Who recommended?: Charlotte Magazine
For What?: One of Charlotte’s best sandwiches
Where?: Zada Jane’s
This article focused on finding sandwiches in the city that broke out of the traditional mold. And you know girls, we love a frou-frou sandwich. Zada Jane’s is near my sister’s house, and after getting my new cast the other day we picked her up for a lunch at this hipster hangout. I quickly realized that 1. Charlotte magazine isn’t always right and 2. I am way too uncool for this place.
I’m told that Zada Jane’s is a popular brunch and breakfast spot, and on the weekends the outside eating area fills up in nice weather. The inside is funky and everyone who works here is, too. As we sat down in our casual clothing, I began to look around and realized that while I wasn’t cool, neither was everyone else in there. We sat amongst hipsters, artists (I assume) and even a few suits. It was cozy!
The waitress we had was a little on the surly side, but I noticed she was a bit friendlier to the artsy types in there. Were we too vanilla or am I overly sensitive? No matter, she was very efficient and met all of our needs. I opted for the Druther’s Clucker as recommended by Charlotte Magazine.
The Druther’s Clucker is a grilled chicken sandwich deluxe. It comes with grilled chicken, fresh basil, caramelized onions, mozzarella, and sun-dried tomato mayonnaise on rosemary foccacia. It is also served with a side of your choice: chips, black eyed pea salad or a green salad (for $2 more). I opted for the green salad, hubby opted for the black eyed pea salad.
The sandwich, much heralded by Charlotte Mag, was just ok. I mean, I ate all of it, but it was really no better than any grilled chicken sandwich I’d had anywhere else. It wasn’t packed with flavor like all of those bold ingredients would lead you to believe. I think if they would take better care in seasoning the chicken breast itself, and not just piling on ingredients to the sandwich, the outcome would have been better. Both my husband and I agreed we’d get something different next time.
The green salad was delicious. It was full of delicious fresh veggies like peeled cucumbers, tiny diced tomatoes, sprouts and sweet shredded carrots. The greens were a mesclun mix and it was topped by homemade croutons. Served with a homemade dressing of your choice: I chose Ranch. I tasted my hub’s black eyed pea salad, and found the black eyed peas to be a little underdone for my taste. Also, it was in a sweetish vinegar dressing that desperately needed some acid. I smirked because mine was clearly better.
Now, the “Winner Winner Chicken Dinner” was my sister’s order. She got the grilled chicken nachos and if she weren’t carrying my niece, I might have smacked her and stolen in, like in our childhood days. These nachos were served in a bowl, so you could have eaten it like a salad, but the crispy chips lined the bottom of the bowl instead of lettuce. The chicken had a yummy chargrilled taste and it was loaded with cooked veggies. Homemade salsa, guacamole and sour cream topped all. Perfection.
If I’m perfectly honest, I was a tad disappointed by Zada Jane’s. Maybe I had too high hopes for a humble chicken sandwich? Next time, if there is one, I’ll get the nachos.
barenakedchefsaidso.com 