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June 03, 2005
Retro Lunch
It's Friday, so I'm just going to take a moment to talk non-political stuff. I'm eating lunch at the moment - a Coffee Pot sandwich. If you've lived in or near Bangor for any amount of time, it's pretty normal to see a line of people outside a small storefront sandwich shop around lunchtime. All of them are waiting to eat the sandwich that gives the shop its name - salami, onions, peppers, tomatoes, cheese and pickles on some excellent bread.
Okay, so I usually get mine without the onions.
So why am I going on about a sandwich shop most of you have probably never heard of or will visit? Because the place is just so retro in all the right ways. It's the sort of place that James Lileks would love. The owner works the register, filling orders. He's an older gentleman, and he's always dressed in slacks, a white shirt and tie and an apron.
The service at the Coffee Pot puts other area restaurants or fast-food places to shame. Today, I was in line at the supermarket and of the 15 registers available, two were open. One express lane and one regular lane. I, of course, was in the regular lane. The manager stood around doing nothing to open more registers, despite the growing lines.
I have regularly received poor service at fast food places like McDonald's and stores like Shaw's or Home Depot. Service just doesn't seem important to the service industry anymore, and it's a shame. Maybe part of my affection for the Coffee Pot is just that I know when I go in, I'll get what I ordered in a reasonable amount of time.
So if you're ever in Bangor around lunchtime (only on weekdays), then stop by. But trust me, ask for one without onions.
Posted by slublog at June 3, 2005 01:56 PM
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Comments
I just wanted to say I had a coffee pot sandwich today and totally loved it. I'm not a big onion fan, but when ever I have one of his beautiful sandwhiches, I always like to have them in it. I've lived in Maine all my life and being in Bangor itself since 1970, I find the coffee pot shop to be a very welcome place in town. I hope that he keeps his sandwiches coming for a long, long time to come.
Posted by: edmund hatch at February 2, 2007 02:45 PM
Do you know the hours for the Coffey Pot during the week? I'm flying up Oct 6 and would like to stop and buy some.
Posted by: Dave Cobb at October 4, 2008 07:32 PM
I think they're open from around 10-10:30 in the morning until mid-afternoon when the sandwiches are gone.
Posted by: Slublog at October 5, 2008 09:00 PM
I grew up in Bangor Maine in the 60s and 70s. The Coffee Pot sandwiches are as good as the various comments that I've seen on this blog and others. I did want to warn you that it closes fairly early on Friday (early to mid-afternoon) or at least it did in the past -- I try to get back to Bangor every year or two. I introduced my wife to Coffeepots...she is a native of the Eastern Shore of Maryland and she understands the appeal. We dropped by Bangor on our honeymoon to Maine. In the 80s my oldest brother and I drove from Vermont to Bangor to buy some Coffeepots, then drove to Mt Desert Island. We sat on a picnic bench overlooking Arcadia and consumed several sandwiches & then went back to Vermont -- a true story and now legendary in our family.
Posted by: jweaver at April 25, 2009 11:57 AM
the coffee pot closed today. it opened in 1930. it's a sad, sad day for bangor natives.
http://www.wlbz2.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=112826&catid=3
Posted by: ashley at December 30, 2009 01:52 PM
In the early 1970's a 101 year old nursing home patient of mine rang her call light at 2 am, when I responded she said she was dreaming of a coffee pot ham sandwich and couldn't go back to sleep for thinking of it. I brought her one in the next night. Happy as a clam she was !
Posted by: Sam at December 31, 2009 04:02 PM