Best $1.19 Sandwich - 2002
QuikTrip
Scoff if you must, but you can get good food at the gas station -- not just any gas station but the refrigerated case at QuikTrip. If you've sampled the chicken-fried-beef-and-spicy-cheese sandwich, you know how unexpectedly good it is -- it's got a hearty ... er ... beefy flavor. The spicy chicken sandwich is truly spicy -- you'd better have a gallon cup of Coke ready when you tackle it. The chicken-ham-and-Swiss, when heated in the microwave, is an almost reasonable facsimile of a Monte Cristo sandwich. The real surprise, though, is the teriyaki-chicken-and-provolone on an onion bagel. Huh? Who thought of that combo? A bit exotic for QuikTrip, wouldn't you say? Yeah, and damn good, too. You might as well buy a dozen and put 'em in the freezer in case of Armageddon. Each of these costs $1.19, and if you're pressed for time or money or the Del Taco drive-thru line is still clogged at 3 a.m., they're the best speed-and-flavor combination since U.S. Army helicopters dropped Snickers bars on the Vietnamese. Not long ago, when the economy went south, the price of these tasty sandwiches inflated to $1.19 from a flat $1, and a few hearts broke. Believe it or not, they had been priced at a dollar for about 30 years, in some kind of feel-good pact between gas station and consumer. A good sandwich that costs a dollar (or even a little more) can restore your faith in man.
