Local Delicacies: Boston’s North Shore Beef
Photo by Susanna Bolle/Creative Commons
As a Midwesterner, Boston conjures up images of lobster rolls and Fenway Franks, cobblestone roads, packed Dunkin’s on every corner, winning sports teams and Sam Adams. While diced lobster smothered in butter and mayonnaise on a split, toasted roll may very well be one of the best sandwiches put to bun, there’s a hyper-regional sandwich from Massachusetts’ North Shore (which stretches from Boston’s north border and continues along the coast toward New Hampshire) that deserves the same flowers: the North Shore Beef.
Imagine my surprise when Brenden Groom, a friend and roast beef enthusiast from Salem, Massachusetts, told me that many locals consider roast beef sandwiches to be the region’s true specialty. On a recent trip to Boston for PAX East, I had the opportunity to experience this delicacy for myself. While we didn’t have time to make the pilgrimage to the North Shore, Brenden steered me toward a reliable spot that could deliver to the area where we were staying: Kelly’s, which claims to be the originator of the regional classic Beef Three-Way.
Unsurprisingly, this sandwich was a cut above the other roast beef sandwiches I’ve had. Its towering layer of juicy, flavorful roast beef was undoubtedly the star of the show. Miraculously, it managed to hold on to every bit of moisture without inadvertently steaming the toasted sesame seed bun in its to-go container. The classic configuration also came smothered in James River barbecue sauce and Cain’s mayonnaise.
Both the mayo and the barbecue sauce are the ideal iteration of their respective categories: Cain’s is richer and thicker than most other brands of mayo, which lets it pack enough flavor to stand out in the wave of beef that floods every bite. James River barbecue, on the other hand, is nearly the opposite: It’s looser than most and packs a stronger punch than other sauces of its ilk. That runniness allows it to seep into the sliced beef in a way that most other sauces couldn’t. It’s a combination that plays off the beef incredibly well, with the barbecue’s sweet and tangy notes balancing out the unctuously rich mayo that delivers an almost buttery sensation to the sandwich, toeing the line of overindulgence without ever crossing the boundary.