Life changer

Have you ever had food so good you knew your life would never be the same because of it?

As in… you’ll crave that particular food for the rest of your existence?

I had that happen to me once.  Last year in Seattle.  The Cuban sandwich I had at Paseo was a total life changer.

My life was changed once again today.

I guess I really dig sandwiches.

I found Local Foods Houston through Yelp while I was roaming around in Rice Village.  (Side note – what on earth would I do without Yelp?  That thing rules.)  Their menu features sandwiches, salads, soups, and sides made with, as the name suggests, local ingredients.

The vibe kind of reminded me of Whole Foods mixed with Chipotle.  Interesting art and fixtures, and lots of fresh colorful food on display.  A couple of the workers had the most ridiculously awesome mustaches.  You know, the kind that twirl upwards at the end.  Yep.  Totally real.

Anyways, per many Yelpers’ suggestions, I ended up trying the crunchy chicken sandwich.  Per the cashier’s suggestion, I chose the tuscan kale and the succotash for my sides.

Guys.  There are no words.

Okay, maybe there are some words.  This sandwich was basically off the chain.

In case you forgot what it looked like, here’s the picture again. 😉

Pecan-crusted grilled chicken, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and melty provolone all stuffed into a pretzel roll.  You see those things just below the top half of the roll?  Those are house-made potato chips.  [[Did anyone else think putting chips in your sandwich was the cool thing to do when you were a kid?]]

This sandwich was one of those kinds of things where you have to say “mmm” after pretty much every bite.  It just happens and nothing can be done about it.

So the succotash… Let me just say really quick… I’m not a huge fan of lima beans.  BUT, I was persuaded to try this due to the fact that the cashier raved about it and also informed me that it would soon be off the menu because of seasonality.  I’m glad I was persuaded because it was awesome.  It had fresh sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, some sort of dressing I’m sure will forever be a mystery to me, and plenty of fresh herbs.

The kale was hands down the best kale anything I’ve ever tried.  With golden raisins, parmesan cheese, and pine nuts, the sweet, salty, bitter, tastes ended up working perfectly together.  This also had some kind of mystery dressing that just further enhanced my flavor experience.

I would say that although for me, this place is a little on the pricier side for lunch, it is well worth it.  However, this “lunch” totally ended up being both lunch and dinner for me, so it works out.  If anyone from out of town comes to visit me, I’m definitely taking them to Local Foods.

Have you ever had a life changer food experience?