Loading ...It might seem excessive to venture to D.C. for a meal, but the sandwich chain Taylor Gourmet made the trip worth it. Besides, all it takes to get to its 14th street location is a zip down the green line from the Greenbelt metro stop, and a 5-minute walk from the U street station.
The restaurant’s main attraction is its sandwiches, which range from more traditional Italian hoagies with salami and provolone, to vegetarian ones with Portobello mushrooms and goat cheese.
Costing roughly the same as a Chipotle burrito, the “Columbus Boulevard” sandwich I ate blended the food elements in a way often only referred to in hypothetical food-talk: the crunch of the bacon offset the creamy brie, and the sweet honey Dijon dressing did the same to the green arugula.
The place had the hip, slightly gritty feeling that would be expected for the 14th street corridor, but the décor was, none the less, well-chosen. For lighting, light-bulbs were placed inside of large white paint buckets on the ceiling, and the front window of the store was opened up to let in fresh air. One can gaze across the street and watch cars pass by while eating (I almost saw an 18-wheeler ram into a sedan) and the openness adds to the urban atmosphere.
A friend who was along with me ordered the “9th Street,” a hoagie with salami, capicola, prosciutto, and provolone, and also found it “delightful.”
Considering its location in a restaurant hub of D.C., Taylor Gourmet does not suffer from a lack of competition. There are many other restaurants that customers could go to instead. Still, both my friend and I agree that a trip back to Taylor Gourmet would be worth it, even if that means not trying another restaurant in the area.
