.......Darwin’s in Harvard Square makes perfect egg salad. They have determined just the right balance of egg to mayonnaise, with a kick from freshly ground black pepper (and a secret ingredient).

Their Chapman sandwich dresses up the egg salad with roasted red peppers, Romaine lettuce and thinly sliced tomatoes. There is a choice of several breads, but our favorite is peasant white - egg salad seems to call for it.

Boston Globe Calendar: “Hit of the Week”-Egg Salad Sandwich, May 16, 1996.

.......Darwin’s Ltd. specializes in soul-restoring meals that happen to be served between two slices of bread. Located just outside Harvard Square, Darwin’s is the corner store of every foodie’s dreams - a kind of upmarket spa with a bright chalkboard menu and boxy wooden shelves holding everything from lemon-pear marmalade to bags of purple sticky rice.

Fixings are of the highest quality, and the sandwich makers who put them together obviously take pride in their craft. There are more than a dozen combos on the board, from the straightforward ham & swiss Chelsea to the Hubbard Park, a rib-sticking vegetarian creation that includes hummus, avocado, apple, carrot, tomato, sprouts, (honey mustard) and optional cheddar cheese.

The Chapman is one of the best egg-salad sandwiches I’ve ever eaten: messy and flavorful, with good-size chunks of egg, a slight crunch of celery, and dark undertones of Worcestershire sauce. It’s even more delicious combined with substantial slices of avocado.

Homemade soups, a selection of prepard salads and sides, and serious sweets from Lakota Bakery ( including a dark-chocolate Florentine that’s half-cookie, half-candy) round out the offerings. You can dine in.....or you can take out, walk to the Charles, and have a picnic. Taking a Darwin’s sandwich back to the office is not allowed.

The Boston Globe, “On the Cheap”, Darwin’s Ltd.: The evolution of the sandwich, by: Julia Hanna

...On the other side of the river, hidden somewhere on the outskirts of Harvard Square, there’s a well-kept secret I’m (almost) unwilling to share. There aren’t enough superlatives to describe Darwin’s. At lunchtime, there’s always a line that snakes around and back the narrow aisle between the front counter and the shelves of gourmet foodstuffs.

....the charm here originates from the clutter and the coziness, the quaint country-store decor, and the produce spilling from baskets sitting in the storefront windows. The hideous Busch sign hanging above the door is amusingly incongruous here, but the art deco “Darwin’s Ltd., Gourmet Comestibles” sign in the window lets you know where you really are.

The Boston Globe, “Restaurant Review”, Flour and Darwin’s: Sandwich Artists at Work, by: Winnie Yang

.....Darwin’s, which is just outside Harvard Square, began offering hot homemade dinners. Mexican-born Roberto Salas makes fish, chicken, and pork entrees mostly in a Mediterranean style. He is a fine cook: A recent cod dinner boasted flakey fish; pork in another was rosy and beautifully seasoned.

You can have your meal reheated there and take a seat in a loungy area until the shop closes at 9p.m. Don’t forget to buy a scrumptious Lakota Bakery cookie for dessert.

The Boston Globe, “Tidbit”, Homemade Dinners, by: Sheryl Julian