SUNdeVICH

Is there anything more hipster than serving sandwiches made with local, gourmet ingredients in a converted garage in an alley? Hipster or not, the sandwiches are tasty and the location makes you feel like you're in on a big secret.

When I dragged B and our buddy M to SUNdeVICH, they gave me the "where the heck are you taking us?" look. The sandwich shop is tucked in the Naylor Court alley off 9th Street, NW between N and O. A sign next to the restaurant says "Do Not Urinate in the Alley." Good to know!

It's a small space that's likely to be packed with hungry hungry hipsters (and hungry non-hipsters too).

Zack Morris-style timeout: who loved the Hungry Hungry Hippos game as a kid? I certainly did. Did you know that the hippos names are Henry, Homer, Harry, and Happy? Ok, time-in.

Even on a Monday at lunch, SUNdeVICH was packed. We couldn't figure out where all the people came from since the neighborhood isn't exactly home to a lot of offices. It's a good idea to follow SUNdeVICH on Facebook or Twitter to make sure they haven't sold out of your favorite items. Apparently sellouts are very common. They even have a list on the left side of the menu of all the items that have been "86'd" for the day.

The menu features sandwiches made with local ingredients but inspired by cuisine from around the world. B ordered the Buenos Aires with steak, chimichurri, and sauteed onions. The flavors were powerful and the steak was tender, but the showstopper was the bread. We loved the crispy on the outside, soft on the inside baguette.

I tried the Kingston with jerk chicken, pineapple salsa, greens, slaw, and garlic mayo. The pairing of the firey jerk chicken with the sweet pineapple was fantastic. If you don't like spicy food, do not order this sandwich. I had tears running down my face by the time I reached the second half.

Like all good hipster spots, SUNdeVICH has fancy sodas (we liked the Fizzy Izzy and the ginger ale). They also serve side salads and dips, such as hummus and lentil salad.

For an average price of $10 a sandwich, this is not the cheapest eat in town, but we did feel we got our money's worth with the large size of the sandwich and high quality ingredients.

We're not cool enough to be hipsters, but we're glad SUNdeVICH serves the uncool crowd too. If you can find your way down the alley, a delicious sandwich awaits you.

Second Thoughts from B

I am not cool. The only people on the planet who think that I am cool are my dad and people under the age of 4. I do know people who are cool though. They look cool, they talk cool, they act cool. It isn't that I have low self esteem. It is more that I have a high level of self awareness. I know who I am, and I am not cool. In fact, the coolest thing about me is that I know I'm not cool.

I have a hat that is cool. I like the hat... it fits me and it looks good, but every time I wear it I say to J, "I'm not cool enough to wear this hat."

SUNdeVICH is like my hat. I like it and it fits me, but as I sat there eating my hipster sandwich, all I could think about was how cool the place was. Great food, great space, great concept, great execution. I looked at my fellow patrons and admired them just for being there, and I thought to myself that these people must be really cool.

But the reality is that SUNdeVICH is not trying to be cool. It isn't trying to be hipster. It is only trying to serve great sandwiches that are fresh, tasty, and diverse in flavor. And in my world, that's very cool.