My First Visit to Zingerman's

As part of my trip to Ann Arbor, my father and I decided that we were going to try a few local eats. I’ve heard and seen a lot of places while watching games for years on TV about 2 main spots. These 2 spots will take up my next 2 days. The first place I want to talk about was the deli we picked to go to on Friday night after we checked into the hotel.

My entire football watching life I have heard about the excellent Jewish deli, Zingerman’s. I’ve seen the sandwiches, I’ve seen the cook books, I’ve heard the announcers talk about it and I’ve seen the store front a bunch. But, I’ve never been there. We decided to change that last Friday. I kind of pushed my dad to go there. He was a bit hesitant, he’s not really a sandwich guy, but he relented.

We got there around dinner time, and I was immediately enthralled. The entrance to the deli looks like a store front. They have a ton of their stuff for sale. They had bags upon bags of mixed nuts, candy, bread, chips, anything you could ever want from a deli. I also noticed the fresh lox in the refrigerated section. This was when I knew this deli was going to rule. I tried to study the menu on the drive up, but that didn’t due justice. You have to go in their to truly appreciate the many, many varieties of meats and sandwiches you can get.

After looking over the menu for about 10 minutes, my dad and I made our decisions. I got a roast beef, they call it brisket, rightfully so, on a Jewish rye bread with slaw, cheese and horseradish. My dad got what they call a “Georgia Club”, which is a turkey sandwich on a toasted Jewish rye and it had all the fixings of a club sandwich. The first thing I noticed was the bread. It is, by far, the best bread I have ever tasted. It has a great, crunchy crust and the inside, the dough, is lush and perfectly chewy. It was the perfect bread for my sandwich. I was amazed. The brisket was juicy and crumbly and flaky and tremendous. The slaw was incredible. And the horseradish had just the right kick. The sandwich was also humongous, but I still took it down in about 15 minutes. My dad ate half his sandwich and then asked me if I wanted to try it. I did, of course, and it was just as amazing. The turkey wasn’t dry at all. It was quite moist. The club fixings were elevated because the ingredients were so fresh. And the toast on the bread gave it an extra crunch that was wonderful. I ended up taking three enormous bites of his sandwich, almost finishing off his second half.

It wasn’t only the sandwiches that were awesome. We both loved the chips. They were kettle cooked, in my best guess, and they were great. I got the bbq flavor and it was better than any other bbq chip I’ve ever had. We also both got sodas, the same flavor, and it was made in house as well. We both have their diet black cherry cola and it was perfect. They blended the flavors with the absolute correct balance. It was also refreshing, for a soda, and I loved it.

Just when I thought this meal couldn’t get any better, we made our way to their bakery. Again, you walk into another store front, right next to the deli, and there are endless sweet treat options. They had everything from scones to cookies to brownies to cakes and pie, and then some. We decided on cookies, I got a lemon sugar cookie and my dad had a chocolate chunk cookie. I also got a brownie with a caramel center. My cookie was awesome. It had a nice crunch on the outside and a gooey center. It reminded me of the bread. It also wasn’t overly sweet, which I appreciate. My dad said the same, but loved the big hunks of chocolate chips in his cookie. The brownie was out of this world. It was gooey and crunchy, like the bread and cookies. But, it was a little sweeter, which I want out of a brownie. It also had course sugar on the top, which I love. And the caramel center had me coming back for more. I said I was only going to eat half, but after hitting that caramel center, I finished the brownie in the next three bites. It was an excellent dessert.

This whole meal was totally worth it. Sure, Zingerman’s may be a bit pricey, but it’s worth it for someone who is visiting from out of town. I cannot recommend this place enough. It’s the best deli I’ve ever been too. This was a great start to a great trip. Zingerman’s rules. Seriously, they make the best sandwiches I’ve ever had. Seek this deli out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Being a person who lost a lot of weight on Atkins, Ty does not visit many delis. Those indulgences are for cheat days and tourism. Oh, and he needs to test them all out in the name of good journalism.

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