GEORGETOWN, Ky. (LEX 18) — Who needs a diamond ring when you could win a ring made from a cod sandwich? Anna Lewis thought someone was pulling her fin when she heard a major company wanted to work with her small business, Timeless Treasures.
This local business takes things such as hair, ashes, flowers, and breastmilk and preserves them into items and jewelry. Little did Lewis know, her next challenge would be to preserve an entire sandwich.
In November, Cornett Integrated Marketing Solutions contacted Lewis with a proposal from A&W. The restaurant chain wanted to apply her tactics to their new menu item: the quarter-pound cod sandwich.
“I'm going 'you've got to be kidding,’” Lewis said. “You have got to be kidding, that is the weirdest, most outrageous, brilliant thing that I have ever heard."
The idea came as a way to promote the sandwich in association with February 14th.
“This coincided perfectly with Valentine's Day,” A&W Senior Digital Manager Spencer Barrett said. There's really no better way to show your significant other or your loved one that your love for them is as deep as the sea than with a quarter-pound cod sandwich.”
To put the food in the jewelry, Lewis went through the process of dehydrating the ingredients before grinding each item into a powder to be put into the A&W jewelry.
“We deconstructed every single layer of the fish sandwich,” Lewis said of the process. “Then we would take the bread and we would put it in the gem. We would take the tartar sauce and put it in the gem. Pickles, lettuce. Cod was the big deal. I mean we literally made the fish sandwich into something absolutely beautiful. We had the ring, the earrings, the bracelet, the necklace, and cuff links for men.
The lineup crafted by Lewis included a bracelet, a necklace, a pair of earrings, and cuff links. In addition to these items, A&W had a LifeGem diamond made, incorporating carbon from the cremated remains of six cod sandwiches.
“Anything that's kind of quirky and out there and different,” Barrett said. “We knew that was going to be something people would respond to, especially something like a limited line of jewelry or a diamond ring made from our actual cod sandwiches”
“You can physically see the layers,” Lewis said, holding the bracelet up to the sandwich. “And that's exactly what Cornett wanted. They wanted you to look at this and see a cod sandwich.”
For those looking for a fish-infused Valentine’s present, the A&W website and social channels have links to the registration form. A&W will also offer a buy one get one free coupon for members of their rewards program.
The photo, courtesy of A&W, shows the cod sandwich and Anna Lewis’ bracelet.
