The classic Kelly’s sandwich is known as the “Three-Way” and includes James River BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, and a slice of Land O’Lakes White American Cheese.
The very phrase conjures up pretty s of local farms, wild foraged plants, farm-to-fork restaurants and farmer’s markets across city landscapes—all things celebrated by this magazine on a regular (and near exclusive) basis.
There are countless ways to get a beef sandwich with various toppings—one friend laughingly refers to this as “the beef way.” As in, which way do you take your beef?
The bread. The rolls/buns on a beef sandwich must be soft and slightly squishy. They’re a little sweet, but not quite as sweet as a Hawaiian Roll. I prefer the onion roll, myself, which adds a little extra flavor punch. The super beef can also be ordered on a sub roll as an alternative to the round bun, and the biggest difference there is flavor: The sub roll lends a yeastier, more savory/salty note to the sandwich. Perhaps the only local component in a typical North Shore beef sandwich is the bun, almost always made by Piantedosi Baking Co. in Malden, which toasts the top nicely for a slightly crusty texture and sometimes sesame seeds. One beef fan calls the bread “the unsung hero” of a beef sandwich.
The sauce. James River Barbecue Sauce. It’s tangy, it’s slightly sweet and it’s the cult secret (that’s not so secret) of the sandwich. The sauce enhances the flavor of the beef while the texture also coats the overall sandwich to prevent it being too dry.
While the range of options are plenty, the one-of-a-kind beef sandwich is a large part of the fabric of New England food identity and the pride of the North Shore. Whether you get yours with iceberg lettuce, as a Junior or plain with salt, biting into a roast beef sandwich sews you right into that fabric. Just don’t forget the napkins.
Finally, it was off to the Kelly’s branch in Danvers. We didn’t expect much. But we felt we had to try Kelly’s goods for comparison’s sake. The slices of beef were larger and the meat came out medium-rare. The cheese was on top of the meat, not under it—a cardinal sin as far as Beefers are concerned, and I’d have to agree. And there was minimal sauce. The sandwich was big, but it certainly didn’t tower like Tessi’s or Londi’s. As fast food, it was fine, I suppose, even good, but it just seemed sad.
Rockwell Place in Brooklyn has a new Martini menu, all the drinks made with Isolation Proof Gin made in upstate New York… The documentary Sons of Mezcal will have a screening on July 7 at the Little Theater in Rochester. Director Stephan Werk and Rochester-born editor Danny Doran will be on a hand for a talkback.… The Gem, the delightful oasis of fine cocktails in the Lake George area in upstate New York, opened for business for the season on May 4… I wrote about the history of Boulevardier-like modern cocktails the Left Hand and the Right Hand for Vinepair… The pioneering cocktail bar Angel’s Share will have its latest pop-up when it opens for a single night at Poster House, the first museum in the United States dedicated to the global history of posters, in Chelsea on May 13 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Tickets are $45… An idiot bill proposed by lawmakers in Wisconsin would let eighth-graders serves drinks in bars in the state… Bates Hatters of Jermyn Street in London has reopened its online store… If you haven’t caught Tom Stoppard’s play Leopoldstadt on Broadway, do so. It is devastatingly good. Performances run at the Longacre Theatre until July 2… Ray’s, the Neo-dive bar on the Lower East Side, now has it’s own brand of hot dogs. They’re called Ray’s Red Hots and they are made by Schaller & Weber. And in other meat-bar related mash-up news, Schaller & Weber makes a salami stick made with Hudson Whiskey.
Another old name in the roast-beef biz is Bill & Bob’s Famous Roast Beef. They started in Salem and now have three locations. Nondas Lagonakis, a Greek immigrant who bought Bill & Bob’s in 1968, has been credited with making the thin, tangy James River the accepted barbecue sauce for all North Shore Beefs. It’s an unusual achievement, given that the sauce is manufactured in Virginia. Zeno’s Roast Beef & Seafood in Ipswich, MA.
Like many regional foods that seem deceptively simple, the devil is in the details with North Shore Beefs. As Ferg put it, “The main thing for me is results. I want a fat stack of juicy medium rare meat on a nicely griddled bun with cheese sauce and mayo. Every component has to be spot on. It’s a simple sandwich that’s easy to fuck up.”
Like Bella’s, Londi’s version did not lack for meat or sauce. At this point, I began to rate sandwiches on whether I could get a clean bite. Bella’s beef, while good, was perhaps too rare. That made it difficult to tear away the meat without taking the rest of the filling with you. Londi’s beef cut cleanly between my teeth. It was also warmer and tangier.
Kelly’s Roast Beef: Now Open in Florida!
FAQ
What is Bobby Flay’s favorite BBQ sauce?
Does Kelly’s roast beef have horseradish?
What are the three types of BBQ sauce?
What is the famous BBQ sauce from Chicago?
What sauce does Kelly’s use on a roast beef sandwich?
Toppings on the roast beef sandwich are optional. Doherty says one popular order is a “three-way”: barbecue sauce, mayonnaise, and cheese. For the barbecue sauce, Kelly’s uses James River, a decades-old brand that has become the standard sauce for Massachusetts roast beef sandwiches. “It’s what the customer likes,” says Doherty.
What sauce does Kelly’s use?
For the barbecue sauce, Kelly’s uses James River, a decades-old brand that has become the standard sauce for Massachusetts roast beef sandwiches. “It’s what the customer likes,” says Doherty. “It’s something that we’ve had for decades, and it’s something that’s an acquired taste for the customer.
Are Kelly’s roast beef sandwiches made to order?
If there’s one defining feature of a Kelly’s roast beef sandwich, it’s that they’re made to order. It’s not just that the sandwiches are assembled to order, it’s that each location is roasting its own beef on a finely tuned schedule, ensuring that there’s always a fresh roast to carve from. The cooking part of the operation is simple.
What is James River barbecue sauce?
The abbreviation you might see for James River barbecue sauce, which is tangy, sweet, and the only barbecue sauce most restaurants use on a roast beef. (Fun fact, this didn’t become a mainstay until Bill and Bob’s owner Nondas Lagonakis created the gold standard.)