National Sloppy Joe Day is observed each year on March 18th.
One of America’s all-time favorite hot sandwiches, it is often made with ground beef, onions, tomato sauce, brown sugar, cola or maple syrup to sweeten it and seasonings to spice it, all served up on a hamburger bun or roll.
There are different claims to the origin of the sloppy joe. In Havana, Cuba in the 1930s there was a genuine bartender who gained popularity with vacationers who went by the name of Sloppy Joe. He earned his name for his less than enthusiastic way of cleaning the bar. He was, however, an attentive bartender, and the bar was a hot spot for the jet set.
However, no mention is found in papers from the era of a hot sandwich on the menu matching the description of a Sloppy Joe, and the man of the same name retired to Spain in 1933.
Another claim on the sandwich is at the Ye Olde Tavern Inn by Abraham and Bertha Kaled in Sioux City, Iowa that had a loose meat sandwich on their menu in 1934. Where, a cook named Joe added tomato sauce to his “loose meat” sandwiches. Voila: a new between-the-bread offering, and the sandwich’s official name.
Whoever brought the Sloppy Joe to the world, it was made more convenient when in 1969 Hunt’s put it in a can and called it Manwich.
- The sloppy joe goes by many names, including manwich, slush burger, yum yums, barbecue, dynamite, and even sloppy jane.
- “Sloppy Joe’s” were mentioned in several movies of the 1930’s, Citizen Kane and even It’s a Wonderful Life. Even though it was not widely popular until the 1960’s.
- In 1969, Hunt’s revolutionized the Sloppy Joe when it introduced its Manwich Sloppy Joe Sauce.
- In Australia, a version of the Sloppy Joe is called a savory mince roll and is served in a pita pocket.
- In the 1995 movie “It Takes Two,” Ashley Olsen’s character tries her first Sloppy Joe, which she calls a “Big Gooey Messy Burger.”
- A Washington, D.C. steak house once served a $24 Sloppy Joe named after former Vice President Joe Biden.
- A restaurant in Las Vegas serves a catfish Sloppy Joe.
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