What Would the John Montagu Say?

THANK YOU, COLONEL!

Back in 1762, the Earl of Sandwich was having a go at gambling. Either he was on a hot streak or losing his behind, but either way, he was too busy to stop so he ordered a waiter to bring him some roast beef between two slices of bread. The rest, they say, is history, brought on by the Fourth Earl of Sandwich (literally, "a sandy place") in Olde Englishe. This gastronomical delight has evolved markedly over the past 250 years though peanut butter and jelly remain my favorite application to bread. Nevertheless, grilled buns, doughnuts for buns and buns 'way bigger than your head have all been tried as we sought to embellish this tasty morsel into something undeniably good. Making a great thing phenomenal remains the quest of anybody on the Food Network or the Travel Channel, it seems.
Oh sure, awhile back, nutritionists got all up in our grills (so to speak) about the huge portions, and various efforts were made to curb the calories. Remember when Hardee's was pushing a huge burger that used lettuce in lieu of bread, saving all sorts of calories? Right...well, that's been replaced by the huge Thickburger, bun and all...apparently that idea never caught on. Adding bacon (mmmmm, bacon!), sauces of various kinds, multiple cheeses and even wrapping a burger in a tortilla have all been tried, but I think the Colonel may have finally taken the sandwich to its zenith (or nadir, depending on your point of view).
I give you The Double Down which went on sale for the first time today at KFC. The picture says it all: a bacon-cheese sandwich smothered in the "colonel's sauce" ensconced in between two pieces of...chicken! Available in both grilled and original recipe, the chicken serves as a pseudo "bun" for the gooey insides comprised of pepper jack and Monterrey Jack cheese, bacon and mayo...all for $4.99. Honestly, if I had that much cash right now, I would be on my way. be warned, however, the insides might tend to slide around a bit like those Big Macs seem to do.
OK, so now you're hooked on the idea but cautious about your waistline? GOOD NEWS! This delectable delight weighs in with 540 calories per sandwich while a Big Mac contains 580 calories, and the Whopper weighs in at a hefty 670 calories! Heck, even a large order of fries is infiltrated with 570 calories. That means you're free to eat, secure in the knowledge that you're probably doing something (marginally) healthy in terms of fast food, and you will be getting only 32 grams of fat.
Is there a catch? Yes: salt. The original contains 1380mg of salt while the grilled version has 1430mg of salt.
But, hey, you can't have everything.
Did I mention there was bacon in this?
Bon apetit as John Montagu might be saying while getting the grease off his cards.