Sandwiches

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- You know you've thumbed through one of those dog-eared, pink paperbacks searching for your moniker's derivation and deep meaning.Jennifer: Celtic, "white wave."But a new baby-name book has been born, this one lime green and with an attitude: "Puffy, Xena, Quentin, Uma and 10,000 Other Names for Your New Millennium Baby."Jennifer's out. So's Kimberly, Ashley, Matthew and Robert. Also passe: Otherwise sane names spelled weird "that will create a lifetime of headaches for the DMV."

Sarah, Duchess of York, was on the road again, and feeling vaguely gloomy. She sent her driver into a deli to buy her two cheese and tomato sandwiches slathered with salty butter and two "full-bodied" Coca Colas, none of that diet stuff. The driver, aware of the Duchess' role as a Weight Watchers spokeswoman, asked if she was sure. She insisted.But before chowing down, she called her Weight Watchers adviser on the cell phone and, sounding like someone hoping to be talked off a ledge, told her she was about to gobble it up."

It's time again for tea. Epiphany Episcopal Church is transforming its vestibule and meeting rooms into a parlor for ladies and gentlemen who enjoy eating finger sandwiches and sipping hot tea, with pinkies extended.The English Country Tea will include scones, sandwiches, trifle and an assortment of teas.Visitors say the twice-a-year gathering provides an opportunity to catch up with neighbors and old friends.The event will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the church at 1419 Odenton Road.

If you work downtown, you may want to stroll over to Sascha's Daily for lunch or an early dinner. You're likely to have an interesting, inexpensive meal there.The catch is that the cafe closes at 6 p.m. and the menu is limited. Step up to the counter to take a look at what Sascha's does serve: Saschette sandwiches wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbon; crispy topped focaccia sandwiches held together in sheaths of foil; tubs of freshly made salads, like the Tuscan tuna with artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes.

The Buttery, an always open coffee shop in the basement of a condominium at Charles and Centre streets, closed abruptly this week after 30 years, depriving its eclectic customers of their grilled cheese sandwiches and side orders of French fries."

On a sunny Saturday morning, a dozen teen-agers are slapping together bologna sandwiches in the small Glen Burnie apartment Amber Coffman shares with her mother, Bobbi.Every so often, there's a knock on the door, Amber yells "come on in" and a new face joins the mix. Rap music booms from a radio in Amber's bedroom as the friends dissect their favorite topic: their social lives."How do people know that I went out with him?" Amber asks.They just know.The conversation shifts to the "The Lost World," which Amber saw the day after it hit the movie theaters.

These skillet dishes make a good choice for breakfast, lunch or a casual supper."At the Hyatt Regency at Gainey Ranch in Phoenix, Ariz., a delicious version of French toast is served which has thick slices of bread and a fruit filling," wrote Jennifer Thom of Sioux Falls, S.D.Pam H. Gates of Fayetteville, N.C., responded.Strawberry French toast sandwichesMakes 6 sandwiches1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons soft cream cheese12 slices sandwich bread3 tablespoons strawberry jam3 eggs3 tablespoons milk1/8 teaspoon salt2 or more tablespoons margarineconfectioners' sugar for garnishfresh strawberries for garnishSpread 1 tablespoon cream cheese on each of 6 bread slices.

I love eating outdoors; fresh air makes food taste even better. And when on-the-go convenience is required, sandwiches are the mainstay of my al fresco meals. Too often, though, a sandwich conjures up thoughts of soggy peanut-butter-and-jelly or luncheon meat between slices of bland bread. But there's great bread available now, and it can be loaded with intensely flavored ingredients to make a fabulous low-fat lunch. Whether you're eating outdoors or at your desk, these sandwiches pack miles of flavors and textures.

Annapolis residents are fond of saying that theirs is a real town, not a museum like Williamsburg or a cluster of trendy bars like Georgetown in Washington, D.C.Charles A. "Chick" Levitt, who died Sunday at age 67, was one of those who made Annapolis real.Thirty years ago, Mr. Levitt and his wife, Ruth, moved from Baltimore to Annapolis, bought a sandwich shop on Main Street and renamed it Chick and Ruth's Delly. The quirky little delicatessen with its orange and yellow walls soon became a gathering place for state and local politicians.

Don't be surprised if you turn to the comic pages of The Sun one of these days and discover that Dagwood Bumstead has keeled over at the feet of his wife Blondie.The cause of death? The cumulative effects of too many sandwiches piled to the kitchen ceiling with every kind of meat, cheese and condiment that he could find in the refrigerator and ** stick between two slices of bread.All the Dagwoods of the world had better start experiencing the wondrous properties of the yogurt lunch if there's anything to the warning against sandwiches just issued by those party poopers at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Last Tuesday on Dining@Large I published a Top 10 list of lunch places for city jurors, from my own experience and from readers' suggestions. The list is in alphabetical order, and the times in parentheses are the estimated walking times from the courthouse from Google Maps. 1 Au Bon Pain at 1 South St. (3 min.) It's a chain, but a decent one. The real draw is the courtyard at the side where you can eat your lunch. 2 Cypriana Cafe at 120 E. Baltimore St. (2 min.) Excellent Greek pitas, salads and paninis.

The first incarnation of Kader Camara's Cafe Mocha was a small shop on Howard Street's Antique Row. There, customers had the joy of discovery. Maybe they would come in for an investigatory cup of cappuccino and a pastry and leave with some of Camara's healthful cafe fare. Before long, Camara's food, especially his sandwiches, many of them sprinkled with North African or Caribbean influences, developed a good reputation. Last fall, Camara, a native of Guinea, moved Cafe Mocha into the renovated Railway Express building.

Usually when I arrive at an airport, as so many holiday travelers will next week, my stomach is churning. I have anxiety about getting through security and making my flight. Most airlines have stopped serving real, complimentary meals in coach. My solution: Find some takeout fare at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport to soothe my stomach. Here is what I found, terminal by terminal, beyond security. Chesapeake Bay Roasting Co. Location --Terminal D Phone --410-859-1154 Hours --5 a.m.-8:30 p.m. daily This coffee shop offers pre-packaged sandwiches.

If nobody's perfect, as the old saying goes, how is it that there's so much perfect food? Plug "perfect burger" into a Google search and you'll find numerous sets of directions to achieve the ideal, courtesy of sources as varied as the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, ehow.com and Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl's husband. Foodnetwork.com has pages of recipes with "perfect" in the title. (That's not counting all the dishes labeled "world's best" or "best ever," let alone all the "ultimate" offerings from Food Network chef Tyler Florence.

A few months ago, at a cocktail party, I wasn't paying much attention to the food being passed, when suddenly a dish caught my eye. I looked at a platter of what appeared to be miniature grilled cheese sandwiches served with a sauce. "I'll have one of those!" I quickly told the server, but I didn't stop at one. Three sandwiches later, I caught up with the waitress and asked about these addictive little morsels. They're one of our catering firm's favorite dishes, she replied. I didn't waste any time getting to the kitchen, where I discovered that the chef, Deb Snow, a friend of mine, was the inspiration behind these small gems.

The old Pikes Theater has been given new life. Again. It's a joint venture this time, with the Pike's Diner and La Patisserie & Coffee - a bakery/coffee shop - sharing the space inside the historic Pikesville landmark. The diner's owners bring a bit of history with them. Will Reich owns the Jilly's restaurants in Pikesville and Ellicott City, as well as Ellicott City's Forest Diner. He's joined forces with son Scott Reich in the new place. Meanwhile, the folks behind La Patisserie are Jeff Crise, whose previous restaurant involvement includes the Ambassador Dining Room and Admiral Fell Inn, and wife Amy Crise.

Should you need a license to give a sandwich to a poor man on the streets of Baltimore? The city Health Department apparently thinks so. Students from Loyola College's Center for Values and Service have been driving downtown to give sandwiches to Baltimore's poor and homeless for several years. On the evening of Nov. 14, a city health official told them to stop, according to Mary Ann Cappelleri, an assistant director of the center. The reason? No hot and cold running water in the area where the students were serving the food, under the Jones Falls Expressway, near City Hall.

Loyal readers know that any decent barbecue place has a picture of a pig out front (and, for bonus points, a stack of hickory wood). Well, as anybody who's ever driven to the beach around here knows, Red Hot & Blue near Annapolis has lots of pigs out front - a cute little one perched on the roof and a bunch of sunglass-wearing, guitar-toting, winged pigs on the arms of the large windmill that rises above the restaurant (a leftover feature from the building's...

I am not a crafty person. I don't stamp, sew, crochet, embroider, decoupage or stencil. And I don't buy things at craft shows. I'm sharing this information because it may take a crafty person to truly appreciate Crafter's Cafe. People who love crafts may look around Crafter's Cafe and see a slice of heaven. To me it looks, well, kitschy. Crafter's Cafe, which opened in September, is the brainchild of Susan Farace, who is definitely a crafty person. She created a cafe that hosts crafting classes, sells locally made crafts, and serves sandwiches, salads, soups and desserts.

Mick Kipp wanted to open a retail store where he could sell his brand of Whiskey Island sauces, spices and salsas. Rose Lansing was looking for a place to sell her cookies and other baked goods. The two were introduced by Mary Pat Andrea, owner of the Hometown Girl gift shop, who thought they might be able to combine their business ventures. She was right, and in September, Kipp and Lansing opened the Whiskey Island Pirate Shop, a deli and bakery on the Avenue in Hampden. The small space, which shares a door with the Oh!