Bacon’s been in the news. The World Health Organization shocked meat lovers by putting pork belly in the same category of carcinogens as cigarettes, before eventually walking that claim back a bit amid an outcry from carnivores. And a typo on the Blues’ Instagram account made #RoarBacon an unlikely rallying cry for local hockey fans. What everyone should really be talking about is the fact that our city is home to two of the biggest and best BLTs in the universe. Which is better? To find out, I enlisted the help of Baconfest co-founder Matthew Willer. We sampled the sandwiches, compared notes, and declared a winner.
|| Heart-Stopping BLT at Crown Candy Kitchen ||
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Price: $8.99
Bacon: Three-quarters of a pound, fried in a kettle (the staff sometimes cooks 250 pounds in a day)
L+T: Crisp iceberg and a couple of tomato slices, all locally sourced
Mayonnaise: Miracle Whip
Bread: Texas toast
Powell’s Perspective: “There’s so much bacon on this sandwich, I don’t know how to pick it up. The flavor is great, but the bacon is a bit chewy, perhaps because of the kettle-cooking method.”
Willer’s Wisdom: “I grew up on Miracle Whip, but when you have this much bacon, the mayo doesn’t come through. And the bacon isn’t as crispy. It’s just a ridiculous amount of bacon for novelty.”
|| B.A.B.L.T. at Fozzie’s Sandwich Emporium ||
Price: $7.95
Bacon: Half-pound, fried on the flattop grill
L+T: Leafy mixed greens and thick tomato slices
Mayonnaise: House-made roasted-garlic mayo
Bread: Sourdough from Fazio’s Bakery on The Hill
Powell’s Perspective: “There’s a lot to love about this sandwich, but what really puts it over the top is the roasted-garlic mayo—well, that and all the glorious bacon.”
Willer’s Wisdom: “Reasonably, half of this sandwich is a full meal. There’s a good crisp to the bacon. And you’ve got the right amount of bread for the right amount of bacon—there’s proportionality.”
Winner: B.A.B.L.T. at Fozzie’s Sandwich Emporium
