One of my favorite neighborhood sandwich shops, Better Half is closing this week so I decided to make a long overdue post about them. Hopefully they find a new place so that this post isn’t a swan song. Let me set the table: I moved in 2019 from Grant Park to Irvington. In my old neighborhood my neighborhood sandwich shop was Aunt Tillie’s. When I moved in 2019 there were zero sandwich shops nearby, by 2020 two excellent ones had opened: Lottie & Zula’s and Better Half. Both opened during the pandemic and started as to-go only (obviously) but then turned into neighborhood fave dine-in spots. I can walk to Lottie & Zula’s and Better Half is a 3 minute drive away. Within a one month time frame, three of my favorite neighborhood spots are closing: Better Half, Cliff’s and Upright Brewing. Better Half and Cliff’s are hoping to continue at new locations, Upright is closing its doors for good. This is a real tragedy for those of us in the Irvington/Eliot neighborhoods (and sandwich/food/beer lovers all over). Thanks to 5 years of delicious sandwiches Better Half! Here are 7 favorites from over the years in no particular order.

This is from today and is their seasonal special: Turkey and Cranberry. Turkey, melty cheddar, herb slaw, and stuffing-seasoned potato chips with cranberry jam and gravy mayo on a ciabatta hoagie. There was even broccoli on there! Very tasty and a good way to go out! This week I’m exclusively eating Thanksgiving sandwich specials.

Breakfast Ciabatta. 2 eggs with cheddar, sausage, bacon, a crispy hashbrown patty, avocado, and chipotle mayo on a ciabatta hoagie. This is a certified classic at this point!

Roasted Turkey. Turkey, bacon, cheddar, apple, dressed greens, and pesto aioli on a ciabatta hoagie. This is the first sandwich I ever got from them, and certainly the one I ordered the most. The apple, dressed greens and pesto aioli gave it a nice zing. What I call “zangy”. Definitely in the hall of fame for turkey sandwiches.

Maple + Cholula 2.0. 2 eggs, house breakfast sausage, bacon, a crispy hashbrown patty, melty cheddar, and arugula with sweet maple mayo and Cholula aioli on a ciabatta hoagie. This was from when they opened up a 2nd location as a food cart at Prost. At the time they split the menu, so the cart had breakfast sandwiches and the restaurant had lunch sandwiches. The cart didn’t last too long, and the restaurant incorporated breakfast sandwiches and serves them all day long (they close at 3). Now they serve the breakfast sandwiches on an english muffin and they are smaller and cheaper. I liked these full size sandos from the cart the best. This was one of my all-time fave breakfast sandos.

Sriracha Pork. Bahn Mi-inspired pork and beef, pickled veggies, cilantro, cucumber, and kimchi mayo on a toasted ciabatta. This is one of their OG sandwiches (along with the Roasted Turkey) that were on the original menu and remained unchanged. This is one of the reasons they became so beloved over the years. Tis a great sandwich. A unique, delicious and hearty take on the Bahn Mi. I love a good Bahn Mi, though my one complaint is their typically delicate size and how I would have to eat 2 or 3 to make it a meal. Better Half solved that problem with this sandwich!

BLT. Bacon, shredduce, tomato, onion, pesto aioli, carrot-habanero jam, and balsamic glaze on a ciabatta hoagie. First off, the thick cut bacon is delicious. Then they get classy with the jam and the glaze. Also it’s a thick boi! Just like Bahn Mis, sometimes BLTs aren’t thick enough compared with other types of sandwiches. Not a problem here. That bacon is piled on!

2 different Breakfast Sandwiches: Maple + Cholula & Breakfast BLT. Maple + Cholula has breakfast sausage, egg, crispy hashbrown patty, and melty cheddar with sweet maple mayo and Cholula aioli on a toasty English muffin. Breakfast BLT has thick-cut bacon, arugula, tomato, and onion, with egg, pesto aioli, and carrot-habanero jam on a toasty English muffin. These are both excellent breakfast sandwiches, two of my favorites!

Good luck to the Better Half crew and I hope you find a new spot soon, for all of us sandwich lovers! Support the real ones. Happy Eating.