Artichoke, Artichoke, why do you exist?

This week I went to the Web 2.0 Expo in New York. I was really looking forward to the week away from home, immersing myself in the buzz and the technology. My trip started out rather early leaving Los Gatos at 5:45am for SFO. However I determined that I would at least get a decent breakfast at the airport before the 5 hour flight with JetBlue. I chose El Fornaio for breakfast and ordered what should have been the simplest of things a toasted Prociouto and Mozzarella sandwich. Simple Italian food which El Fornaio converted in to an artichoke and mustard and ham and random cheese sandwich which was vile.

I was on their website before the plane left the airport telling them what I thought of it, but didn't get a reply.

To say I hate artichoke is perhaps an overstatement and might get me expelled from California which seems to embrace this plant at every culinary opportunity. I just don't see the point of it. I first came across it when Paul and I were Inter-railing and passing through Italy when I was but a youth. Artichoke featured heavily as the pizza topping of choice in Rome. Why? It seemed to serve no useful purpose providing no protein or in fact any calorific value as far as I could see. Since then I have treated it with the utmost disdain.