The article reports on a popular $38 sandwich being sold at the US Open, with fans waiting up to 15-20 minutes in line to try it. The sandwich is from Salt Hank's, a food vendor that gained fame through social media during the COVID-19 pandemic and has a brick-and-mortar shop in the West Village. According to Daniel Zausner, chief operating officer of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Salt Hank's is selling three times its usual daily volume at the US Open, with 1,500 sandwiches sold each day. Fans are willing to wait in line for the sandwich because of its reputation and social media buzz, with some saying it's "worth the wait" despite the high price tag.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Fans at the U.S. Open tennis tournament have been waiting up to 20 minutes in line for a $38 sandwich from a vendor called Salt Hank's. The sandwich, topped with onions, aioli, and provolone, has become the talk of the tournament, with some people waiting in line because they've heard it's worth the price and others to see what all the fuss is about. According to Daniel Zausner, the chief operating officer of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Salt Hank's has sold threefold more sandwiches per day at the tournament than they would normally sell out of their West Village shop. Fans like Rob Carlson, a 64-year-old Brooklynite, have been waiting in line because of word of mouth - when people tell them the sandwich is "really good" and they see others validating that opinion by waiting in line too. The long lines haven't deterred fans from wanting to try Salt Hank's sandwich, which has become a highlight of the U.S. Open experience for many.
Written for “Luxury Food at Tennis Tournament” on 2026-09-09,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 7216 · logged 2026-09-09
Walk onto the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, and you’ll eventually find your way toward the food court area, where on most days during this year’s U.S. Open you’ll be met by a long line of fans waiting to get their hands on a $38 sandwich that has been the talk of the tournament.
asserted
that → walk → tournament
So what has compelled U.S. Open goers to wait on line — for some, that has been a 15-20-minute investment of their day at the tournament — to get their hands on the prime rib sandwich, topped with onions, aioli and provolone?
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that → compel → onions
That depends on who you ask.
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you → depend → who
For 64-year-old Brooklynite Rob Carlson, the decision to hop on the line has been due to the buzz he’s heard from other people.
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he → hop → people
“The thing is that when you hear about somebody who had it, say, ‘You know what? It’s really good,’ and then you see the line, [those are] two facts that actually say, OK, you know what? It’s worth the wait,” he told The Post after just getting off the line.
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he → hear → line
“When people really like it and they want to wait in line and you see other people validate it.
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people → like → it
Allie Struda, 24, and Emma Barrett, 28, both live in the city and are familiar with the “lore” of Salt Hank’s, they explained moments after securing their French dip sandwich.
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they → live → sandwich
For those unfamiliar, Salt Hank — real name Henry Laporte — gained fame on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic through his viral cooking videos.
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Hank → gain → videos
It led to followers, brand deals and a cookbook before last year, when he opened up his own brick-and-mortar shop in the West Village.
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he → lead → Village
The shop became an instant success, serving just the French dip sandwich that is now a hit at the U.S. Open.
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that → become → Open
“We’re from the city, so we know the lore of Salt Hank’s and how good it is,” Struda explained.
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Struda → ’re → Hank
“We have not had the chance to try it, so we’re like, why not?”
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we → have → it
“Sometimes the line draws you in,” Barrett added.
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Barrett → draw → you
“Social media is the reason,” Barrett went on, noting the constant social media posts about the sandwich.
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Barrett → go → sandwich
“Literally, that’s it, and I’m f–king hungry.”
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I → ’ → ?
While the USTA doesn’t have a total count of how many sandwiches have been sold through the U.S. Open thus far, Daniel Zausner, the chief operating officer of the national tennis center, has said that Salt Hank’s has sold threefold daily what they would sell out of their West Village shop on a given day.
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they → have → day
“It hasn’t surprised me that the interest was going to exceed everyone’s expectations,” Zausner told The Post.
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Zausner → surprise → Post
“What I’ve been very pleased about, not surprised, but pleased, is that doing for them three times the volume of what they do in their space, they’re able to maintain that consistency and that quality of the 1,500 sandwiches as good as the first one is during the day.
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one → do → day
Zausner and the USTA would certainly like to have Salt Hank’s back after this year’s tournament, but he also hopes that it has worked out for them as well.
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it → like → them
Salt Hank’s closed its West Village shop for the three weeks of the U.S. Open to focus on the stand on the grounds of the tournament.
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Hank → close → tournament
“I’m at the stage now where I just don’t want them to feel like they made a mistake to give up that commitment to their flagship location,” he explained. “Because I’d like to see them come back.
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them → ’m → location
We just want to see them be really successful, feel really good about what they’re doing.”
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they → want → what
