A recent lunch at Bunk Bar. Specifically, it was on Tuesday. Yes, a workday! And I drove myself! It felt so luxurious to have the Zipcar. I don’t usually have a car at all- I don’t own, and only Zip when I need it for a few hours, or rent a car from Budget (closest car rental office to the home) for day trips-. Otherwise it’s all public transit or walking, or carpooling with friends.
It is definitely cheaper- no car payments or auto insurance. It’s better for the environment and for me healthwise too to walk more. Although I can always find a Zipcar around me and available, I have to walk to the shared parking location and back (uphill…), which causes me to be more conservative on how often I rent, and deciding a rental period forces plannung to consolidate many errands into a trip.
But, recently I had it for a whole day- a full 24 hour period- because it was too difficult to estimate how long one errand would take, and add that task to the other errands it was more cost-effective to go for a daily Zip rental for my very first time (Budget had no car available because I was informed of this group of errands just that morning, and it was Labor Day weekend. I usually price compare between these two options to find the best cost value).
Thanks to that longer 24 hour rental, this meant it was within the range that I could drive to work the next day, and even have lunch downtown. I wanted very straightforward parking and dependable and fast service as I wanted to get back to work on time- things that stumped me as I thought over my lunch destination wish list. Finally, what came to mind was Bunk Bar. I have seen it on previous visits to the area for Boke Bowl and Clark Lewis, and was curious about that larger Bunk location compared to it’s hole in the wall sandwiches only outposta. So off I went on my lunchtime trip.
Once there, I was able to walk right up- no one was in line! Amazing. I felt like this was destined. Logically, I tried to choose my selection from the menu that was a chalkboard covering just only 12 feet high and fully scribbled. In the end, I rationalized that I was going to balance the mole tater tots with the vegetarian sandwich on the board. This veggie sandwich varies seasonally but inevitably is a seasonal vegetable with cheese, and this time was roasted summer squash with seasoned ricotta, arugula, and romesco.
It was ok- I think it needed a lot more summer squash in both smooth and chunky form, and I found the ricotta bland (at least compared to when I make my own fresh ricotta). However, the arugula and romesco were great. Romesco sauce is a great kicky sauce that is as simple as making pesto, but for some reason is not used as much, but it really should be just as popular. It is very dependable for flavor, just like pesto.
You can see from the photo the sandwich is looking sorta flat. I tried to improve it by putting the kettle chips in the sandwich, and this helped it greatly by adding crunch texture, although it does make eating your sandwich messier. The addition made it almost the size of other Bunk sandwiches. I’m not sure why they couldn’t have been more generous with the veggies and cheese, since they seem to be with the ingredients for the meat sandwiches. I have previously loved their Roasted Chicken Salad sandwich and Pork Belly Cubano sandwich, both from Bunk Sandwiches downtown, both of which I found so thick with ingredients I had to take small bites because there was so much vertically to fit without also trying to go too far horizontally, chomping step by step like Ms Pac Man.
And look at this foodspotting photo of their summer squash sandwich before, with Roasted Squash, Caramelized Onions, Gruyere & Arugula… I have actually tried to order that specific sandwich last year, but Bunk Sandwiches was out at the time. That’s how then I ended up with the Roasted Chicken Salad, which was very tasty with its creaminess of avocodo and mayo (but not too much- they balance their mixture well), the crunch from the big chunks of celery in the chicken salad, and saltiness from the bacon. If I had seen this sandwich on their chalkboard (they regularly change almost half of their dozen sandwiches line up, and sandwich options vary by location), I probably would have ordered it again as a “backup” for later in addition to the squash sandwich.
Don’t psych yourself up looking at the website- mentally proffering. What, it’s not just me that does this. The menu on the website is usually outdated. You have to come read the chalkboard- just like everyone else, waiting until you are close enough to read it, and then when you are only a few people are ahead of you, so you hurriedly are parsing the scrawl and trying to make your decision so you don’t hold back the line behind you. Like me, you will be torn- should I get something seasonal or special because some of the standbys like the cubano or pulled pork will still be there because it may be a ephemeral treasure you happened upon this one time at the end of the Bunk rainbow? Or do you go with one of the fan favorites that has therefore gave it a permanent position in the menu?
Bunk Bar is different from Bunk Sandwiches because it offers a lot more sides to select from. I took advantage of this by zeroing in on the mole tots, promising myself I would try the Fries with Debris Gravy and Cheese in the future. I should save my calories since I know rich meals next week working from the convention center are upcoming… as well as a multiple course wine paired meal at Mistral Kitchen this weekend. The Mole tater tots with queso, crema, avocado and cilantro have greens after all… Though it did not turn out as flavorful as the advertisement of mole had promised (at least in my mind), it was interesting in its tang, like a meaty gravy/tomato sauce punched up by a tiny hint of spice… seems like I needed more of the mole.
At least I was able to enjoy the freedom in being able to drive myself to wherever I wanted for lunch. It also was a reminder to me how important it is to break outside your every day routine. Do something old or rare, something you haven’t done in years, and/or add something new, explore a place you have always passed by but never stopped. It sounds small and silly and even a bit contrived, but it adds such excitement and feeling of adventure (even if a somewhat planned adventure). And that is a part of the equation too, being conscious and acting on the empowerment to always be able to choose your own adventure.
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