Tom always said that at any catered affair, there is no outer limit to the number of finger sandwiches a person might consume. A friend of my daughter just joked about them that a person can eat maybe one or two sandwiches if they are eating lunch, but they might wind up eating eight by nibbling on delectable finger sandwiches. But who’s counting?
A few years ago I read an article about the finger sandwiches that we take for granted in New Orleans. What shocked me was that we are the only place that has finger sandwiches! Just another delicacy that we can hoard. Yes, I know you can get them on the Gulf Coast, but that’s only because all the beach-going New Orleanians didn’t realize they are exclusive to us. Supermarkets there have to stock them. I can’t believe we’ve been able to keep the secret all this time. With social media, it won’t be long.
I never eat them because they are so addictive, but I do indulge at the beach, and for Mardi Gras, even if I am not going to parades. I have become disenchanted with the ones from Rouse’s because they are slipping in tuna salad and egg salad and chicken salads with the ham, turkey, and roast beef regulars. I only want the regulars, so I went in search of other options.
I tried Acquistapace’s, a Northshore supermarket I love because it has the most obscure things. If there is something I need that I can’t find anywhere, chances are it’s on the shelf at Aquistapace’s. And indeed they were. A lot of places require pre-orders, but because of Mardi Gras they had trays. I was told they couldn’t hold any, so after braving the traffic parade night I arrived to find a single little packet of six. At least it was just the originals: ham, turkey, and roast beef.
These were nice enough, but the ham was not Chisesi and all the meats were sliced thicker than I like for finger sandwiches. To me, deli meats need to be paper thin to fold into the bread for a proper finger sandwich.
Then I tried to get some from The Commissary, a place I love and I would have expected great things from. But they were so busy I couldn’t get near any finger sandwiches from there. (Or anything else.)
When I needed another fix, I checked with Fresh Market, because I know those have to be pre-ordered, but I hoped the rules might be suspended for the season. They did have them in stock, in little packages of four. It was essentially a sandwich in quarters, but it was only $2.50. I don’t think you could possible get one of those old-fashioned Mrs. Drake jobs for that. I collected a few of these and assembled them on my own tray with chips to bring to a party. In the future, I will pre-order any finger sandwiches here. I loved these sandwiches! They were made of a thicker white bread with a superior texture in both crust and crumb. It resembled an untoasted Texas Toast version of a milk bread. These were terrific! They were not smushed as finger sandwiches can be if their creator has a heavy hand. These were barely touched and fluffy. And stuffed with meat.
I have almost gotten through Mardi Gras season with a reasonable amount of finger sandwich consumption. And I will continue my search for the ultimate of these sublime and sublimely simple bite, though I think I may have already found them.
