Try the sandwiches but skip the soup

On a dark, dreary, damp and drizzly day last week, I braved the elements to try some of the homemade soups and chili at Huckleberry’s Famous Sandwiches.

After realizing how glutton-like I’d look sitting alone with three bowls of soup, I decided to recruit my son Jett and his friend Matt to join me at Huckleberry’s. As they were loading into the van in front of school, I prematurely apprised them of our plans. I silenced their screams of displeasure by quickly slamming the door shut and peeling out -- leaving bewildered onlookers to wonder if they’d just witnessed an abduction.

Once we got to Huckleberry’s, I attempted to placate my lunch mates (prisoners?) with a couple of hot dogs the size of billy clubs while I dug into a bowl of chili.

If you’re going to Huckleberry’s for chili, you can leave the Tums at home. Their version is tame to a fault. I was fine with the proportion of beans to beef but mystified by the inclusion of carrots in a chili.

I inadvertently ordered two bowls of chicken vegetable soup. How was this? The basic chicken vegetable soup was a cabbage-laden bowl of blandness, and the chicken tortilla soup was the exact same soup -- only topped with melted jack cheese and a sprinkling of tortilla chips. No added spice, no cilantro, no real difference.

However, all was not lost at Huckleberry’s. Over the course of several visits, I discovered a couple of fabulous sandwiches, a very friendly staff, and some eclectic bottled drinks.

When I asked for their most popular sandwich, I received a surprisingly good cashew chicken sandwich. I say surprising because, other than liverwurst, chicken salad would be the last sandwich I’d order of my own volition. The odd coupling of pepperoncini and cashew halves proved effective.

To borrow a phrase from Ralph Kramden -- you need a big mouth to take down the Huckleberry club. Piled high, this tri-level behemoth was made just the way I like it, with more turkey than ham, crispy bacon and lightly toasted sourdough.

I also tried a teriyaki chicken sandwich made from dark meat and a Philly cheese steak that lacked adequate amounts of both cheese and beef but not saltiness.

In addition to soups and sandwiches, Huckleberry’s offers teriyaki bowls (the beef bowl was way tasty), salads and a cutting-edge collection of bottled drinks from Fuze (I enjoyed the banana colada) and Arizona (I had a delightful blueberry white tea).

I punctuated each visit by grabbing one of their delicious, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies on the way out.

* JOHN VOLO is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have comments or suggestions, e-mail [email protected].