After returning from our respective vacations, we had each decided to, in turn, maintain a healthier lifestyle and detox from all the decadence we’d imposed onto our bodies over break. But sometimes, a little compromise is in order. That’s exactly how we felt the day we craved something we could sink our teeth into for lunch. Enter The Foundry: a place that bazaarites past have had experience with, but this generation hadn’t really tried – so, it was a unanimous choice – The Foundry it was, at last.

Here’s the recap on what we ordered:

My tastes are simple. I like a good roast beef sandwich, but I also despise deli meat. I like my meat to be real, so to speak – and had always heard volumes about The Foundry’s classic roast beef sandwiches, and the fact that their roast beef is in fact homemade and sourced from the real deal with juicy, thick cuts. So with a lot of trust and gusto, I decided to go for it. When swiping through their menu, I noticed two options that were almost identical: The Foundry Roast Beef, made with edamame hummus, and the Roast Beef Classic, prepped with mustard, rocket leaves and cheese. I’m a big fan of all of those things, so this was a difficult choice to make, but in favor of sticking to a somewhat healthier, dairy free routine, I opted for the former rather than the latter; at least I was getting my roast wedged between two slices of multigrain toast!

Madame Editor, with her affinity to sample most eateries’ songs of high praises, selected the Chicken Special for her meal. Made with grilled chicken, pesto sauce, sundried tomatoes, cheese and avocado, she wouldn’t stop talking about how good she’d heard this sandwich was and how excited she was to try it.

The intern got a salad (there’s always one.) containing beets, quinoa, rocket leaves, sprouted beans and avocado alongside a tangy mustard and lemon vinaigrette. Yum. Health.

The Ops Manager was on an unnecessary diet. But, his polite declines and firm commitment to said healthy eating plan had quickly vanished once we mentioned we were ordering from The Foundry, to which he paused, took a look at the menu and called out for a Chicken Penne Pasta.

We wrapped up the order with a sneaky Shredded Beef sandwich, which acted as a sneaky surprise for our absent designer soon rejoining: Slow cooked braised beef shredded to perfection with homemade barbecue sauce, melted cheese and lettuce on a soft, buttery brioche. And of course, we couldn’t let this happen without their homemade chips!

Soon, our order arrived and we tucked in. Something that we each noticed about our respective meals was that any meat or chicken used was completely fresh tasting, indicating an overall homemade quality. According to Madame Editor, that’s what made the Chicken Special so special, with its perfectly grilled, tender pieces of chicken breast, and the same succulent protein was used in the decadently creamy and satisfying Chicken Penne Pasta.

The salad was super healthful and light and: how can you mess up quinoa, beetroot and rocket leaves? They could have been more generous with the avocado offering (because we love avo!), but their amazing sandwiches made up for it.

The Shredded Beef sandwich was reportedly good, but not for the faint of heart. There was a mountain of meat on there, outnumbering its bread ratio. So if you like meat like I do, this is the best idea in the world. If that much meat makes you queasy but you still like meat, do yourselves a favor and try what I ordered.

That roast beef sandwich was amazing. Okay, so maybe I should’ve opted for the mustard and cheese option instead, as mustard would have complemented this perfectly seasoned and cooked homemade roast beef perfectly in a way that the hummus lacked, but other than that, I have no regrets. And any apprehensions I might have had vanished after one particular bite where I heard the crunch of course sea salt and freshly cracked black peppers, causing my tum to do a happy dance. Absolute perfection.

So would we order from The Foundry again? I would! I think they serve up a great roast beef sandwich, and I’m awfully curious about that Shredded Beef.  Also, their homemade, hand cut potato chips are to die for, (although I preferred them without their accompanying dip.) All in all, it was a solid lunch, and I’m looking forward to exploring what this sandwich hub has to offer a little more.

The Foundry is located in Salmiya, next to Shaha Complex. Order them through Carriage, and follow them on Instagram @thefoundrykw. Call them at 6092 9042 for more information.