Which came first…
Jac’s Cekola’s Pizza (Portage, Michigan)
On the eve of my moving out, I went with some friends to a bar after they helped me pack up a moving truck.
A long running joke of ours was about jagerbombs, me being a fan of them and another despising them, both for the reason of tasting like licorice. We had planned to do them at a breakfast place after my last day of work, the classic Long Island Cafe (not really a classic, just the only place that catered to night shift workers). We got there, ordered food, made sure our coworker ate (massive lightweight through no fault of his own), and ordered the round. I got a box of Grape Nuts (long story) and a card from all of my coworkers congratulating me on making it out.
The waiter came back and delivered the terrible news, no Jager. Kinda divey, more beer and “tropical” drinks, I get it. On to plan B. I had already asked people to help me pack, already planned on going to Jac’s after, easy conversion.
Pack, load, tetris it up. Head to the bar, and I order the sandwich I’ve had my eye on since the first time I came. The Which came first… (ellipses included).
Nice standard bun, lettuce, cheddar, an egg, garlic aioli, and oh? What’s this? A breaded fried chicken thigh? In all my years, that’s gotta be one of the rarest things on a restaurant menu. It’s always chicken breasts and I just don’t understand. Thighs are cheaper, juicer, easier to cook, more flavorful. Like come on man. But I digress.
The man brings out my sandwich and holy hell. Just a massive piece of meat on this thing. I got like 3 bites in before I even hit bread. Juicy as hell, crispy, lovely stuff.
Bun was standard. The aioli was honestly subtle in a good way, but I wish it punched a bit more. Egg was cooked just to the point it wasn’t runny, which is how I like a sandwich egg anyways, so fire. The lettuce was shredded and could have been better. Crispy whole leaf would probably work better. The cheese didn’t do much for me. I’ve never really found it an additive experience for a chicken sandwich, except maybe one I had with goat cheese. Oo, that was a good one. Goat cheese and a chipotle cherry jam. I miss it.
Overall an 8/10. Chicken carries, good sauce and the egg are a good add.
Jagerbombs aren’t the best compliment flavorwise, but they are good with friends.