Low Waste at Lunchtime! Erbert and Gerbert’s Sandwich Shop #Sponsored

Low waste and convenience aren’t usually two terms that you hear together, and often the convenience issue is a huge barrier to many people slowly removing waste from their every day lives! However, this doesn’t need to be the case! When Erbert and Gerbert’s Sandwich Shop reached out and asked me to try their two new, limited time sandwiches I thought I’d take the challenge. One, because they are SO tasty to begin with and are one of my go-to’s for a quick lunch when I’m down in Denver, and two because smaller chains usually make it easy to go lower waste! So I grabbed my zero-waste lunch kit and off I went!

First, a bit about E&G. I had always been curious about the name- it is rather unusual but it turns out the story behind it is super cute! It started out as a series of bedtime stories that were told by a father to his 10 children as the Adventures of Erbert & Gerbert Herbert. He created these stories to teach his children about science, history, adventure, and being a good friend. One of those children grew up to become our founder. In tribute to his father he named his sandwich shop Erbert & Gerbert’s, and then created all of the sandwiches on the menu to honor the characters in the stories. So the names of each sandwich like Bornk, Tappy, and Comet Morehouse are all odes to those characters!

At Erbert and Gerbert’s they also don’t skimp on flavor! The two new sandwiches I was invited in to try are the BBQ Brisket Asian Fusion, a southern take on an Asian classic. With all natural hickory smoked beef brisket smothered in barbecue sauce, cucumbers, jalapeño peppers, tomatoes and lettuce with cilantro-mint aioli it feels like down home food that in your hand in a matter of minutes! The second, the Roasted Red Pepper Bánh Mì, is a savory sweet roasted red peppers sandwich topped with cucumbers, jalapeño peppers, tomatoes, lettuce and barbecue sauce and the same cilantro mint aioli. Both are delicious, but I will definitely be going back for the Bánh Mì- the combination of sweet and savory with a bit of spice is such a wonderful afternoon pick me up!

Let’s Go Low Waste at Lunchtime

So, now that we know the food is amazing, how does one go about making less waste at a takeout-type establishment? The key is preparation. Erbert and Gerbert’s is mindful on its own account, with bike delivery, recycled napkins, and the like, but you can up the ante! I brought my zero waste lunch kit. This kit is something I can just pop into my bag when heading out for the day. I, of course, have my reusable water bottle but I supplement this will a roll of cutlery that includes straws as well, and a couple large pieces of folded beeswax wraps! These wraps are key! Each location is going to be different, so you can always call ahead to ask, but I just handed my beeswax to the lovely employee taking my order and they rolled up my subs (WAY better than I ever could mind you!) in my beeswax instead of the traditional paper wrapping! One of my sandwiches was hot so came in recyclable tin foil, but the other was perfect in its beeswax!

I think one of the reasons that so many people are hesitant to go low waste is thinking that people will think they are strange walking into the shop with extra low waste paraphernalia. However, the workers at the downtown Denver Erbert and Gerbert’s Sandwich Shop were so lovely and actually applauded the change! So, easy swap, no waste and all fun! I still get the convenience of grabbing a quick meal while out, but get to save the environment as well!

I highly recommend stopping by an Erbert and Gerbert’s near you (there are over 100 locations across the nation now!) and trying out one of their fun new adventurous flavor innovations! They aim to be ‘Bold Between The Breads™’ with out-out-of-this-world flavor and they do just that! And don’t forget to bring your own supplies!

This post is sponsored by Erbert and Gerbert’s Sandwich Shop. All opinions are my own. Be sure to check with your local store to make sure they accept outside wrapping materials.