By ANNE LINDBERG, TB Reporter

Looking for a way to show support for your favorite in the mayor’s race? Head on over to Central Melt and order a Mayor Rick Kriseman or a Mayor Rick Baker.

ST. PETERSBURG – With the city’s mayoral primary less than a week away, some residents may wish they could vote more than once for their favorite candidate.

Now the voters who support incumbent Mayor Rick Kriseman or former Mayor Rick Baker will have that chance. They can cast a traditional ballot. And they can put their votes where their taste buds are by ordering the Mayor Rick Baker or the Mayor Rick Kriseman sandwich at Central Melt. (The choices are limited to Baker and Kriseman, the two presumed front runners in the race.)

Central Melt will offer the specials starting Thursday (Aug. 24) through primary election day (Aug. 29) and will be keeping track to see who wins the sandwich race. Results will be announced on election day.

“A buddy of mine gave me the idea,” said Ed Allen, who owns Central Melt.

The sandwiches, which will include a small side of Central Melt’s tomato soup, will be $10 each, so neither has a fiscal advantage.

The Mayor Rick Baker has slices of brisket covered in a house-blended dry rub that’s been slow roasted for 12 hours. The sandwich also has smoked provolone and is served on rye bread. Like all Central Melt sandwiches, it’s pressed.

The main flavor of the sandwich comes not from the dry rub, which Allen described as “a little bit on the safer side,” but from the smokiness of the provolone and the rye.

The Mayor Rick Kriseman is a Kielbasa that’s been simmered in beer and Central Melt’s homemade tomato soup with a bit of red onion. It comes pressed on white bread with fontina cheese.

In this case, Allen said, the flavor comes from the tang of the Kielbasa and its hint of mustard and beer.

The choice of sandwich fixings has nothing to do with either candidate or his politics. Instead, it’s a way of introducing new flavors and protein specials to the menu while having a bit of fun with the election.

If the sandwiches had been geared to the the politics, rather than the election, Allen said, “I would probably do bologna and cheese.”

Central Melt, 685 Central Ave., is open seven days a week. Hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

For information and a menu, go to centralmelt.com.

Photos courtesy of Central Melt. Main photo shows the Mayor Rick Kriseman, left, and the Mayor Rick Baker, right.

Central Melt | Rick Kriseman | Rick Baker | Election | Food | Tampa Bay News | TB Reporter

#CentralMelt #RickKriseman #RickBaker #Election #Food #TampaBayNews #TB Reporter