation.
1974 On July 29, rotund Mamas and the Papas singer “Mama” Cass Elliot is found dead in her London flat. Near her bed, police find a partially eaten ham sandwich and initially suspect Cass may have choked to death on it. However, the coroner finds no food in her trachea and declares heart failure as the cause of death.
1977 To attract business, the owners of a Chicago antique shop begin selling sandwiches alongside their stock of dusty baubles. The sandwiches become a big hit, and the two establish the first Potbelly Sandwich Works (2264 N Lincoln Ave) in Lincoln Park, which is still in operation.
1984 In the rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, an album by the fictitious metal group, titled Shark Sandwich, is panned with a pithy review: “Shit sandwich.”
1996 Inspired by an article in the Puerto Rican newspaper El Vocero about a sandwich made with plantains instead of bread, Juan “Peter” Figueroa, the owner of Borinquen Restaurant (1720 N California Ave), comes up with the garlicky jibarito: your choice of meat, tomatoes, lettuce and mayonnaise between two fried plantains.
1999 Indiana University student Jared Fogle loses 245 pounds on a diet consisting mostly of Subway sandwiches and exercise. An advertising campaign followed; the exercise element of the diet was conveniently lost in the fine print.
2004 Online casino GoldenPalace.com places a winning $28,000 bid for half of a ten-year-old grilled cheese sandwich that a Florida woman claims has the image of the Virgin Mary emblazoned on it.
2007 During lunchtime, a wild coyote strolls into the Quizno’s location at Adams Street and Wabash Avenue in the Loop and chills out in the beverage cooler.
Plus:
The ’wich is back: Fast, easy, and—by definition—cheap, sandwiches are the ultimate bargain eats. We think our favorites (listed here in no particular order) are the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Here’s looking at jus: We dig into Chicago’s iconic Italian beef sandwich. Plus, how to order one like a pro.
