D.C. Delicacies: Compliments Only
Image Courtesy of Postcard.
By Sam Bergstrom
Whenever I doom scroll on Instagram, I see reels of nice looking eateries in D.C. I mindlessly hit save and write them down in my notes app. I would say I have 25+ D.C. destinations on my list, but this is the first time I actually visited one to grab a bite.
On a gorgeous Sunday afternoon, after my friend and I left mass at the Basilica, we voyaged over to DuPont Circle. As we approached Compliments Only, we saw a line leaking outside the front door; it was clear this place was social media famous.
When you walk in, there is no shortage of cute decor. There were a plethora of little pictures of people’s dogs filling the wall, which made the long wait a little more tolerable. There were also neat souvenirs surrounding the interior of this sandwich spot. This included a Calvin Coolidge baseball bobblehead, a knitted sandwich plush, and a cookbook titled A Super Upsetting Cookbook About Sandwiches. I also loved how they stuffed potato chips inside a vintage looking Gatorade bin near the counter (pictured in cover photo).
The menu was fairly straightforward. It almost gave off a Jersey Mike’s vibe, as they give you the option to build a customized sub with meat, cheese, sauce, and veggies; however, I chose to rely on the sandwich creations listed on the menu. Of these funkily named sandwiches, the turkey, Italian, and roast beef selections stood out.
When I go to Wich Wich in the Pryz food court, I almost always get a turkey sandwich, so I ruled the turkey options out. While roast beef seemed appealing, nothing sounded more soothing than an Italian cold cut sandwich on a sunny afternoon. Therefore, I got “The Teamster.” This beauty consisted of ham, capicola, genoa, provolone, hot & sweet peppers, onions, shredduce, oil, and vinegar.
Since the place was popping and because it was a beautiful day my friend and I opted to chow down on one of the benches at DuPont circle, where there was no shortage of people soaking in the spring sunshine.
Image Courtesy of Sam Bergstrom.
Forgive me for my lacking expertise in photography, but in my defense as you can see, The Teamster certainly was not the most photogenic sandwich. Then again, it was hard to prop it up considering I was sitting on a bench. The lettuce (or, shredduce as they call it) was oozing out of the sandwich, along with a swarm of sweet and spicy peppers.
When I took my first bite, I felt comforted by the smooth and savory ham. The peppers were sufficiently sweet, but they did not give the hot kick I was expecting. The white sub roll gave me nostalgic memories of when I used to order sandwiches from my high school’s Boar’s Head deli. When those speckles of crumbs started falling off onto the wrap paper, I felt transported back to the classic cafeteria.
It may sound odd—and this is no discredit to the cold cuts—but my favorite part of this sub was the shredduce. Whenever I order a sandwich, it is a non-negotiable for me to include lettuce. I don’t know what it is, maybe it just gives me the assurance that the sandwich will be somewhat healthy, even if it has heavily processed pork in it. Needless to say, they loaded a luxurious amount of shredduce into this sub, but it did not overpower the meat by any means. It was shredded into thin and long strands, soaked up with oil and vinegar.
I will say, I think the ham was definitely the dominant meat in this sandwich. I was psyched for the salami, but I had to pick it apart separately to truly get a grasp of its taste. The genoa also had a less dominant flavor, but I occasionally tasted the peppercorn pizzaz that gave the sub some spunk. Needless to say, all three meats were fresh and devoured with determination.
As for the provolone cheese, I think it blended together seamlessly with the meat. Usually, I don’t like to get cheese on my Italian subs because it can become drowned out by the meat or add a funky dairy flavor. However, I can say that this provolone properly upheld the trio of cold cuts.
Both halves of this sandwich were loaded with cold cuts, but one half definitely had much more oil and vinegar than the first. In fact, it had so much it almost dampened the bread a little bit. While most people may mind this much moisture, I think it magnified the meat all the more.
At the conclusion of my meal, I was quite stuffed. But I can only imagine how full I would have felt had I eaten what my friend got, which is “The Frex.” His behemoth consisted of ham, capicola, pepperoni, genoa, prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, hot peppers, onion, arugula, oil, oregano & lots of balsamic. Talk about a protein powerhouse!
Overall, Compliments Only provides refreshing, girthy, and terrific subs. If you are ever getting sick of Wich Wich, are wandering around the wonderful DuPont neighborhood, or feel like an Italian ambassador, then I would definitely recommend this scenic spot. Check them out at 2029 P St NW Front 1!
