Sandwich #1 – Nicky Special ($9.95)

Ham, capicolla, salami, fried eggplant, provolone, hot salad, marinated mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, oil, and vinegar

Aside from the roast beef, this is the sandwich I’ve read about most in articles about the Brooklyn branch of Defonte’s. I’m a fan of the first few ingredients in the Nicky Special, but once you hit the hot salad (a mix of celery, cauliflower, red pepper, green pepper, and pepperoncini) and marinated mushrooms, the sandwich took an undesirable turn.  In regard to flavor and texture, I didn’t like the obtrusiveness of the celery, cauliflower, peppers and mushrooms.  I kept the pepperoncini, however, and they added some welcome heat.

Sandwich #20 ($9.75)

Hot roast beef with fresh mozzarella, fried eggplant and natural jus

The sandwich that gave Defonte’s its name is delicious.  It was a little skimpy on the tender, flavorful and rare roast beef but I’ll chalk that up to 1st day blues. I was lucky they had any roast beef left by 5pm.   The fresh mozzarella is plentiful and creamy, the thinly sliced eggplant is crispy and tasty.  I took things up a notch by requesting my hearty hero roll to be turned into garlic bread which added some welcome flavor. I suggest you do the same, roast beef, fresh mozz, and fried eggplant don’t over much pop on their own, the garlic bread takes care of that without overpowering.

My only complaint is that the sandwich wasn’t wrapped in aluminum foil to contain the heat of the roast beef and garlic bread.  After a 15 minute transport uptown, the sandwich was cold, unmelted mozz, room temperature roast beef, soggy garlic bread.  But it was all still delicious and that says everything. I’m excited to eat it fresh, in store, after Defonte’s settles into their groove.

Other Essential Information

• Defonte’s is closed on Sunday.
• As of now the hours are up in the air, they’ll be staying open until they run out of food.  I picked up my sandwich close to 5pm, things were still hopping inside.  The best bet is to call ahead and find out (212) 614-1500.
• I’ve repeatedly heard great things about the breakfast sandwiches, served all day.  The potato and eggs with mozzarella ($7.95) and the peppers and eggs with mozzarella ($7.95) are the only two choices offered on the menu, but you can mix and match if need be or add Virginia ham to either sandwich for $1.50.

Defonte’s of Brooklyn (website)

A Closer Look at the “Chicken Special”

Part of the key to Tiny’s sandwiches is construction.  The placement of flavors and textures can alter deliciousness immensely.  The hearty amount of tender grilled chicken inside the “Chicken Special” is carefully placed to guarantee chicken in every bite.

The melted cheddar is the glue to this sandwich, holding the sliced onion, grilled chicken and bacon in place.  The sliced tomato marries flavor with the surprisingly spicy chipotle mayo, which covers the inside of the top bun.   The heat of the mayo infiltrates every delicious bite while leaving a smokey spice lingering behind.   A handful of generic potato chips accompanies each sandwich.

The “Chicken Special” is technically an off-the-menu item, but if you switch the grilled chicken for sliced turkey, you create one of Tiny’s most popular sandwiches, “The Spicy Rizzak.”

A Vegetarian Vision & the Other Off-The-Menu Sandwich

A lot of notable sandwich places in NYC don’t offer many options for vegetarians, but this is just another area for Tiny’s to excel in.   Every one of their sandwiches can be “Tofu-ized.” Tofu chicken, tofu bacon and tofu turkey can turn a carnivore’s delight into a vegetarian vision.  The “Big Mack Daddy ($6.50)” has a strong vegetarian following, a tofu-based veggie burger is topped with mild cheddar, tofu bacon, lettuce, tomato, pickle, ketchup, and special sauce and served on a brioche bun. Even NYC Food Guy is now intrigued to try a veggie burger.

The second off-the-menu item is the “Turkey Special”, oven roasted turkey covered in mozzarella cheese and Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and a brightly flavored herb mayo.  Although it sounds like a nice, lighter alternative to the “Spicy Rizzak”, it couldn’t hurt to add some bacon to this sandwich, could it?

Beverages, Anyone?

In addition to a full menu of GuS Sodas, you’ll smile at the balance between spicy and sweet in the ” Olde Brooklyn Root Beer”, served in a glass bottle ($1.50).  Next on my list is the Brooklyn Cream Soda, the Black Cherry and the Orange soda.

Tiny’s Giant Sandwich Shop (website/menu)

Bread: Baguette at Nicky’s Vietnamese

Good bread can make or break a sandwich and both Nicky’s and Puebla’s bread more than get the job done for their respective sandwiches. Puebla’s roll is a standard white hero which benefits from a slight crisping under the sandwich press.  Nicky’s toasts a baguette until it’s crispy on the outside but light and chewy inside.  Whereas Puebla’s ordinary roll couldn’t really handle the heft and volume of the banh mi’s ingredients, Nicky’s baguette would work for both and that’s why it wins in the bread category.

Nicky’s Banh Mi

Puebla’s Torta

Meat: Freshly Breaded & Fried Chicken Cutlet at Puebla

I love pork as much as the next carnivore but the flavor and texture of Nicky’s combo of roasted ground pork, pate and Vietnamese ham, were unimpressive.  I was also turned off by the presence of a piece of inedible fat amidst the ground pork.  Pubela’s freshly fried breaded chicken cutlet is a model of perfection: crispy, thin and still juicy.  It’s rare that you find a freshly fried chicken cutlet on your sandwich, and for that, Puebla wins the meat category.

Value: Push

In regard to quality and portion size, both sandwiches are great values.  Nicky’s banh mi costs $5 while Puebla’s Torta costs $5.50.  Pricewise you can’t go wrong with either sandwich, hence, a push.

Construction: Puebla’s Torta

Both sandwiches look like sloppy messes and if you’re not careful, they will quickly turn into just that.  There’s a method to the madness, however, when it comes to Puebla’s torta.  The bottom slice of bread is spread with black beans and slices of queso blanco ( a bland white cheese texturally compareable to fresh mozzarella).  The freshly fried chicken cutlet comes next followed by sliced pickled jalapenos, sliced avocado, a thin layer of iceberg lettuce, and mayo.  The result is perfectly portioned flavoral and textural adventure that provides a manageable level of lingering spice and a feeling of satisfaction that leaves you just full enough.

Since it was my first time at Nicky’s, I asked the man behind the counter how he eats his banh mi. He told me extra spicy, so I followed suit.  The result is a healthy helping of sliced fresh green jalapeno peppers.  When I split the sandwich in half I was greeted with a tell tale sign of haphazard construction: a massive chunk of poorly sliced jalapeno, truly a time bomb lying in wait.  Granted the fiery jalapeno plays nicely against the sweet carrots and cilantro, the pork takes a backseat to those three dominant flavors creating a thrown together sandwich that was tasty but not blow you away delicious.

Sandwich Showdown Winner: Puebla’s Torta Milanese de Pollo

Puebla  Mexican Food & Coffee Shop

Nicky’s Vietnamese Sandwiches (Website)

A Chicken Parm Hero That’s Twice The Size of a $10 Bill But Almost Half the Price

Luigi’s $7 Chicken Parmesan Hero Proves Size Does Matter, But It Comes Cheap

Afghan Kebab House #1’s $13.95 Combo Kebab Is Plentiful, But Is It Worth Nearly $16 With Tip?

$7 for a two-meal sandwich? I’m Sold!

Luigi’s is not my new favorite Chicken Parmesan hero, that honor still belongs to Tuscany’s Chicken Parm on Baguette, but it’s going to be hard not choosing Luigi’s because they deliver a hero that can span two meals for just $7. It’s loaded up with hearty, white meat breaded chicken breasts and a good amount of mozzarella cheese. Unfortunately, the generic tomato sauce left a little to be desired, but the sandwich isn’t swimming in it so us bang for your buck-o’s can still feel good about the purchase.

The standard Italian hero roll came toasted crispy, the better to prevent sogginess during the speedy delivery, but it turned messy as eating progressed, requiring some sandwich rearranging to prevent the chicken and cheese from sliding out of the bread.

If you’re stuck in Midtown West and seeking a meal that will fill your belly while leaving your wallet full too, Luigi’s Chicken Parmesan hero is the answer. The actual Luigi’s establishment is nothing to look at, but you’re stomach won’t mind.

Combo Kebab Is Great In Concept, Poor in Execution

Three kebabs (lamb tikka, beef kafta and chicken breast) with basmati rice, salad and Afghan bread for $13.95 sounds like it fits right in the delicious and affordable category. And it would if it was actually delicious. Unfortunately, it was mainly mediocre. The meats were portioned unequally and there wasn’t enough charred vegetables, just a few slices of onion and one piece of red pepper.

The 3 little chunks of lamb were dry and tough, tasting mainly of the fire they were cooked over. The chicken was tender and in the greatest abundance (5 chunks), but lacked any real flavor. The beef kafta (above top left), ground beef studded with scallions, was by far the tastiest, but there were only two.

None of the three sauces provided (minted yogurt sauce, a thin and vinegary tomato based sauce and another minty concoction) added anything to the meal. I tried each sauce with each meat to make sure I wasn’t missing something.

I left the salad for last, thinking they couldn’t go wrong there, but an iceberg salad is only as good as its dressing and with the meats and rice sitting like a rock in my stomach, the minted yogurt sauce was too thick and bland to waste stomach space on.

Sadly, the bread was the best part of the meal. It arrived cool but fresh, airy and light on the inside, slightly tougher on the outside.

When all was said and done, I spent close to $16 on this meal including tip for delivery (which took longer than expected). In the end, I’m glad I tried it just to know for sure that it is definitely not a bang for your buck meal.

Luigi’s

Afghan Kebab House #1

The fatty, moist and boneless Italian roast pork comes in sandwich form ($9 on ciabatta and topped with fatty crackling) and as a plate ($12) with the bean of the day and greens (broccoli rabe & swiss chard). Read on to find out what makes it so flavorful and how Porchetta can turn it into a value buy…

What makes Porchetta’s namesake dish so delicious

Think of porchetta as the jelly roll of pork. Rosemary, garlic, fennel, sage, salt and pepper are all cooked together, spread over the pork loin and rolled up like a jelly roll before being tied with butcher’s twine and roasted, usually for about two and a half hours. The result is a tender and juicy hunk of pork encased within fatty, crispy skin (crackling).

What makes Porchetta’s version so delicious is the subtly fragrant flavor derived from the rosemary, fennel and sage. It all combines to mask any hint of gamieness and depending on where you bite, deliver bursts of flavor.

Thoughts on the Ciabatta & Crackling

Sullivan Street Bakery’s ciabatta is delicious but it’s not the perfect fit for Porchetta’s sandwich as a result of the callous crackling. A flatter and less toothsome ciabatta would have enhanced the eat-ability. If they’re sticking with this version, however, a light toasting and perhaps a dab of extra virgin olive oil might improve the sandwich.

Then again, if there’s as much crackling on your sandwich as there was on mine, you don’t need anymore crunch. Although the crackling was laced with juicy bits of fat, its texture was too tough to blend with the tender porchetta. Instead of enjoying the complex flavor of the pork, you’re left battling the crackling. My favorite bites of pork were attached to spice-rubbed pieces of chewy, slightly crisp skin which I will specifically ask for in the future.

Why Value is Lacking & How to Fix It

At $9.75 (including tax) for a small sandwich of nothing more than roast pork and bread, I would sooner go for a similarly priced, yet bigger, Italian hero at Faicco’s. Porchetta has some good things going for it: Pride in their product, great customer service and some damn tasty pork. But if they want lasting power among a younger generation of people, who want some bang for their buck, they should expand on the basic sandwich by adding one of their sides, such as a hearty spoonful of their crispy potatoes with burnt ends, to the serving.

Conclusion

As week one draws to an end for Porchetta, I look forward to eating chef-owner Sara Jenkins’ other pork creations. The East Village could really use a go to Italian sandwich spot, I hope the black and white tiled storefront on 7th street fills that void. In the meantime, my next stop on the sandwich trail is at Caffe Emilia, an Italian sandwich shop owned by the Gnocci master at Gnocco.

Porchetta

Grand Italian Food Center’s “Fireman Special” $7.90

Smoked Turkey, Smoked Mozzarella & Hot Pepper Sauce

There’s only so much you can say about a sandwich with three ingredients. In this case it comes down to one word, and yes, you guessed it: delicious.

• Hot pepper flakes are combined with oil and other spices (below) and then spread on a standard, chewy Italian hero roll.
• A healthy serving of smoked turkey is sliced thin right in front of you and the smoked mozzarella follows.
• The result is a confluence of flavor you’ve likely never experienced; the smokey turkey and creamy mozzarella counteract the fiery hot pepper sauce soaked into the roll.
• Another favorite at Grand Italian Food Center is the “New Yorker” (ham, salami, prosciutto, provolone, peppers and mushrooms) although I recommend you head to the next spot for an Italian hero…

Alleva of Little Italy’s “Italian Combo” $7.50

Genoa Salami, Sopressata, Prosciutto, Provolone, Roasted Red Peppers, Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar

The Alleva family has been making ricotta and mozzarella in Little Italy for over 100 years. Stepping into their store, you’re overcome by the smell of imported meats and freshly made cheeses. This is a true taste of Little Italy, just like their Italian combo. Here’s the step-by-step construction…

1) A healthy serving of roasted red peppers are placed on the inside of a mundane hero. The bread, unfortunately, was the weakest aspect of this sandwich. Read on to find out how to circumvent this roadblock. The roasted peppers, however, were delicious; integral to balancing the salt level of the Italian meats, these fresh, flavorful peppers are marinated in olive oil and spices.

2) Silky prosciutto goes down first, followed by the slightly spicy sopresatta and garlicky Genoa salami. The prosciutto, already the most expensive meat on the sandwich, was by far the tastiest.

3) It all gets a light dousing with olive oil and balsamic vinegar before the roll closes around it. Below is the result. Despite the ingredients’ authenticity, it’s not the best Italian Hero I’ve ever had, that title, so far goes to Faicco’s Pork Store on Bleecker Street between 6th & 7th Avenue.

NYC Food Guy Special Recommendation

Alleva has great meats and cheeses but their hero roll was definitely lacking. My recommendation, therefore, is to pick up cheese and sliced meats at Alleva and find your own bread to build a sandwich with. Balthazar, Grandaisy, Blue Ribbon, Vesuvio and Parisi are all bakeries within 5 to 10 minutes walk of Alleva.

MozzArepas – Street Fair Food Worth Eating

As the sign says, mozzarella cheese griddled between two pieces of moist on the inside, crispy on the outside, cornbread. At $4 per MozzArepa, it’s the perfect combo of salty, melty and sweet. I recommend you split one with a friend, however, because the MozzArepas are pretty heavy. It’s just good to get a little taste.

Grand Italian Food Center

Alleva of Little Italy

• What: Forget artisan breads and fancy olive oils, Faicco’s, an old school butcher shop, wedges prosciutto, ham cappy, your choice of hot or sweet soppresseta (go with hot), fresh mozzarella, your choice of roasted red peppers or sun dried tomatoes, lettuce, tomato, oil and vinegar, and salt and pepper in the middle of a traditional seeded hero roll. Simple, satisfying, fresh, and delicious
• Cost: $10
• Where: 260 Bleecker Street b/t 6^th & 7^th Avenue NY, NY 10014 212-243-1974
• Inside info: Snack on some store-made fresh mozz mozzarella sticks, potato croquettes ($0.75), rice balls ($0.75) or fried priscuitto balls ($1) while you’re waiting for your sandwich to be made. Faicco’s also makes delicious pork and chicken sausages so pick some up and bring them home.

More Delicious Sandwiches Here

Take my American Club ($7.95). I added some bacon and Russian dressing to the Turkey, Roast Beef, lettuce, and tomato and after suggesting the griddle for all of the melting and bacon cooking, I was very pleased with the results. Read on to see the final product.

I’ve only had a sandwich at Belly Delly Deli twice but after making sure the counter guys cooked the sandwich the way I wanted, I could nearly ensure my satisfaction. I wouldn’t have put the lettuce, tomato and the bacon below the meat, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers. It turned out pretty damn-near perfect otherwise and for $7.95 it challenges Lenny’s as the best option for Midtown sandwiches, you just need to have some time and patience.

I can’t attest to the reliability of this procedure during the lunchtime rush because I’ve only had these sandwiches for dinner. I also can’t vouch for the freshness of the bread, which was crisp on the outsideduring both of my Belly Delly Deli experiences. These aren’t the best sandwiches you’re ever going to have but their value and quality in regard to their Times Square location make them diamonds in the rough.

Belly Delly Deli

Faicco’s Pork Store, on Bleecker between 6th & 7th Ave, is an Italian Specialties shop which really shines in the butcher department. They make awesome pork and chicken sausages that you’ll find in restaurants all over Manhattan.

I was here for a hero though and when the helpful counter man recommended the Italian Special, how could I turn him down?

The Italian Special is worth every bit of its $10 price tag, here’s what it contains:

• Prosciutto
• Ham Cappy
• Choice of Hot or Sweet Soppresseta (I recommend the hot)
• Fresh Mozzarella
• Choice of Roasted Red Peppers or Sun Dried Tomato
• Lettuce, Tomato, Oil and Vinegar, Salt and Pepper

This hero screams perfection. As my cousin Doug, who I embarked on this sandwich tour with remarked, “it was fucking unbelievable.” And it really was. It was a sandwich symphony, perfectly structured with total harmony among all ingredients, flavors and textures.

Some of Faicco’s other offerings were extremely tempting leaving me with a very tough decision when I return. Behold the house made roast beef ($11.99/lb) and roast pork ($9.99/lb).

Now set your eyes on these lovely chicken cutlets ($8.99/lb). …

… and trays of from far left to right fried ravioli, fresh mozzarella sitcks, prosciutto balls ($1), rice balls ($0.75), and potato croquettes ($0.75). Faicco’s is one of those great, authentic family establishments which every neighborhood should have.

The Crosby Connection is all about the sandwiches.

Formerly operating out of a closet-sized space on Bleecker and Crosby, they recently relocated to the present location further east down Bleecker Street, between Houston St. and Elizabeth St. inside the Parisi Bakery.

The sandwich of the day was the Crosby Special ($6):

• Meatballs
• Ricotta
• Tomato/basil sauce
• Fresh Mozzarella

While great in concept, this sandwich suffered in execution. All the ingredients were tasty and fresh, the meatballs were juicy and tender, the bread was crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside and had a nice Italian flavor, and the sauce was sweet and delicious.

There were two main problems:

1. Lack of heat. This sandwich is advertised as hot but the heat embodied in the warm meatballs and the slightly warm sauce is not nearly enough firepower to melt the strips of fresh mozz and the underlying bed of creamy ricotta.
2. No textural harmony. This is a direct result of the lack of heat. What Crosby Connection needs is a broiler to pass this sandwich under. A microwave wouldn’t do any of the ingredients justice. Every ingredient was delicious on its own and they would all blend together to create a flavoral symphony like Faicco’s if they just had enough heat to become one cheesy, meaty mass of deliciousness.

The Crosby Connection offers many other sandwiches that wouldn’t suffer from lack of heat. Next time I think I’m going to have to try the Italian Stallion and see how it stacks up with Faicco’s.

Faicco’s Pork Store

Crosby Connection