U.P. North Sandwich and Pasty Co.
8140 N. 32nd StreetI’ve blogged the last couple of weeks about restaurants in Richland because I’ve been taking my daughter to a strength and conditioning class there.
I wasn’t planning on taking her this past Thursday night but J texted me at work and asked if I’d be off in time to take her. I finished up what I was doing and realized I could get to Wings Event Center to pick her up and get her to Richland in time.
As I was dropping her off, L asked which pub I was going to get dinner from this week. I think I’ve been to all the pub’s in Richland but there’s another spot that was still open and I haven’t been to in years.
U.P. North Sandwich and Pasty Co. is on North 32nd Street north of East D Avenue. The building doesn’t really look like a restaurant. It’s part of a bigger building that looks more like a house than a shopping center. The parking is along the side of the building and in back. This was actually the second location for U.P. North when it opened in 2012. The original spot was in Allegan but it closed a few years after opening. This one in Richland has been able to survive now for over a decade.
I ate at this location a few times after it opened but it’s been a really long time since I’ve actually been here. Before L started with these classes in Richland, I didn’t get out this way very often. I really don’t remember much about those visits other than I used to order a Cudighi Sandwich. It was about the only place you could get one around here.
The order counter is in the back of the store. You can enter from in front of the building right near 32nd Street but there is also a door in the parking lot that will take you right to the order counter. Menu’s are on the counter but there are a couple of dry erase boards with specials hanging near the register. The restaurant also sells sweets and there is a large display case showing off wha they have fresh that day.
Like I mentioned above, I used to stop in to U.P. North for the cudighi sandwich but that’s not on the menu anymore. I wasn’t planning on getting it anyway. I was just looking for some kind of comforting, warm sandwich. I immediately noticed a French Dip on the menu so I ordered that and an order of waffle fries. The cost was right around $19.
I headed over to a table in the large dining room. I was actually kind of surprised just how big of a space they have. Back in 2012, I think I was still using a digital camera to take pictures so I wasn’t taking pictures inside restaurants like I do now so I really had no memory of the space. They a number of seating set ups throughout the space that is dimly lit with hanging lights over the tables. During the day, there are large windows to let in a lot of natural light but I was dining right about sundown so the dining romo had a much softer feel to it.
It really didn’t take long for my food to be brought out of the kitchen by the guy who took my order. I went for the fries right away when he set them the down. There was a big basket of waffle fries that were pushing the well done boundary but they were still tasty. Crispy on the outside and airy in the middle. These actually would have been pretty good with some BBQ sauce but all that was available was ketchup so I just ate them as they were.
The French Dip was nice and simple. Roast beef, Swiss, and some Au Jus to dip it in. The bread was a really soft French roll that just soaked up all of the Au Jus when I dipped it in. The roast beef were thicker slices of warm, tender beef. Adding the au just enhanced that beef flavor to a piece of meat that already had a good taste on it’s own. The Swiss cheese was just kind of there. It was melted to the bread instead of the meat so it kind of got lost in the mix of flavors.
I always like U.P. North as a sandwich shop and that opinion hasn’t changed. I wasn’t super in to driving out to Richland again this week but I get it. J already does it twice a week. At least I’ve gotten some good meals on these Thursday night trips and I’m glad I finally decided to revisit this tasty sandwich joint.
SW Michigan Dining 