Tuna Melts

comforting but not very romantic

The tuna melt of my childhood. Photo courtesy of Canter’s.

Everyone probably has a tuna melt template they enjoy based on where they started eating them. For me it was Canter’s. I have eaten countless Canter’s tuna melts. I haven’t done extensive historical research but I’ll bet the tuna melt was first made in a deli. Tuna salad is a core ingredient at any deli. Good rye bread can be found in abundance. Rye bread is the correct bread for a tuna melt according to my tastebuds but I do accept that it is acceptable to make it with other (inferior for this use) types. Ok, because I’m writing this for you I thought I should at least Google the origins. According to Reddit (cue the eye roll) and Facebook (harder eye roll) a short order cook at a Woolworth’s lunch counter in Charleston, South Carolina accidentally dropped some tuna salad onto an as yet incomplete grilled cheese sandwich. Supposedly this happened in the 1960s. I am dubious.

I share finding comfort in tuna melts (and Heated Rivalry) on Press Play with Madeleine Brand.

A tuna melt is a different canvas than a tuna sandwich. The richness of the buttery toasted bread and the all important cheese means that you (I should say I) don’t really need or want a gussied up tuna salad like I might enjoy between two slices of bread or dry toast. But conversely, elements I might not enjoy in a tuna sandwich are somehow acceptable in a tuna melt. The chopped sweet pickles in the Apple Pan’s tuna salad, for example. I like it but also I am trying not to shudder. I’d also like to shout out Clementine for actually describing what’s in the tuna salad. It has pickles too but Ann’s food is so good I don’t care.

You might think that you don’t need a recipe for tuna melt, but after years of making it and not having my cheese melt properly I was curious what tips were out there for me to up my game.

What I’ve learned is to start cooking the sandwich upside down so the cheese has more time to melt. I also think that the Serious Eats tweak of adding a little panko to the tuna salad mixture is a smart way to keep the mixture from oozing out of the sides of the sandwich. Madeleine chimed in with what I think is a genius variation – use crushed Ritz crackers to absorb the excess juiciness.

I believe some of the best, simple tuna melts are hiding in plain sight in unhip coffee shops and cafes dotted all over town. I enjoy Judy’s Deli in Beverly Hills, where I go to sully my oral skeleton after I’ve had my teeth cleaned.

Tuna melts at Botanica, Cassell's and Leora.

And a few others I enjoy in between cleanings…

Apple Pan in West LA
I got attached to the tuna melt decades ago and haven’t had a burger since.

Leora in Beverly HIlls
Leora is a portmanteau of the owners Lior and Laura’s first names. It is a ragingly busy cafe with limited seating attached to the UTA building in Beverly Hills. I got to know the place during the pandemic and enjoyed much of their menu but I had yet to try their tuna melt.

Santa Monica Seafood in Santa Monica
Wild albacore tuna salad with fontina cheese, tomato, and onion.

Beverly Glen Deli in Beverly Glen

Botanica in Silverlake
Tuna Melt / confit Pacific albacore, pickled onions, pickled cucumbers, capers, celery, dill, with roasted poblanos and jalapeño aioli. Courtesy of chef Julie Devine.

Brent’s Deli in Northridge and Westlake Village

Cassell’s in Koreatown and Chinatown
House poached albacore tuna salad w/ choice of cheddar, American or Swiss.

The Waffle in Hollywood
Melted cheddar, grilled onions on griddled corn rye bread.

Clementine across from Westfield Century City
Tuna mixed with onions, pickles, and roasted tomato mayo, melted with sharp cheddar on rustic white levain.

Swinger’s in Beverly Grove

Talleyrand in Burbank