Hot Lunch is a quaint sandwich shop and bar that fits in perfectly with the neighborhood near the intersection of E. Johnson Street and N. Blount Street. Inside you’ll find toys from the 80s, a Nintendo and some fantastic sandwiches.
A prime example is the spicy tuna salad ($14). Hot Lunch immensely upgraded it, adding heat with the Sriracha, crunch with the wasabi peas and tanginess with the pickled mustard seeds. Also, the massive heap of tuna salad was excellent, not dry at all, and fortunately (for me), without any celery in it.
Meanwhile, the braised pork belly ($16) was tender and delightfully sweet, as it was made with a root beer glaze. I also liked the smear of roasted garlic and tomato spread on the sourdough bread, which gave the sandwich more depth.
I love Italian subs, so on my next visit, I’ll order the Classic 2.0 ($15). It comes with sopressa, capicola, genoa, smoked ham, mozzarella, romaine lettuce, tomato, red onion, mayo, oil and vinegar.
The vegan banh mi ($14) was a decent approximation of the real thing, and that’s because it had a delicious Stalzy’s baguette surrounding sesame pickled carrots and daikon, plus jalapenos and cilantro. The main differences were the use of roasted cauliflower, chickpeas and Sriracha veganaise. As a result, the flavor profile and texture were a little off, but it was still an enjoyable sandwich.
The other vegetarian option is the mushroom melt ($14), though you may add top sirloin for $4.
I didn’t try any of the sides, but they include coleslaw ($4), potato salad ($4) and beef & bean chili ($4 for a cup, $9 for a bowl).
Hot Lunch is open every day for lunch and dinner.
Tags: near east, sandwiches
