Sandwiches To Avoid at Lenny’s & Todaro Brothers
June 24, 2008
A bad sandwich is like a missed layup, it invokes groans and easily avoidable pain. NYC Food Guy is here to tell you to avoid the #2 Italian Style sandwich at Lenny’s (top) and any sandwich that’s made to order at Todaro Brothers (bottom) on 2nd Ave and 31st street.
- Lenny’s rarely disappoints but the generic genoa salami, cappicola and provolone make their #2 Italian Style ($6.99 sandwich, $7.99 hero) a bad sandwich. Extra points lost for jalapenos over banana peppers. Stick with the G3 or Smoked Chicken Deluxe.
- Todaro Brothers, an overpriced Italian grocery in Murray Hill, receives my ire because of their inconsistent pricing and careless attitude towards sandwich construction. The roast turkey with lettuce, tomato, coarsely sliced Swiss and entirely too much mayo cost me $12 one time and $9 another. Absurd. Go here for humus, salads (great vinaigrette), cheese and sliced meats, but avoid anything that doesn’t have a set price tag. You want a good sandwich in Murray Hill go to Lamazou.
Posted in Lenny's, MANHATTAN, MIDTOWN WEST, MURRAY HILL/GRAMERCY, Todaro Brothers
content rss
June 24th, 2008 at 11:49 am
dude, these sandwiches look just like all the other crap you eat.
June 24th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
try the kontatsu chicken cutlet or the spicy chicken cutlet
June 24th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Ha, I have to agree with the above. Also, you can’t suggest a roast beef or chicken sandwich as an alternative to a salami & cappicola!
Don’t get me wrong, still glad you’re out there doing the dirty work and posting pics/reviews.
June 24th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Mr. NYCFoodGuy,
With all due respect, perhaps you might not be ordering the correct sandwiches at Todaro Brothers. I cannot speak for Lenny’s, but I have never gotten a bad sandwich from Todaro Brothers, and I have had my fair share. Try getting the honey mustard on a multi-grain roll with honey turkey, munster cheese, lettuce and tomato-delicious!
And while you’re at Todaro Brothers, pick up their home made turkey meatloaf for dinner-so yummy! Let me know how it goes!
June 24th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
you should have gotten frumunda cheese instead of provolone
June 24th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Eat Dirt,
Um okay. Where should I get sandwiches from?
Neeter,
Duly noted. Keep checkin back maybe the kontatsu will appear, I’ve heard good things.
Lauren,
Well since theres so many Lenny’s in this city, I can’t recommend an ideal Italian sandwich everywhere just yet. I can point people towards my two go to sandwiches at Lenny’s, i.e. the G3 and the Smoked Chicken Deluxe. What do you recommend there?
LD,
I’m not going to argue with you but however good your sandwich might be, they’re clueless when it comes to building a sandwich and even more clueless when it comes to pricing. That’s my beef. I’ll go there if I need some good fresh mozz or some nice Italian meats but I’ll stick with Lamazou for sandwiches in that area. Where else do you like to get sandwiches in the city?
Suggestion,
Damn, I knew I was missing something.
June 24th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
I agree with you on the Todaro bros though. Place is EXTREMELY inconsistent in their pricing methods.
June 25th, 2008 at 11:21 am
i meant to say tonkatsu, not kontatsu. LOL. very good sandwich, but make sure it’s the chicken cutlet cause the grilled chicken tends to be a bit drier
June 25th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
Anyone who would pay $12 for a turkey sandwich @ a deli of questionable cleanliness must schedule a psych consult stat.
June 25th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
When stuck at Lenny’s I get the pastrami topped with cole slaw on rye, but frankly I don’t think you should be pushing chains on here. It is not really insightful or interesting. And if you are going to suggest what to get at a chain, don’t compare apples to grapefruits. Like saying forget the Filet-O-Fish, get the Big Mac.
June 25th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
This is why the nyc food guy rocks..not only does he critique taste, but sandwich construction plays a key role as well. I’m glad he recognizes the importance of the construction of a sandwich…Long live NYCfoodguy.com
June 25th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Farina is right: the construction is VERY important: for example, if you get a sandwich, say, pastrami on rye with mustard, Russian and cole slaw (one of my favorites), does it matter about the placement of the embellishments? I say yes, but maybe I have OCD. Top to bottom: mustard, then slaw, then pastrami, then Russian on the bottom. Mix the Russian and mustard on the same side? I don’t think so.
What say you all?
Doc
PS: in the turkey sandwich, above, the tomato should go on top. All about the gustatory experience of each bite (“Yes,” you think, “the Doctor is pretentious asshole”. Perhaps.
June 25th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Sorry about two colons in the first sentence – the punctuation, not the organ.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:52 am
I dont know, that lenny’s sandwich looke pretty good in that pic!
June 26th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
Jeremy J,
Ha, well eat it at your own risk dude. It was a crappy sandwich.
July 17th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
I’m having an insanely hard time finding a good hoagie in NY.
It seems impossible, but there it is. I can’t even find a good italian hero.
Every street corner has something called a “deli” but they’re not.
I’ve checked food review sites, and went to some highly regarded places.
One didn’t have ham (not kidding), one didn’t have salami (not kidding), and another had hard stale rolls and used, like, salad greens for lettuce.
Somebody kill me.
The closest I’ve gotten was Shorty’s in the middle of the night-mare tourist district. I had thought of it as a ‘B+’, but by comparison it’s gone up REALLY fast.
That’s the only luck I’ve had, but I’ve only been on this particular quest for about a week.
Help. I’m begging you.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Karen,
Well first off, please define Hoagie for me.
Faicco’s Pork Store makes an awesome Italian Hero. I review it here. They just have great meats overall. They’re on Bleecker b/t 6th & 7th Avenue. That’s probably the best cold hero I’ve had in the city.
In that same review is a place called Crosby Connection that also has solid sandwiches.
Its funny you ask this because I’m still on the hunt for more great sandwiches myself.
Where are you from originally?
March 28th, 2009 at 7:24 pm
It’s a sandwich for God’s sake …… who cares ???
CHIMP
November 27th, 2012 at 3:12 pm
In this location I worked 6months I quit because I cold not take the verbal and mental abuse besides the things they make us do un Licensed and how they handle there rotten food to serve to our customers. All there prepared food is all old food they can’t seem to get rid of which is molded veggies,rotten meat that has a smell of death and colors I never seen meat have . In the prepared food section there’s food that sits there all week and we tell people it’s FRESH!! Bull!! In our packed tordeo products that we so called make? Nope it’s all packed out products from other company’s and when the date on those packs expire we change the package and pack those same items out for another run we pick out the molded ones you can see thru the clear containers and add on another week so yes! You buying old products half the time .. As you walk into the store the doors are wide open in 30 degree weather so the cashiers can freeze to death and we are not aloud to cover our uniforms so we can’t layer up in the cold either we get paid 8dollars to do the work of 10people . The cashier duties included cutting raw whole chickens food prep , cutting up all the old veggies we can’t sell because its nasty but have no problem making a dish up with them because as they say that’s a whole dollar we would be throwing out LOL!! Mean while we apply or cashier we sign a contract saying that’s what we re but we have to do this or we get fired . Our other duties include working the cheese department which people return all the time because there way pass there date to we just do our famous repack and change the date . We also have to work the meat department , deli , and prepared food , which the last I check I thought you needed experience an and be certified to work the meat department? Or cut up meats? When our meat is molded they tell us run it underwater!! Lol since when those that clean rotten food? Lol they say your paying for Murray meat product? Nope another lie its a mystery company that sells the loser chickens and they sell you that with no problem when they run out of Murray’s . All there fish products come out of boxes frozen in a fridge from company’s not even fish markets but they charge you fresh fish prices 30dollars for frozen box fish you can get in key food? There croutons which is so famous for its buy one get one free is old bread that was there all month old sitting in the freezer then they cut it up pop it in the oven and call it a day . They also make all there cashiers pay for there uniform if we leave a hat at home we have to buy more we break something we have to get it taking out of our checks but there smart they don’t take it out the checks so we can show prove nope!! They wait till you cash it then ask for it back we get no raises no matter how long you been there we don’t get paid for holidays they made us all work the day of sandy when they knew the trains won’t work and we all live far away they didn’t even care!! They abuse us with words mike and Phil curse at us call us stupid say we won’t be anything call us fat ugly.. Which they do in anger there’s so much more to say but you customers who support this store your supporting abuse your supporting rotten food for you and your children .
Todaro brothers 555 2nd ave NY
September 23rd, 2015 at 12:44 am
Wow i worked here to i was sexually harrassed and told to serve spoiled food also,,unreal