SanguCHE

-Grubbing in Chicago (land)
Peruvian Sandwiches in Naperville  

For a city boy like myself Naperville might as well be in Wisconsin. It would probably be a whole lot cooler if so. Honestly it's a place I'd rather stay away from if given the choice. Sometimes though you don't have a choice. But when I do go I can at least take solace in the fact there are a couple really good food stops before heading back into the city. One of them is to my knowledge the only place in the state specializing in Peruvian style sandwiches. For those that were unaware Peru has one of the worlds best sandwich cultures. They're one of the strong points of one of the globes great cuisines.

Locals Favorite in Naperville

SanguCHE sits in a crowded strip mall. The name of the place is what Peruvians call sandwiches in their native tongue. Peruvian food is as diverse as the country itself. While it's main city Lima is known for having some of the best most sophisticated plates of food in the world it's also got a lot of Roadfood type spots. Some of the city's most treasured restaurants are purveyors of sandwiches such as the Butifarra and the Pan con Chicharron. More on those in a minute bc Lima is also known for all of it's Chifas which are Peruvian-Chinese restaurants. The Chinese have a permanent place at the table when the history of Peru is discussed. These Chifas are known for their Chinese dishes with Peruvian influence and chaufa (fried rice) is a side for every meal. SanguCHE makes a totally respectable chicken fried rice. It's well fried and minimal as far as fillings which is a good thing.

Chifa Chaufa at Sanguche 

But as the name Sanguche suggests this is a sandwich shop. They offer up ten different options, all of them traditional Peruvian in some sense. For instance they have a Lomo Saltado sandwich which is the popular Chifa dish pairing stir fried steak and fries. If you want to try the most popular style of sandwich at most Peruvian spots I suggest the Butifarra. It's made from slices of savory Spanish pork aka jamón de país stewed in garlic, black pepper, achiote, cumin and served on Ciabatta roll with sweet onion relish - salsa criolla - fresh parsley mayo. All sandwiches come with fries and if you want to go big you can upgrade to Salchipapas which are fries with little pieces of fried hot dogs on top. It's popular Peruvian street food as the fries in Peru are also some of the best anywhere. SanguCHE goes the extra step with their fries by cutting them and then frying fresh on site. Always a delight.

Butifarra Sandwich and Salchipapas at SanguCHE

The sandwiches are artfully constructed as far as flavors. Some Peruvian sandwich purists may take offense to the bread being ciabatta as that's not the common choice in Peru but it works for this sandwich. It all held together quite well. The boiled pork was tender and totally non resistant. SanguCHE is the type of place that can do well just about anywhere and that's bc the owner, a Lima native, takes no short cuts in preparing what goes in between the bread. Items like the Adobo de Cerdo (Peruvian Pork Adobo), a sandwich made with slow cooked pork shoulder that originated in Arequipa (Southern Peru) are just asking to be eaten. I wouldn't be surprised if every sanguche on the menu is awesome and that's why I might look forward to the next time I have to go to Naperville.

The Insides 

SanguCHE
535 Fairway Dr #115
Naperville, IL 60563
(331) 701-7175
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