
Have you ever had a good melted tuna fish sandwich? I have had a ton of them while working in San Francisco. There was this sandwich chain called Specialties Bakery, and they made an amazingly great tuna fish sandwich. I know it so well, that I know the name they called it by, The Hot Alby. It was tuna fish, melted cheddar cheese, lettuce, red onion, on what I think was mayonnaise, all in a soft bun. The Hot Alby also had tomatoes, but I’m not a tomato guy, so I subbed those out. Unfortunately in the last year, Specialties has gone out of business, and thus my early 20’s memories of The Hot Alby are now just memories.
However, if you want, you can do a pretty good impression of the Hot Alby with some easy to get items at your grocery store and a microwave. I never thought my kids would like tunafish sandwiches. However, after giving this to them for lunch and watching them devour it, I do now. It tastes like a certain fish sandwich from a famous restaurant, but it just tastes a lot better. So if you like that fish sandwich, and want to make it at home, then try this melted tuna fish sandwich at home.
Plus it only takes like 5 minutes to make, and the two main ingredients are mainstays in my fridge (packaged tunafish and cheese).
Tips for making a Melted Tuna Fish sandwich
- Buy Brioche bread – This melted tuna sandwich just isn’t any good if you don’t have brioche bread. Nothing works as well as brioche bread in the microwave. If you can’t buy brioche hamburger buns, then I suggest another sandwich.
- Kraft cheese – Nothing melts like the kraft singles (the kind that are individually wrapped). If you can’t get this kind of cheese (or don’t want to), then I cut your cheese very thin.
- Lettuce – I consider this optional. I actually didn’t need it in the original Hot Alby, and sometimes it just gets a bit wilted during the melting.

Melted Tuna Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 Brioche Hamburger bun
- 1/2 package Tunafish
- 1 slice Cheddar Cheese
- 1 Pickle
- 1 leaf Romaine lettuce
- 1/2 tbsp Mayonnaise
Optional
- 2 slices Red Onion
Instructions
- Get your Ingredients
- Spread the mayonnaise on your brioche bun.
- Add the tunafish on top of the bottom but, and then put the cheddar cheese on top of the tunafish. Top with lettuce and a pickle.
- Cover with the top of the bun, put on a microwave safe plate, and microwave for 30 seconds. This should melt your cheese, which is what you are after.
If you aren’t feeling like fish, and what another type of savory sandwich the Hawaiian Chopped Cheese is a family favorite too!
Leave a Reply