The first rule of the Super Secret Sandwich Pop-Up: Don’t talk about the Super Secret Sandwich Pop-Up (SSSP).
“Everyone spread the word but keep it hush, hush,” the chef behind the month-long covert operation happening in downtown Durham said, at an August 17 event, to the crew of sandwich hopefuls I was gathered with, waiting for lunch. “But if you post pictures, tag us.”
I don’t want to be hush, hush, though, because these sandwiches are the best I’ve had in a long time. And while I’ve been sworn to semi-secrecy about the inner workings of the SSSP—if you happen to follow the breadcrumbs so that you, too, can experience the sandwiches, that’s not really my fault, is it?
This week was the first iteration of the month-long pop-up, which is the brainchild of a well-known Durham chef who may or may not help helm Cheeni—a restaurant which also happens to be the sandwich pick-up spot. For the occasion, this chef has roped in her mother, who also may or may not be associated with said popular Indian restaurant.
“It’s honestly one of those things that was just very serendipitous and kind of fun,” said the chef of her decision to venture into sandwich-making. “I was driven by the desire to do something fun and silly for a month and I was trying to think of something that’s accessible and approachable and sandwiches are what came to mind.”
She also mentioned that Cheeni, like a lot of restaurants in downtown Durham, has been slower than usual, for this time of year; doing the pop-up series is a way to try to offset the lag.
What I love about this endeavor (outside of the sandwiches) is the commitment to the bit. All of the pop-up’s social media posts are written as if someone’s been investigating what’s going on— like they’re a spy for sandwich enthusiasts in the Triangle. There’s been no marketing for it, just word of mouth chatter and fans sharing Instagram stories, which has kept the pop-up more of a secretive if-you-know-you-know type of situation.
And then there’s the actual act of getting your hands on one of these bad boys, which will require some sleuthing on your part. There’s a link on their Instagram account to pre-order sandwiches each week, but the website is password protected. To get that coveted code, you’ll need to watch for the SSSP’s Instagram story Thursday or Friday each week for an invite to a side chat. This is where you’ll be granted the password for their website and alerted when pre-orders are live.
It feels a bit like solving an escape room challenge when you successfully hit the ‘add to cart’ button, and the joy I felt finishing my quest to order a sandwich felt pretty great. Having such a ‘surprise and delight’ moment when information is otherwise so readily available these days is a treat. It reminded me of buying a ticket for one of Snap Pea’s pop-up dinners and giddily opening my email to find out where the dinner would be hosted, or the unexpected pop-up surprise collaborations Delafia has been doing.
“Whatever we can do to bring people together is ultimately at our core,” the chef said.
Now, for the sandwiches themselves. There are five different options to choose from. I couldn’t choose between the Makhani Melt with butter chicken sandwiched between two slices of focaccia bread made by a very popular Durham grocer you’ve probably waited in line for, or the Smashed Samosa Sammie (SSS), a soft sub roll stuffed with a slightly spicy samosa filling.
Naturally, I got both, and have no regrets. Each of them were flavor bombs that I’ll think about long after the pop-up is over; there’s also a chicken salad and chopped cheese option that fellow fans are raving about.
The SSSP will be open Monday through Wednesdays until September 17. While the chef said there are no immediate plans to extend the pop-up’s shelf life with their current bread collaborator, she’d love to keep the good times rolling.
“If anybody wants to hop on the Super Secret Sandwich train and wants to talk about a collaboration—definitely reach out,” she said.
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