The Upside of a Downturn

If you, like many others these days, have found yourself without a job, it might be tough to find the silver lining. I have found it. And it’s Salumi.

Salumi is a frustratingly alluring place. The hours are far too short and the lines are usually far too long. Unless you work in the immediate vicinity of Pioneer Square, you’re pretty much never going to have one of Salumi’s ethereal sandwiches. Before you try ducking out early, or think you’ll make it in on the weekend, stop right there: they’re only open Tuesday through Friday until 4pm. (And really, it should be 2pm — if you try coming any later, they’re usually out of everything. One time, they were out of bread.)

But! With the free time supplied to you courtesy of a meager unemployment check, you too can finally experience the joy of Salumi. Which is what I did last week. You must get the finnochiona — a fennel-specked salami full of rich, peppery, incredibly complex flavor. Get it on their dense olive oil bread with fresh mozzarella, onions and peppers. When you get it all wrapped and messy-like in its paper, I’d recommend, if you can wait long enough, a brief pause to smash everything down with your fist. It really helps marry all the flavors.

The sandwich is so giant and dense and magnificent that one half should be enough for a satisfying lunch. The operative word is “should”, because trust me, you’ll be compelled to throw logic and your sense of fullness out the window so you can devour the other half. But if you are capable of self-restraint, the rest of the sandwich tastes even better after a few hours, and gives you something to look forward to when you’re back in your pajamas and hungrily searching for jobs. Plus, it’s a great way to stretch the cost of the meal a bit — and I’m all about cost-stretching these days.

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