Ask Me Anything: Where to Find the Single Greatest Sandwich in the World Today

Plus! More on Maui relief, Minnesota State Fair food, where I eat in Minneapolis and lots of other topics.

Hello from Hawaii! I’ve been at a food festival at Mount Aulani and I’m helping to fundraise for Maui relief efforts.

I love taking your questions every week. Become a paid subscriber to Spilled Milk and you can leave me a question in the comments below. In previous week’s I’ve answered questions about AI in restaurants, my real thoughts about air fryers, food at sports stadiums and a whole lot more.

Links! A lot this week.

• Donate to help Maui at World Central Kitchen; the Red Cross; and here’s my recent post where I talked about local relief efforts.

• This is how to find Richard’s Bake & Shark in Trinidad and Tobago, home of probably the single greatest sandwich in the world today.

• These are my Favorite Foods at the Minnesota State Fair, and here’s my recent Instagram post about new foods at the State Fair.

• Minneapolis restaurants: Demi (and other Gavin Kaysen restaurants); Hai Hai; Ann Ahmed’s restaurants; Shuang Cheng; Alma; 112 Eatery; Tilia; Young Joni.

• The pasta books I mentioned: “Pasta: The Spirit and Craft of Italy's Greatest Food, with Recipes” by Missy Robbins; “Mastering Pasta: The Art and Practice of Handmade Pasta, Gnocchi, and Risotto” by Marc Vetri; “Peace, Love, and Pasta: Simple and Elegant Recipes from a Chef's Home Kitchen” by Scott Conant.

This week’s questions:

Shane: 

What do you like to eat when you visit Trinidad and Tobago? 

Archie:

Yesterday I went to order lunch and the server directed me to a self-service terminal to order. It asked me to tip after I finished. Has tipping for counter service gotten out of control? I kind of feel like it has. I can’t afford to keep tipping 20 percent everywhere I go. (I live in a city that has a decent minimum wage, and most people make more than that because of the labor shortage.) 

Alex: 

Loved your end of summer pasta recipe. What should I do with all the cherry tomatoes from my garden? 

Intrepid Glutton: 

Do you have a favorite state fair food stand?

Peltolla: 

What new fair food are you dying to try this year? 

DJDKOK: 

Do you have a favorite episode of Bizarre Foods? 

Patsy: 

How can I ease my spice-averse mother-in-law into liking spicy food? 

Who_De_Moo:

What watch brands do you like to wear? 

Emily: 

What are some of your favorite Twin Cities restaurants? 

Emilia: 

We recently got a manual pasta-making machine. We’ve never made pasta before. Any tips? What’s the best basic recipe for making pasta, and are there sauces you recommend for the first batch?