Fresh-Made

I feel like I should start with a true confession: I have never been much of a sandwich person. They always seemed just kind of, well, ordinary. But today I am here to eat my words.

From the minute you set foot inside Focaccia, it is clear it is not “just” a sandwich shop. And that is exactly what owner Nick Sammelman had in mind when he relocated his family from St. Louis to Sarasota to start a family business.

“How do we make the best sandwich possible?” he asked. “Well, we start with the bread. That makes it or breaks it, in my opinion.”

So Sammelman tried ciabatta, hoagies, paninis, and then decided focaccia was the clear choice. He says he never planned on making the bread in house; he figured he would partner with a local bakery. But when a talented chef can’t find what he wants, he makes it himself.

“The focaccia is a 48-hour ferment with five rises,” he explains. “This is 100% organic wheat flour, and that is extremely unique here in Florida. It is double the cost and worth it to remove the chemicals. Our food is not low calorie,” he laughs, “but it is most definitely low chemical.”

The food is most definitely not low effort either. “We make our own pickles because it is hard to find ones without yellow #5 [food dye]. We make our own mayonnaise because the rest are all made with soybean oil or a lot of high-fructose corn syrup. My compass is… ‘Would I want to feed this to my kids?’ I want clean and wholesome.”

Sammelman started working in kitchens when he was 15 and met his supportive wife, Danielle, in the industry. He has spent the last 15 years as an executive chef in fine dining, and that experience in high-quality food shines through in Focaccia’s compact but impressive menu of sandwiches, soups, salads, and small plates.

So what did this skeptical reporter order? Porchetta, on recommendation of the chef. And I shall never snub a sandwich again. The sheer lightness of the bread was astounding, with a slight crunch on my first bite. Then the insides exploded with flavor. Thinly sliced juicy pork with perfectly crispy edges contrasted with the pillowy bread. Add to that a light creamy aioli and the perfect tangy heat and crunch from house-made giardiniera. No wonder customers kept rolling in well past the lunch rush. Everyone wanted to talk to each other about their orders, because they were either repeat eaters or had been told how amazing it was. All of this after just three months of opening and with no marketing.

“I don’t need foie gras and tweezers and microgreens to get excited about food,” Sammelman says passionately. “It just has to be something special where there is room for creativity, and you can bring joy to people.”

Congratulations, Chef. Your line of joy-seekers stretched out the door.

Focaccia Sandwich & Bakery: 2300 Bee Ridge Road Unit 207, Sarasota, 941-924-2268; focacciasandwich.com