The Pickled Swine

Amidst the millions of foodtrucks at the Upper Arlington Labor Day celebration, we saw the menu on the Pickled Swine, crossed our fingers, and hoped that the delicious sandwiches and sides described on the menu lived up to the hype. After waiting in a very long line (with regulars who were arguing about which sandwich was the best), we got up and placed our order.
The meat, cheese, and veggies were outstanding and the choice of fresh breads was excellent. Sadly, the beet salad sides were sold out, but the potato salad side, spicier than we’ve ever had, was great.
Two problems… all of the sandwich offerings are worth trying, so picking «just one» is sad. We are going to have to try them all. Problem two… since this is a foodtruck, we will have to follow them on Facebook/​Twitter to make sure we know where they are.
Only after getting our food did we realize what we should have done — ordered two sandwiches apiece, one for now and one for the fridge. Rookie error. Don’t let this happen to you.
While I can’t recommend the best sandwich, as I have yet to try them all, the Angus Young beef (ha!) and the turkey were fantastic. On to the rest… And they have veggie stuff for those of you who «don’t eat your friends» as the T-​shirt of that weird girl in the Morrissey «Everyday is Like Sunday» video says.

Way over priced for what you get. On an $ 8 sandwich you’d at least expect some decent bread but, my sandwich was served on store bought Sara Lee enriched white bread. The meat tasted cheap too but, what really killed it was the bread.

Deli sandwiches are an exercise in restraint. I understand that the point is lots of meat and cheese and whatnot, but I really appreciate when attention is paid to strucural integrity. Enter Pickled Swine.
The sandwhich I had was very deli taste, without being annoying to eat and handle. It stayed together when I ate it. Why is this a novel idea?
A half sandwhich with spicy potato salad was just right for me for lunch — my potatoes were of varying-​doneness, and I wished they were more uniformly soft, but the flavor was good. The sandwich was the star, and it’s worth a second trip.

I ordered the pickled swine and it was amazing. Tasted fresh with the right amount of spice. Definitely more than a sandwich at Subway, but has more flavor.

I expect food from a food truck to be a little off-​center, idiosyncratic, and tasty, and the Pickled Swine fit the bill. I ordered a half-​sandwich of the Rachel (pastrami with pickled cabbage and homemade thousand island dressing on rye), plus sides of the beet salad and warm cabbage salad with pickled beans. It was the kind of food you could make at home, assuming you had some ambition and a decent amount of creativity.
The half-​sandwich was substantial enough for lunch, accompanied as it was by the sides I ordered. The carmelized onions and pickled red cabbage in the Rachel were nice touches, giving it a lightness and brightness you don’t normally find in a pastrami sandwich. The beet salad included chickpeas and corn kernels, and made for a nice side. Sadly, the pickled beans were missing from the cabbage salad, which would have made it stellar, rather than solid.
The folks at the Pickled Swine are friendly, and the food is good. Your meal will run you a little more than it would at Subway’s or a similar fast food place, but will taste a lot better, and be better for you, too.

This place is marginal at best and way over priced. I ordered the «Johnny» an Italian style sandwich. It said I came on a hard roll but when I unwrapped it it was on rye. Also the description said the sandwich had fresh mozzarella, instead it had regular run of mill provolone. I could have went to Jimmie Johns and got a better sandwich for half the price. Garbage.