A few ideas from Philly, starting with the bread

Stephanie and I just got back from a trip to the Philly area. While we were up there, we made time for a few sandwiches.

One of our stops was John's Roast Pork, a South Philly sandwich shop that's been around since 1930. That's the place with the pig sign in the photos. The visit got us talking about the bread, and about what we want to keep building at Bagel Boyz.

We're starting to bake our own bread this week.

Think crusty sesame hard rolls for the Phillys and hoagies, and housemade focaccia. We already bake our bagels and smoke our pastrami and turkey in-house. Bringing our sandwich bread into that same process feels like a natural next step.

The goal is a sandwich we're proud of all the way through, from the bread to what goes inside it. We want to keep raising our Philly deli standards here in Jupiter, and this is one way we're putting that into practice.

And a new lunch sandwich is in the works.

My brother Denny is working on a new lunch sandwich: house-roasted beef, shaved thin, on our own focaccia. Horseradish mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion, roasted peppers, pepperoncini and sharp provolone.

That's the sandwich we're working toward. We'll share the first bakes as they come along and let you know when the new bread and sandwich are ready to order.

A little family news, too.

Stephanie and I are getting ready to make the Philly area home. I'll still be involved with Bagel Boyz, and I'm looking forward to sharing a little of life up there along with the food and ideas my brother and I bring back to the shop.

More on the move soon. For now, we'll keep you posted on the bread.

And if you've got a Philly sandwich spot we should try, send me a recommendation. I'd like to hear it.