2823 Newport Blvd., Newport Beach, CA 92663

By Eli Heller

Matt Meddock had a vision when he thought up Sessions Sandwiches three years ago: take away the hastiness of sandwich making, and make the familiar lunch food something more substantial, more memorable, and more flavorful.

“People eat sandwiches because it’s quick,” Meddock said. “Sometimes people eat sandwiches just because it’s something to eat.” We can all relate.

Determined to change that, Meddock, a tall surfer and “chief shaka giver,” with neck-length hair and a tattoo covering his left calf, worked with a few local chefs to create eight distinct sandwiches—each with its own unique taste.

Sessions Sandwiches officially opened its doors in April and is the perfect place to grab a bite this summer. Located on Newport’s Balboa Peninsula, Sessions is walking distance from the beach and from bars such as Malarky’s, Woody’s and Baja Sharkeez. From the outside, Sessions, minimalistic in design, looks like a giant wooden box protruding out from the rest of the strip mall in which it occupies the corner space.

Inside, Vampire Weekend plays on the loudspeakers and the cinderblock and wooden walls are adorned with black & white photographs of surfers, beach babes and the surf itself. Meddock named his restaurant after surfers’ wave-riding ‘sessions,’ imagining the new sandwich joint would be a place for local surfers to grab some grub between sessions.

“That’s the secret sandwich,” he explained to me when he visited my table and saw that I’d ordered the Summer Zephyr, and added turkey to it. “The Anaheim ducks used to bring their girlfriends here and they’d all order the Zephyr with turkey.”

Appropriately named, the Summer Zephyr is the quintessential summer sandwich—light and toasty on the outside and chilled on the inside. It’s the only vegetarian sandwich on the menu, and features melted mozzarella, tomato, basil aioli, arugula, and pickled onion, all soaked in a sweet balsamic sauce on a fresh French roll. For meat eaters, adding turkey gives it that familiar, chewy taste.

Yet the most popular sandwich is the Meddock Melee, named after the man himself. On a toasted dark brown squaw roll covered in oats, the sandwich features roasted turkey, guacamole, onion, pepper, mini sprouts, and an adobo-buttermilk dressing and has the full package: the chewiness of the turkey, the crunchiness of the sprouts, the creaminess of the guac and the zesty aftertaste of a slice of jalapeño jack. Each sandwich is served with two slices of pickle on a pie plate and melts in your mouth.

Though Meddock’s special sandwich creations, which also include ham, meatball, pulled pork and pastrami sandwiches, are the highlight of Sessions and what most people know the joint for, the menu also includes a small variety of hot dogs and salads, as well as, sides such as potato salad and chips & guacamole. For drinks, a series of iced teas are available.

Sessions is, overall, a taste of classic Southern California—what surfers eat, what they listen to, and where they spend their time when they are out of the water. In the afternoon, Sessions is packed with surfers and skaters, long hair, long boards, sunglasses and all. The website even features a daily surf condition report, courtesy of Surfline. Yet Sessions is certainly not just for local surfers; any OC resident can appreciate the delicious taste of one of Meddock’s carefully structured creations.

They may come at a higher price tag than most of your average sandwich joints,  with the cheapest sandwich being priced at $8.00 on its own,  but Sessions’ sandwiches are loaded with original flavor and are certainly worth checking out next time you’re on the peninsula. And even without the sides, one sandwich is still enough to fill you up.

They’re also working on getting a liquor license. Gnarly.