Sandolab

Sandolab's got a winning formula


224 ESPANOLA WAY, MIAMI BEACH FL 33139
Place: Sandolab.
Address: 224 Espanola Way, Miami Beach.

Price Range: Sandwiches $9.50-$12.50, sides $1.50-$3.50.

Contact: 305-532-6188.

Hours: 11 a.m.-midnight Sunday-Wednesday, 11 a.m.-6 a.m. Thursday-Saturday.

FYI: Parking is actually possible because this is a slower part of Espanola Way.

BY MADELEINE MARR
mmarr@MiamiHerald.com
• EAT: What's nice about going to they-fix-it-for-you sandwich places is the control: all the ingredients are laid out in front of you. You make the decisions about which bread, which cheese, which veggie.

But sorry, Jared, doesn't Subway get a little old?

Apparently, Sandolab thinks so. Hence the name; patrons get to conduct their own culinary experiments.

The new little spot on Espanola Way offers a load of sandwich fixings, and we're not just talking shredded lettuce, cold cuts and sliced tomatoes. The ingredients are way more interesting and healthy: hummus, sun-dried tomatoes, hot cherry peppers, shredded carrots, black beans, to name a smattering.

Familiar territory: You choose your meat (theirs are all Boar's Head), bread (rustic Italian, whole wheat tortilla, baguette and more), and the various ''elements,'' plus house-made dressing, slaw and mayonnaise.

Hits were the No. 10 -- roast turkey and provolone with avocado, red onion and romaine with cilantro vinaigrette -- and the No. 1, with smoked salmon, alfalfa sprouts, cream cheese and capers on a New York style bagel. Can't go wrong there.

The No. 6 -- pastrami and Swiss -- would have been less memorable had it not been for the jacked-up jalapeño mustard.

Alas, a tad bland: the dill albacore tuna with fennel sandwich (No. 4). Next time I'd ask for that mustard, wait for a real deli or pick the DIY option. That's the ultimate control.

• DRINK: Miami Herald columnist Fred Tasker says: ``What kind of wine goes with alfalfa sprouts? Wow. How about a nice chardonnay?''

• WATCH:The Nutty Professor. The 1996 version with Eddie Murphy is a hoot, and the 1963 classic with Jerry Lewis still holds up. Either one will help get your mad scientist mojo going.