Guy Fieri in sunglasses, smiling

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Located in Sonoma County, California, home of celebrity chef Guy Fieri, Forestville's Russian River Pub is a haunt for the Mayor of Flavortown. Although locals call this spot a dive bar, it has a stellar food menu that includes one of Fieri's favorites that's arguably one of the best sandwiches seen on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.

Because Fieri is old friends with Wendy Gause, owner of the 53 year old eatery, Russian River was featured on the pilot episode of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives." Featured on the show was one of the pub's culinary claims to fame: the beef tri-tip sandwich. Tri-tip is a lean and flavorful bit of meat located at the bottom of the sirloin. 

To make Fieri's favorite sandwich, the tri-tip is brined overnight. Different from a marinade, which enhances flavor, brining is all about adding more moisture to the meat, making for a juicer final product. The extra moist meat is then popped in the oven to roast with parsley, onion, and Worcestershire sauce before it's sliced, grilled, and loaded onto French bread with a mountain of caramelized onions, melted bleu cheese, and a smear of horseradish sauce.

For Fieri, it's a little taste of home

tri-tip sandwich on french roll

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Praised by Guy Fieri as "off the hook" in the pilot of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives,"  the tri-tip sandwich has become a highly sought after menu item at Russian River Pub. And he's not the only one singing its praises. "The meat was sooooooo tender, and the toppings made it really flavorful," one person writes on Yelp. "The tri tip sandwich is something that I covet pretty much always," another chimes in. While it no longer holds a place on the permanent menu, if you're lucky, you might be there when the sandwich appears as a daily special.

For his fans, any food recommendation from Fieri is typically well regarded. However, the fact that he calls Russian River Pub's tri-tip steak sandwich is one of his favorites is made even more meaningful by the fact that it is a regional staple. The tri-tip steak became associated with California in the 1950s, when the cut saw a huge rise in popularity. These days, you just have to throw a stone in the Bay Area and you'll surely hit a tri-tip sandwich joint. As a Nor-Cal native, Fieri's stamp of approval on Russian River Pub's sandwich speaks volumes.