While Ike’s Love & Sandwiches is a chain with multiple locations all over everywhere, it has somehow retained the feeling of a mom + pop indie establishment, and for that reason we don’t feel too bad about giving it coverage here. There’s a clear and high level of pride that goes into the sandwiches and other food-stuffs on sale, from the quality of the ingredients to the combination of items magic-ed together on each sandwich.
“I opened Ike’s in San Francisco in 2007 to share my love of bringing people together over amazing food,” the eponymous Ike says on his online bio. “Love comes before sandwiches at Ike’s and we are in the love, respect, and appreciation business. Grab a sandwich and fulfill your dreams today!”
“Love comes before sandwiches” isn’t a controversial statement, though it’s a difficult sell for a sandwich eatery. “Grab a sandwich and fulfill your dreams,” meanwhile, is a very big thing to proclaim. The sandwiches are really, really good. Some might say that they’re dreamy. But can a sandwich fulfill all of your dreams? Probably not.
That said, they can try. This Valentine season, Ike’s has introduced a pink version of their beloved Dutch crunch bread, adorably called Cupid’s crunch. It doesn’t taste any different to the regular Dutch crunch, but it sure looks cute.
Not everything is cute about it though. We opted for the special, seasonal Cupid sandwich with turkey, red pesto, avocado, mushrooms and pepperjack, and the name given to that spicy beast is “Cupid’s Your Favorite Ho.” Casual misogyny aside, the name isn’t very clever. Thankfully, the sandwich is delicious.
Too much can’t be said about this bread. It’s crunchy yet soft, sweet yet savory, the texture is only bettered by the taste and, importantly, it keeps its consistency when brimming with a variety of fillings. The pink coloring changes nothing, though proves to be mildly distracting. You subconsciously expect it to be sweeter, or fruity, or something.
As is always the case with Ike’s, the fillings taste fresh and vibrant. The turkey is moist and flaky, the red pesto alive in your mouth. The pepperjack adds bite, and the avocado and mushrooms bring a variety of textures and tastes.
It all works wonderfully well, but then Ike’s has never let us down. You could throw a dart atb their menu and what you get would be great. Against though, they might want to think that sandwich name.
Ike’s Love & Sandwiches is located at 3895 Overland Ave., Culver City 90232. Call 310-204-7090 or visit ikessandwich.com.