Coffee Shops, Deli's, are sprouting just about anywhere where a large number of people are found. Their titles vary, and this one, Gandolfo's New York Delicatessen, is quite popular. I imagine that even though their roots might, indeed, come from the Big Apple, it is seldom one can compare a Deli like the finest found in New York, to the delicatessens found in other locations, specially across the country. Same as New York Pizza, a big selling point for many lovers of the pizza that started the name, to delis all across this great country. Titles only tell part of the story, for in the end the food will dictate and validate, their claims, which in most cases falls short of the mark.
We found this place right across the street of a mattress store, and everyone in our group was hungry, so since it was a skip and a hop, we decided to check it out.
What do I look for in the ideal deli? First and foremost, above average cold cuts. The finest hams, really good roast beef, great variety of cheeses, and in this particular case I was hoping to find an above average pastrami.
The manager of the place looked and acted like he was from the eastern part of the US, of good disposition and efficient at the job. The place at a busy time of the day in most places, was only 40% busy at around 12:30 PM. Definitely not a deli, in that you could buy cold cuts by the pound, mostly a sandwich factory with a long list of the most popular combinations found in most deli's. The following were ordered:
Dagwood Specialty Sandwich, half $8.99, large $4 more. We opted for the large. Roast beef, turkey, ham, corned beef, swiss, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mayo, spicy mustard, cold hero. Bread apparently made in the premises in a large hoagie type, soft and easy to eat. Meats must say, nothing spectacular but edible, a slight better than Subway's?, not so sure. Overall it was a big sandwich and two in our party felt very satisfied upon finishing, with a little slice given to me for the sake of this review. Yes, edible, but certainly not New York impressive. 3.5 Stars.
Little Italy $7.49 plus $4 for the large: Ham, salami, pepperoni, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, cold, in the same bread type as mentioned above. Single eater ate the whole thing, perhaps because our group had missed any kind of breakfast, and his opinion on the description was: decent. Cold meats again, not specially great, just good enough. 3.5 Stars.
Pastrami on Rye, $7.99 add $4 for the large, meaning the whole slices. Pastrami was better than most places, soft and tasty, the size of the sandwich not big by any stretch of the imagination, together with swiss (which I realized is not the purest way to eat one of these) and spicy mustard, which a side container was requested. For $2 extra one can ask for Deli Style which they say includes a much more generous amount. The manager stopped me from ordering the extra, by saying that the amount provided in the regular was ample enough. Yes and no. Came to the table and it was not piled high like at Carnegie, and yes, I should have asked for an indecent amount more, for old time's sake. Very easy to enjoy, better than most I have had in California. 4 Stars.
Service was brilliantly good, everyone in the operation ready to be of assistance. Water was the drink of choice, and the water was decent. Final bill: $39 plus.
Is easy to claim a credible heritage, and enjoy the ride while it lasts, by saying New York Deli leads to believe that quality is top priority, plus generous servings known over there. That was not the case. 3.5 Stars.
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