Thursday, September 01, 2011

Taylor Gourmet Relents on Mayo Issue



Taylor Gourmet has, in the past, proudly trumpeted its no mayo policy. This rubbed some patrons the wrong way, but didn't seem to hurt business. They guys at Taylor have had a change of heart, and are now happy to offer their customers mayo, spicy brown mustard, and whole wheat bread upon request. Come on, I'm not huge fan of mayo myself, but even I'm moved by the dancing Hellman's guy in the background.

Full press release:

TAYLOR GOURMET CHANGES POLICY ON CONDIMENTS
AND ADDS WHOLE-WHEAT BREAD OPTION TO MENU

“When you’re finished changing, you’re finished” - Benjamin Franklin

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Starting September 1st for the first time, all Taylor Gourmet
locations will provide a whole-wheat bread option, mayonnaise and spicy brown mustard
upon request. Hoagie lovers from D.C, Maryland and Virginia have asked for these options
since Taylor Gourmet opened its first garage door on H ST in Northeast, D.C. The two
childhood friends from Philadelphia who brought D.C the 9th Street Italian Hoagie and
Pattison Avenue decided to add the whole-wheat bread, mayonnaise and mustard options
after months of tasting and fine tuning at a secret location.

This marks the first time Taylor Gourmet will lift its moratorium on Mayonnaise & Mustard.
“Speechless”, said a smiling Casey Patten. “Whole-wheat bread, mayo and mustard are
the three things customers have asked for since day one. We have such a diverse customer
base and they’re all asking for the same thing. We were like, why wouldn’t we listen to the
customers?”

Patten and Co-Owner David Mazza have also decided to roll out a “Hoagie Of The Month”
(HOTM) to be announced on the first day of each month for the remainder of 2011.
September’s HOTM will consist of Hot Navel Pastrami, Premium Domestic Swiss and Spicy
Brown Mustard. This marks the first time Taylor Gourmet will offer a condiment on a
hoagie outside of oil & vinegar.

September is National Potato Month. Fittingly, Taylor Gourmet will offer a sample of their
house made potato salad to all customers who order a hoagie from September 1st-7th.

Taylor Gourmet remains committed to offering the best hoagie on earth, period.

About Taylor Gourmet:

Longtime friends and Philadelphia area natives, Casey Patten and David Mazza, founded
Taylor Gourmet in 2008. After the two moved to Washington, D.C. in 2002, they struggled
to find an authentic hoagie that featured the quality ingredients and authenticity of the Italian
style hoagies they had come to love. They made the decision that they could create a menu
that would bring those flavors to the Nation’s capital.

For three years the two traveled, researched, and taste tested hundreds of hoagies. Soon,
they were ready to put their research into action. Casey and David began their search for a
location in 2007, focusing on opportunities available to be pioneers in the up-and-coming
H Street NE "Atlas District". Purchasing a 3-story townhouse, which had last housed a
barbershop, Casey and David’s plan was to erect an Italian hoagie shop and gourmet market
with a contemporary and industrial design. With the assistance of Georgetown designers,
Grupo7, they set to work replacing caved in ceilings and crumbling walls with materials such
as wood shipping pallets, chain link fence posts, exposed brick and hot rolled steel. They
opened up the property to the street by installing a roll up aluminum garage door, proving to
be a signature design element for Taylor Gourmet.

After construction was complete, Taylor Gourmet was born! Soon to follow were rave
reviews of the food (authentic Italian hoagies, gourmet salads, and premium side items)
and restaurant design from the likes of The Washington Post, NY Times, Travel & Leisure,
Dwell Magazine, and a host of others. After a year of successfully bringing the Philly style
hoagie to D.C., Casey and David opened the 2nd Taylor Gourmet in the new City Vista
development located at 5th and K Street N.W. Just 9 months later the 3rd Taylor Gourmet
opened in downtown Bethesda.

Casey and David are pleased to announce that the 4th Taylor Gourmet will open at 14th and
T Street NW in the fall of 2011 and a 5th location is due to open at the Mosaic development
in Merrifield, VA in the first half of 2012.

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, i love those guys, and i support everything they do. It makes sense to listen to your customers. Maybe i will start making shooters at the pug. Ok just kidding. Still waiting on a cheesesteak, and hoping that as taylor gets bigger and better, the eagles, phillies and union will get smaller and worse.
Heading to taylor now,
tonyt
The pug.

Anonymous said...

they have cheessteaks down the street dude...i'd like to see a more regular hoagie, one that they slice the meat and veggies when you order it not beforehand, also softer rolls, my grandpa always pulls out his dentures eating taylor hoagies

fatty said...

Oh Hell Yesss!

Dave B said...

sliced-to-order meat will probably lead to a price increase.

now that the toothpaste is out of the tube, when can i expect to see olive loaf at taylor? you know what, lets just start using all oscar mayer meat and wonder bread

Anonymous said...

Being a Philadelphia transplant myself, I am of 2 minds on this topic.

The cynical, throwing-snowballs-at-Santa-Clause side of me says that they stopped really being hoagies when they stopping bringing down the bread from philly, so why the hell not start using mayo and mustard? The more supportive, refined, nice, polite, Washington DC side of me says give the customers what they want. So which side wins out? Well I just finished a Lombard Ave (with oil & vinigar).

PS - since they've started listening to their customers, let me echo TonyT's comment about adding a good cheesesteak to the menu - I still haven't found a good one of those south of the Mason Dixon line.

Go Eagles!

Gonzo said...

That video is so terrible, it's brilliant. I gather it was the first and only take. Yay for mayo!

monkeyrotica said...

We don't eat "cheesesteaks" in DC. We eat "steak & cheeses," or "cheesesteak hoagies" (L/T/M). So looking for a Philly cheesesteak in DC makes about as much sense as looking for halfsmokes in Philly. Mario's, Al's, South Street, or Water Ice Factory. Take your pick, although I'm inclined to go with Water Ice (when they're OPEN, that is) and tell them to lay off the salt.

Dave B said...

this reminded me of this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7Ef5Aob4cE

inked said...

Monkey,
I've got to agree. The last time I had the cheesesteak from PWI someone had gone insano on the salt. Too bad, bk it's generally an amazing sandwich.

curmudgeon said...

I love Taylor's but I wish Casey and David hadn't moved out of the nbhd. It was great to see them around often.

Anonymous said...

Yes, it is too bad they moved. They are easy to look at.

Anonymous said...

eh, go S-H-E-A-G-L-E-S!

Anonymous said...

Great! Now get some bread that isn't chewy and you'll be on the track to a great sandwich.

Dave B said...

If you dont like the bread, buy the sandwich then bring it home, remove the contents, and put on your white bread of choice.

Anonymous said...

It's about effing time. The no mayo policy was ludicrous.

Mayo might bring the Taylor subs up to 'average'.

East_H said...

There have been several times that we've decided not to go to Taylor with friends specifically because of the no mayo policy. Literally, when people find out they can't get mayo, we have gone somewhere else. So this is just smart business.

I know they offer the oil whatever but the last time I had oil on a Taylor sub, it was soaked through everything and absolutely disgusting.

It's a good shop with room for improvement, so it's nice to see them responding to customer sentiment.

Anonymous said...

People who bitch about no mayo at Taylor would probably bitch about no mayo available at Citronelle or Komi. There are a zillion other places to get mayo on a sandwich. One place tries to be different -- traditional, even -- and it's a war crime? Jeebus.