On Tuesday I put up a list of all of the four star sandwiches from the MBIP year-long sandwich tour on facecrack and had people vote for their favorite sandwich. You can see the results here (scroll down for the post featuring Dagwood). I tallied up the votes and the top two winners are: W.E. Sullivan’s and Big Catz BBQ! Now it’s time to get all judgmental on their asses! So let’s introduce the judges for this evening’s sampling of the top two sandwiches!
The Judges
Our esteemed panel of sandwich judges are: Amber, Joe, Jon and Scott!
All of the judges got a donut beverage holder, a new pen and a notebook to help with the sandwich judging. They are going to be judging the sandwiches on four different points: Flavor, quality of the bun/waffle, originality and presentation.
Since Scott is the official MBIP Wheelman, he volunteered to drive us which was very nice! And it’s off we go into that wild blue yonder towards the first sandwich stop!
The First Stop: Big Catz BBQ
Location: 221 E. Main Street - Knoxville, Illinois - 309-388-0020 - facecrack page
Here’s the obligatory inside shot, you can seen more photos of this place by clicking on the original sandwich post we did here. That’s the owner of Big Catz, Tom Worden. Great to see him and now it’s off to...
The judge’s table! Scott and Amber are chewing on their donut beverage holders for an early appetizer!
Our waitress for the evening is Danielle, who was very charming and cute as two and a half buttons! We started out with an order of their haystack fried onions and these were a big hit with the judges. But we’re not here to judge fried onions, we’re here to judge the sandwich and here it comes!
Sandwich - “The Big Catz Porker”
This sandwich is a grilled tenderloin with cheese, grilled peppers, onions and a pile of smoked pulled pork on top of it! They have a variety of homemade bbq sauces that you can put on top and they range from mild to hot and zingy. They made mini sandwiches for the judges, the regular size is giganzo sized!
Brandon is the chef responsible for the sandwich and side items and everything was cooked to perfection and very tasty! After we ate, Michelle came by our table and we had a nice conversation with her and admired her tattoos! Then it was time to hit the road and head for the second sandwich stop of the evening!
The Second Stop: W.E. Sullivan’s
Location: 4538 N Prospect Road - Peoria Heights - 309-839-809 - facecrack page
Here’s the obligatory inside shot of W.E. Sullivan’s, for more photos of this place you can click on the original sandwich post I did in here. That’s Lauren Blasek looking pretty and she owns the place along with her husband, Billy! Great to see her and now let’s go to...
The judge’s table! There’s our quartet of judges with their donut holders, pens and notebooks ready to get all judgmental on the second sandwich of the evening! But first...
Some drinks and an order of their thick cut fries. These fries were a big hit and they’re really delicious! And now it’s onto sandwich number two....
Sandwich - “Spicy Chicken and Waffles”
Here’s Lauren with their Spicy Chicken and Waffles Sandwich. This sandwich is a deep fried chicken breast covered in melted Sriracha Jack cheese, topped with lettuce, tomato and Sriracha mayo. The sandwich is served on honey maple waffles. The judges loved this sandwich and they were really torn on trying to decide which sandwich was better. They all agreed that it was pretty much a tie, but they gave it a score and we’ll soon find out who won the best sandwich of the year long tour!
Raul is the head chef here and Aaron prepared our sandwich and fries. Wonderful job, guys! And now, it’s time to look at the scores in the notebooks!
The Judge’s Notebooks
I have to say I was very impressed with the notes that all four judges made in the books! They all did a stellar job of writing and reporting and I have to give Amber the most points for her drawings of the big cat and of all of us! Those are great! And she even wrote down the quote of the evening: “He just heavy sighed because he can’t decide.” Ha! They all said it was tough to pick a winner and that was true as I tallied up the scores. The winner won by a margin of just 1.5 points! And that winner is...
Big Catz BBQ!
Big Catz won for their Big Catz Porker, but this was really just about as close to being a tie as we’ve ever had on one of these MBIP Judgement Nights. Both of them are winners because they both came in at the top of the list of 52 sandwiches! A big thanks to both Big Catz BBQ and to W.E. Sullivan’s for the great service and food, you should definitely try both of the sandwiches at these fine establishments! And special thanks to our esteemed panel of judge’s, Amber, Joe, Jon and Scott! It was a fun night and thanks for all of your wonderful work and fun company! We’ll see you all tomorrow!
Related Posts: A Year In The Life Of A Sandwich: Chicago Grill, Andy’s Diner, Oliver’s Pizza & Pub North, Peoria Hofbrau, Dave’s Pizza, The Publik House, Alwan And Sons Meat Company, Potbelly Sandwich Shop, Fedora’s Pizza & Deli, Peoria Pizza Works, Big Catz BBQ, Le Peep, Jubilee Cafe, Subway, The Dublin Pub, Pottstown Meat & Deli, Whitey’s BBQ, W.E. Sullivan’s, The Hungry Moose, TNT’s Sports Bar & Grill (East Peoria Location), Adams Street Cafe & Catering, Panaderia Ortiz Bakery, Cayenne, Bellevue Tap, Pioneer Smokehouse, Childers Eatery In Junction City, Arby’s, The Chef And The Baker, 4th & Goal Grill, No Wake Zone, Agatucci’s, The Downtown Diner in Morton, The Exchange in Delavan, Big Behm’s Sports Bar & Grill, Chick-Fil-A, Jimbo’s Jumbo, Grandpa John’s Rib Shack, Khaki Jack’s, Blue Duck Barbecue Tavern, Green Gables Bar And Grill, Kenny’s Westside Pub, No Wake Zone, Picco’s Pit Bar-B-Que And Steakhouse, The Fox Pub, Leonardo’s/La Gondola, Castle’s Patio Inn, Kuchie’s On The Water, The 50’s Diner, Donnelly’s Pub, The Mix Sandwich Works, Nacho Mama’s and Jim's Steakhouse.