Just Good Food is a deli and catering kitchen in the basement of the Rose St. Market Building in downtown Kalamazoo. A friend of mine suggested it as a place to get good sandwiches, and he nailed it. JGF offers a lot of salads, salsas, and vegetarian/vegan options, as well as traditional deli fare like Reubens. It’s a lot like Zingerman’s, only without the brand identity and subsequent overpricing. For this review, I’ll be sticking to two of their salad sandwiches, the Salvadorean Chicken Salad and the Tuna Tango.
The Salvadorean Chicken Salad sandwich. You know, before Instagram, I was the only person taking pictures of my food with my phone. Now, everyone does it. It’s a really weird thing to feel slightly jealous about.
The Tuna Tango (not pictured) is their tuna salad, available either cold with lettuce and tomato or as a melt with provolone cheese. I’ve always had it warmed up. JGF makes the best tuna salad in Kalamazoo, because they’re not afraid to deviate from the norm a little bit. In addition to tuna and mayo, their salad has hard-boiled eggs, sliced dill pickles, capers, and onions. It’s kind of a mix of a couple of different things, and it comes together beautifully. It’s a hearty, filling sandwich, helped along by the generous size they serve you.
The Salvadorean Chicken Salad includes onions, peppers and carrots diced in, and is served warm with lettuce and tomato. Both times I’ve ordered it JGF has been out of pitas, so it’s been served as a wrap, which is fine by me. The salad itself is great. The ingredients are all pretty fresh, and the lack of mayo or another dressing makes for a nice change of pace. I always appreciate leaf lettuce over shredded, and the tomatoes are diced small enough to be manageable as well. Another filling sandwich, and another great buy.
Sandwiches at Just Good Food run for between $6-9 for a full order, which includes tortilla chips. I occasionally order other sides on top of that, but it’s only to try their other items, since the sandwiches are plenty filling. It’s a great lunch spot, and if you’re ever in downtown Kalamazoo, you should definitely check it out.