The Reuben sandwich is one of the specialties served at Goose Hollow at the Cove in Seaside.

There’s no denying that people are passionate about art – and their Reuben sandwiches.

I chuckled out loud when I read a reply to a Yahoo reader who asked “Where was the Reuben sandwich invented and first served?” The reply – “Little did we suspect, as we embarked on unraveling the mysterious origin of the Reuben, that we were entering disputed territory – that difficult, emotionally charged zone of regional rivalries, food folklore and unwritten history.”

I love the Reuben sandwich so much that I really don’t care who invented it – whether it came from Arnold Reuben’s Manhattan delicatessen (established around 1908), or from a wholesale grocer named Reuben Kulakofsky, who allegedly created the sandwich (around 1922) at Omaha’s Blackstone Hotel to feed his poker-playing friends. Theories abound. All I know is that the best Reuben sandwich I ever had was served to me, in person, by former Portland Mayor Bud Clark at his Goose Hollow Tavern in southwest Portland. Many people recognize Clark as the model for the poster titled “Expose Yourself to Art.”

Clark’s menu from the Portland restaurant claims it is the “best Reuben on the planet,” and I agree. Imagine my delight (and that of many others), when the Clark family decided to open Goose Hollow at the Cove in Seaside. We now have “the best Reubens on the planet” on the Northwest coast. Yes!

What is the magic of a Reuben sandwich? Made with rye bread (flavored with caraway), corned beef, sauerkraut (fermented cabbage, used by old-world mariners to fight off scurvy), Thousand Island dressing (or Bud’s secret sauce, which I will not reveal), and Swiss cheese … go figure? Somehow, when these ingredients are grilled and melt together, they form, for many, the perfect food.

Seaside residents Galen Geller, middle, and Jeff Benson enjoy a pint on a cloudless day at Goose Hollow at the Cove while Lars, left, settles for a bowl of water.Maybe it’s the corned beef? From what I’ve learned from talking with Angela Clark, who owns the coast Goose Hollow with her husband, Jason, and sister-in-law, Rachel, their corned beef recipe was developed about 40 years ago by one of Bud Clark’s former employees. It turns out that Clark originally found the recipe for the Reuben sandwich in Sunset Magazine.

At the Cove, they follow the traditional recipe, boiling naturally raised corned beef (from local purveyors Reed and Hertig) with pepper, garlic, bay leaves and other spices until it is juicy and fork-tender. According to Angela Clark, the rye bread used in the Reuben “has to be very special.” Jason Clark (Bud’s son) makes frequent trips to Portland to purchase special breads for their restaurant.

If you are not as passionate about a Reuben sandwich as I am, there are many more reasons to visit Goose Hollow at the Cove. The setting, looking out over the ocean at Tillamook Head, is fantastic. In warm weather, tables are set up outside, where you can park your dog or bike and enjoy the food and the view. Indoors, the restaurant is cozy and casual. Local surfers often frequent the small bar. Live music is a big draw. Every Tuesday night, accomplished guitar and violin duo Bill Hayes and Gary Keiski fill the room with sound.

Happy Hour, which runs from 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays, offers good value, including a mini-Reuben for just $4.75 and a slice of Goose Pizza (with pepperoni, salami, ham, mushrooms and peppers) for $3. So far, over the past few years, the pizza has been acceptable, but not great.

The menu is divided into “Not Sandwiches” and “Sandwiches.” “Not Sandwiches” includes an array of starters from chips and salsa to a scoop of potato salad with carrots and a pickle. Garlic bread with cheese is available with pizza sauce for dipping – a carryover from the Portland restaurant.

On a recent dining adventure, as always, the Reuben was perfect. Piled high on dark grilled bread with sauerkraut, Bud’s special sauce and molten Swiss cheese, it can’t get much better. A shrimp cocktail (once the waitperson remembered the cocktail sauce) was fresh and nicely seasoned. The clam chowder was delicious. According to Angela Clark, special chowder ingredients include fennel, wine, butter, bacon and lots of real cream.

Sliced carrots come with nearly every meal, and there are lots of them. When I asked Angela Clark, “Why so many carrots?” she replied that Bud Clark chose to serve natural foods, and carrots vs. French fries is a natural.

“We serve real food to real people,” she says. “We’ve had an amazing response to the carrots – people love them.”

The Goose potato salad, another recipe from one of Bud Clark’s old friends is, according to Angela, “a labor of love.” Handmade and seasoned, it is some of the best potato salad I have eaten. The potatoes are perfectly cooked and the dressing has the perfect touch of spice.

On the menu, there is something for every sandwich lover, including an open faced bay shrimp salad with cheddar cheese on a Kaiser roll, a Northwest halibut sandwich, roast beef dip and the “Surfer’s Special,” with salami added onto a veggie sandwich. This is a warm, lively tavern with great atmosphere, good beer, good food and the best Reuben on the North Coast – and possibly the planet.