7 Sandwich is one of Oak Park’s more interesting places to have lunch. Their approach is risky, which is always appreciated: they’re taking classic sandwiches — beloved sandwiches – and switching out the ingredients to make something new, something strangely familiar, and something that invites invidious comparisons with the well-known sandwiches they’re modeling theirs after and changing, sometimes ever so slightly, sometimes a lot. It’s a gutsy business move.
The Black Russian Ruben switches out the key ingredient of a classic Ruben: corned beef. In 7 Sandwich’s version, the cured meat is replaced with sliced turkey. Corned beef adds a lush sloppiness to the sandwich, which I missed in the 7 Sandwich version, and the traditional sauerkraut cuts through that fatty wonderfulness with the sharp sword of acidity.
Still, there is a lot of mildly sour sliced cabbage on this sandwich, so much so that it practically counts as a vegetable side, and with turkey, you wouldn’t want the serious aggressiveness of standard sauerkraut, which could overwhelm. And At 7 Sandwich, mild Havarti is used in place of the more acidic Swiss cheese, which also makes sense.
On the day I ordered this sandwich, the Russian dressing was virtually undetectable.
As with the Cubano I had during my last visit, this sandwich seemed insufficiently warmed. I would have liked it to have spent another minute on the grill to get the bread crisper and the meat and Havarti warmer, but maybe that’s just me (though I doubt it: a warmer sandwich would probably make most of Humanity happier).
This was not a cheap lunch: almost ten bucks. However, with this sandwich, you get a lot of housemade chips, which are indeed wonderfully warm, and dusted with a patina of spices, so it’s not a bad deal at all. Plus, probably only during the winter months, hot tea is free.
Overall, I thought this was a good sandwich, not as tasty as an actual Ruben, but tasty enough, and the lower-fat meat is healthier, so in the end, I was very glad I ordered it. I’m guessing, too, that 7 Sandwich is going to be tweaking their recipes over time, and I like the way these guys are running changes on the classics: it reflects an adventurous spirit, which is welcome on Lake street, the Land of a Thousand Franchises, every one pretty much serving exactly the same food you can find anywhere else in the United States.
I feel that 7 Sandwich is a worthy stop for lunch. If you like Five Guys and Katy’s Dumpling House (as I do), and always go to these places by default, break the routine with a lunch stop at 7 Sandwich, a place that’s still new and almost, almost hitting its stride.
