Not Your Average Bologna: Fox Brothers’ Smoked Bologna Sandwich
Guy Fieri took a gigantic bite of a sandwich and said “that’s not a good bologna sandwich.” Then, there was a pause, a knowing look, and a correction, “that’s a fantastic bologna sandwich.”
The twins, Jonathan and Justin, from Fox Brothers in Atlanta, sent Guy an exclusive care package, and they weren’t playing. These brothers opened a new, gigantic 9,300-square-foot restaurant, and still sent Guy a signature smoked bologna sandwich. This sandwich takes a childhood classic and morphs it into something completely different.
House-Made Bologna Done Right
This is not the classic, thin, plastic-wrapped bologna from your school lunch. Fox Brothers makes their bologna in-house, using a pork and beef blend. As the twins said, “If you’re gonna do something, you might as well do it right.”
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Guy Fieri noticed the quality right away. The process consists of grinding the meat up to 3 times, throwing in their signature dry rub combined with more spices, and smoked to perfection. The texture and visible pieces of meat and seasoning contrast the uniform pink that many are accustomed to.
The slicing is key too. They cut it thick, about a quarter to half inch, then griddle it, so it gets that perfect char. Like the chefs that reinvented classics, there is an almost unapproachable level of attention to detail here. Giant Caramel Pecan Roll How-To
Building the Ultimate Sandwich
The construction of this sandwich is a masterclass in layering flavors:
The bread: Texas toast, buttered and toasted until golden.
**The sauce:** Each slice of bread gets a treatment of mustard barbecue sauce.
**The cheese:** There are pimento cheese patties on the bolonga which are then melted underneath the grill.
**The crunch:** A huge handful of corn chips smash right down on top “like you’re in third grade and piling everything on your sandwich”
**The finish:** Pickles to cut through that richness.
The hand cut fries served alongside get a special treatment. They are blanched at 325, then fried until crispy at 375, and finished with a fry seasoning that contains their dry rub and a touch of sugar.
The Verdict
Guy’s reaction said it all After doing what he called “the hunch” (that involuntary lean in that happens when food catches you off guard), he kept going back for more. “That’s the bologna sandwich you grew up with”, he stated, but then added the chef to the quote and said “and took it to a whole nutha level.”
He called it phenomenal and praised the great meat, great cheese and great bread. The combination of house-smoked bologna with pimento cheese, and crispy corn chips is nostalgic and new, like the other finds of Triple D that reimagine comfort food. Such as the Turducken in Sarasota Florida. Turducken in Sarasota, Florida
This is the type of meal that makes you question why more barbecue places do not make their own bologna. The answer is that most do not have twins crazy enough to hand grind meat three times while simultaneously opening a restaurant the size of a small warehouse.
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