The folks from Da Toscano in NYC recently opened a sandwich shop in Charleston.
When I was down there for New Year’s Eve, I tried a bunch of their sandwiches.
Of all these, the classic was probably the best. But the item that stole the show? The potato wedges that are cooked in the meat drippings. INSANE!
PORCHETTA SHOP
109 President St.
Charleston, SC 29403
This new sandwich joint and bar slings some great sandwiches. We ordered for delivery, but it was good enough to mention as a restaurant review here.
We tried a spicy mortadella, a Korean rib sandwich, a meatloaf banh mi, and a chicken Caesar salad sandwich. They have funky names and I forget which ‘wich is which.
The bread is great here, and if I had to choose favorites, I’d go with the banh mi and the mortadella.
CLUBHOUSE SANDOS & SUDS
22 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
I stopped in this joint for a sandwich while I was serving jury duty. I felt like the price was high for $11.50: turkey club and a seltzer. But it was decent.
They also had banh mi. Look at the HORROR/DEATH METAL font!
I grabbed one for the road. It was okay for the price, but I’ve had better.
SAM’S DELI
30 Mulberry St
New York, NY 10013
First, check out my short Ride & Review video HERE:
My wife and I finally got in here for a sandwich.
The place has been around for a long time, and I have to say, there’s a reason for it. The sandwiches are GREAT! This was a little expensive at $17, but when you compare to a place like Joey Roses ($8), which are smaller, the price makes sense. The quality is great from the bread to the Calabrian chili paste to the meats and mozz.
We went with the Uncle John (mortadella being the big selling point) and we added the chili paste.
I will definitely be back.
REGINA’S GROCERY
27 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
Joey Roses dive bar/social club on the Lower East Side that was recently featured on Eater as a spot where you can still get some cheap, good eats. After reading the article and seeing how close it was to home, I had to try it.
The thrust of the article was that, from 5pm-7pm and from 10pm-12am, they offer “buy two get a third free” deal on their sandwiches. Their sandwiches are regularly priced at $8. Can’t beat it!
They’re nicely packed Italian sandwiches, filled with mortadella, beef, salami, you name it. They have a few different selections you can make. My wife and I picked up three different sandwiches. All were good, but the mortadella sandwich was king. It comes with mozz and sweet cherry peppers on it. Killer.
Make sure you also get some of their crispy fried Brussels Sprouts. The touch of agave syrup on them really sets them apart from others. They’re perfect!
This place is so close – we will definitely be back.
JOEY ROSES
174 Rivington St
New York, NY 10002
I never got around to writing about Katz’s, because the last time I went was before I started this website. Now that I live closer, and since the good folks at Hendrick’s Gin sent me a $25 gift card along with some cool Katz’s swag like gin and juniper soaked pickles and an apron, it was time to go back.
Nothing has changed inside since my last visit, which was pre-2009, aside from some new pics of celebs on the wall. I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of a line at 6pm on a Friday. I thought it would be mobbed. My wife and I opted for waiter service. As soon as we sat, a nice platter of pickles came out. The tomatoes were the winner, oddly enough. I usually devour half sours like an animal!
We wanted to try more sandwiches, but we went with two fulls and one half. First up, the full sized tongue sandwich. This is served cold.
This was my least favorite of the three. The slices were too thick, and the meat wasn’t quite cooked properly. Too tough, too chewy, and too sinewy. Felt like it needed to be cooked lower and slower, so that everything became tender. As far as tongue goes, PJ Bernstein is the king. Without question.
Next up was the half sandwich of liverwurst. This was also served cold.
These thick slices of velvet deliciousness were very much welcomed after the tongue. This was great, and it was a lot of liverwurst for a half sandwich. Some of the best wurst I’ve had!
Last, and clearly the best of the three, was the combo pastrami + corned beef hot sandwich, full size.
In my prior visits, I recall not liking the pastrami so much. At times it was too fatty and sinewy as well, chewy as fuck with those hard ridges along the edge not rendering out properly. But this time it was perfect. And the corned beef was stellar; I’ll go with corned beef over pastrami any day of the week in most cases. But anyway, the sandwich was so juicy and tender, it really didn’t need any mustard.
I can’t wait to go back and try both the roast beef and the brisket. Those were the other two “must have” items that we just didn’t have the stomach space for on this trip. I feel like I rediscovered an old favorite in coming here. It definitely put a smile on my face. One critique I will give is that I think they can benefit from some improved rye bread. I realize it’s just a vehicle to deliver the meat, but I was expecting better.
KATZ’s DELICATESSEN
205 E Houston St
New York, NY 10002
I finally got over to Defonte’s to try some sandwiches. My buddy Nick and I rode over on our Zooz bikes. It took us 10 or 15 minutes from downtown Manhattan – a trip that would otherwise take a half hour and cost an arm and a leg in cab or Uber fees.
These things really are the best way to get around the boros, especially for food crawls! If you want one, get one with my coupon code JOHNNYPRIME for $100 off at THIS WEBSITE.
Anyway, we started with the hot roast beef dip sandwich that’s topped with fried eggplant and fresh house made mozz. Awesome!
Next up was the Italian special, which is a cold sandwich that features a variety of Italian meats, along with some spicy bomba sauce, lettuce, tomato and dressing. This was the big winner for me.
I’ll be back here for sure, especially to try the roast pork sandwiches, and something chock full of mortadella.
DEFONTE’S
379 Columbia St.
Brooklyn, NY 11231
I stopped here for lunch and was really pleased with the meal. Started with a fried knish and wasn’t disappointed. Hot and crisp, super velvety interior.
The Butcher’s Special sandwich, with tongue, corned beef and pastrami, was a big win. Half a pound of meat!
The Rueben sandwich is served open face style, and was equally delightful.
Topped that off with some fries and pirogies. The fries were perfect. As for the dumplings, I preferred the meat ones over the potato.
Then washed it all down with some chicken soup. DELICIOUS!
This place is great. I definitely recommend.
PJ BERNSTEIN
1215 3rd Ave
New York, NY 10021
If you’ve been following along with my meat adventures on Instagram, you might have seen me tag or mention Babylon Village Meat Market in some of my posts since the summer. This market carries some really high quality beef, including rare beef from Japan like snow beef, olive fed wagyu, etc. Marbled to holy hell.
In addition to the rare stuff, they also have plenty of prime, dry-aged steaks, and everything else you might expect to find at a village meat shop, from salami to sandwiches, from porchetta to potato salad to produce to prepared pasta. They’re even launching their own brand of jerky, which is insanely tender and delicious.
Below is a nice unboxing video I made, from when the owner sent me a care package wishing me good luck in the new apartment. I was blown away by his generosity.
I can’t wait to dig into more of this stuff!
BABYLON VILLAGE MEAT MARKET
85 Deer Park Ave
Babylon, NY 11702
This nice sandwich and cheese shop is a fun place to stop in for a quick lunch if you’re in the area. The bloodies are good, and the sandwiches and cheese are nice.
I could’ve used a little more roast beef on this sandwich, and thinner sliced, but the smoked blue cheese sorta made up for it. That was unique. But I think I’m starting to notice a NOLA trend with small amounts of sandwich meat down here. Not a good look!
ST. JAMES CHEESE COMPANY
641 Tchoupitoulas St,
New Orleans, LA 70130
