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photo credit: Nate Watters

Exterior of Mean Sandwich, with white siding, exposed brick, and a neon sign depicting an open mouth.
8.0

Mean Sandwich

SandwichesDeli

Ballard

$$$$Perfect For:LunchOutdoor/Patio SituationQuick EatsSerious Take-Out Operation
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Plot twists catch you off-guard for a reason—they’re engineered that way. They’re not meant to conjure a subtle “huh, how about that.” They’re also not meant for you to be that person in the movie theater who whispers too loudly to your friend, “CALLED IT.” They’re meant for you to audibly gasp in a cold sweat along with everyone else as your popcorn bucket flips over the back of your seat. Just ask M. Night Shyamalan.

That’s exactly how we felt when we walked into a seemingly traditional sandwich shop, ordered the corned beef sandwich, and discovered a fistful of fresh mint between the buns. Except, instead of the anxiety and panic of needing to know the whereabouts of those car keys in Get Out, we were extremely excited. Welcome to Mean Sandwich, the plot twist of delis.

You pull up, and it mostly looks like you’ve made it to an old-school sandwich joint. Outside, there are red bricks and tiles of frosted glass that you’d find at your grandma’s house in 1992, and inside, the menu’s posted on black felt and the rest of the space is pretty plain. It would all be quite boring if this was the kind of place where you had a turkey on rye. But as long as we’re eating Mean’s sandwiches, we’ll happily squeeze into a booth and hang for a while (or sit at a picnic table on their backyard patio).

Sandwich with corned beef, pink pickled cabbage, fresh mint, and yellow mustard.

photo credit: Nate Watters

spread of sandwiches, like an Italian sub, burger, corned beef sandwich, and falafel sandwich.

photo credit: Nate Watters

Sandwich counter with a pickup window, merch hanging up, and some barstools.

photo credit: Nate Watters

Italian sub with ham, cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes

photo credit: Nate Watters

Sandwich with corned beef, pink pickled cabbage, fresh mint, and yellow mustard.
spread of sandwiches, like an Italian sub, burger, corned beef sandwich, and falafel sandwich.
Sandwich counter with a pickup window, merch hanging up, and some barstools.
Italian sub with ham, cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes

Mean’s creations are old-school deli classics, revamped in new-school ways for incredible sandwich success. Like the bacon club with some steak tartare you never saw coming like the real killer in Scream. There's a fish sandwich, only with sardines and celery root slaw. And as for the aforementioned corned beef: whoever thought to put mint on a hunk of cured meat is a genius. Everything at Mean is made from scratch, down to their bread pudding for dessert, and they run a serious to-go operation. Though we can’t vouch for the quality after sitting in your car for twenty minutes, we endorse strapping a seatbelt on the paper bag and hitting open road.

Make Mean your move for group hangs, casual weeknight dinners, and picnic lunches. They’ve already cemented themselves as one of the best sandwich shops in town, and we see things only getting better for this little deli with the big-mouthed logo. Let’s hope a plot twist doesn’t come along to change that.

Food Rundown

"The Mean" sandwich

photo credit: Nate Watters

Mean Sandwich

This is a swift roundhouse kick to a classic deli corned beef sandwich: extremely tender but very thick-sliced corned beef, a big squirt of yellow mustard, red pickled cabbage, and an entire farmstand’s worth of mint, all on a squishy bun. It’s messy and brilliant and what you should order your first time here.

Mean Sandwich image

photo credit: Stan Lee

Skins & Ins

You’re a fool if you don’t get these with your sandwich. They take a baked potato, scoop out the inside, dice that along with the skins, and then slide it all in the fryer. They’re finished with salt and pepper and are like a beautiful cross between french fries, potato skins, and home fries. You only need one order for two people.

Yesterday’s Bun Bread Pudding

Save room for a square of this. It’s made with day-old buns and has the perfect cinnamon-to-bread ratio. Ask them to toast it in the oven - or even better, take it home, bake it yourself, and make a franken-dessert with the four almost-empty pints of ice cream in the back of your freezer.

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FOOD RUNDOWN

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