Though Vicky and Daniel Rosaia have lived in Oakdale for about two years, their newest business – The Corral Sandwich Shop – captures the city’s essence perfectly. With cowboy accessories hanging from the walls, tables set up on barrels, a charming brick and wood interior, and country music playing from its speakers, the shop figures to be a great addition to Oakdale’s slew of eateries.
The Corral Sandwich Shop has officially been open for a few weeks amidst the pandemic and the owners are excited about the new orders that restaurants in Stanislaus County are now allowed to welcome dine-in customers, albeit with several social distancing protocols to enforce.
With restrictions loosening, the sandwich shop was able to host its first “Clydesdale Challenge” this past week. Its first contenders were Dalton Vargas and TJ Grubb; the pair heard about the challenge through Dalton’s sister Kyndall, one of the Corral’s employees. Vargas and Grubb are both football players at Oakdale High School and between the two of them also play baseball and basketball.
“It’ll probably take 15 to 20 minutes,” Grubb estimated for eating the sandwich, “maybe a little longer.”
It’s important to note that Grubb guessed this before he saw the sandwich. The Clydesdale sandwich is about the size of a football, and is packed with turkey, ham, roast beef, salami, bacon, pepper jack, cheddar cheese and has “all the fixings!” as the menu puts it. Owner Daniel Rosaia estimated the Clydesdale, which ended up weighing in at 3.5 pounds, could feed a family of four.
“We wanted to do something fun, we thought the high school students would get a kick out of it,” Vicky shared.
The challenge in itself is relatively simple: the person needs to finish the challenge by eating the entire sandwich in one sitting (with no expressed time limit). If they do so, they win a free T-shirt from the restaurant and get their picture on the Wall of Fame.
It’s fitting that two local football players were the ones to first take on the challenge, as the sandwich shop is themed with Oakdale and Oakdale High School spirit.
“We’re big fans of the Mustangs and we kind of wanted to take that lead and just go with it,” Vicky explained. She and Daniel have two kids of their own who are in local elementary schools and will eventually end up at OHS. The pair shared that they have been thankful for such a supportive community and great feedback on the sandwich shop.
“We discovered Oakdale and fell in love with it,” Vicky shared.
The family moved from the San Mateo area to Oakdale about two years ago and with their new endeavor are now an active part of the community.
“It’s the best place to raise kids. My goodness, the sense of community, and my neighbors ... everyone’s just amazing,” she continued.
While workers at the eatery shared how thankful they are for the community, the boys worked hard to complete the challenge. Eventually, Grubb and Vargas finished their sandwiches after about an hour and a half of eating.
“Those poor boys will never eat bread again,” Vicky joked and assured that they will hold another challenge again soon. The pair of boys called out a few of their friends to encourage them to try the Clydesdale Challenge as well, including Bradley Joseph, Nathan Criswell, Kobe and Landon Nunes, and Ty Benevides, to be specific.
Currently, the Corral Sandwich Shop is open from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and has a wide menu available with breakfast items, sandwiches, salads, paninis, and frozen yogurt. It is at 730 W. F St., Oakdale and now customers are able to dine-in. Access the online menu at http://thecorralsandwichshop.com/ or call at (209) 322-3512.
