It is difficult to imagine what life was like before sandwiches. What more efficient way is there to convey tasty ingredients into your mouth than by layering them between two slices of bread?
Baristaville has an abundance of great sandwich places, from humble delis to sophisticated gourmet shoppes. Recently, I embarked on a sandwich tour of our area. Reader, it was delicious. Here is part one, which covers sandwich standouts in SOMA. Next up will be Montclair and environs (let me know if there is a place I absolutely cannot miss.)
Town Hall Deli: No serious discussion of sandwiches in New Jersey is complete without the Sloppy Joe. This uniquely Garden State creation can be found throughout Baristaville, but the place where it all started nearly eighty years ago is South Orange’s Town Hall Deli.
A classic joe consists of ham, tongue, and Swiss cheese, topped with cole slaw and Russian dressing, piled on three layers of thinly-sliced Pullman rye bread. This is a sandwich for sharing – just one can feed two or three people (and costs almost twenty bucks).
Owner Tony Wonski said that although tongue remains a popular choice, the most-ordered item on the menu is The Favorite, made with roast beef, turkey and Swiss.
“On an average day we make about 80 Sloppy Joes,” said Wonski, “but on New Year’s Eve, Christmas Eve and Superbowl Sunday we make around 800.” That is a lot of sandwiches, especially since it takes about ten minutes to carefully construct each one.
What makes Town Hall’s the best? “We make all the ingredients here, the bread is fresh and we make our own dressing with our secret recipe,” said Wonski.
Town Hall ships sandwiches several times a week to such far-flung places as Florida and California, for New Jersey expats who can’t do without their joe fix.
Maplewood Deli and Grille: After the sloppy joe, the Golf Tee is the most popular choice at this cozy, classic deli on Maplewood Avenue. This sub combines roast beef, turkey, Swiss, lettuce and tomato, onion, oil and vinegar, oregano and salt and pepper.
What makes it so delectable? “I think it’s the way we dress them,” said Mike Helfrecht, who expertly made me a Golf Tee in record time. “Plus, the Russian gives it an extra kick – and the portion size helps too!”
“We make everything in house,” said owner Sean Flood, “including the roast beef and dressing.” It shows in the sandwiches, which are perfectly made and completely delicious.
How did this sandwich get its unusual name? “The golf tee was invented right here in Maplewood,” said Flood. Who knew?
Crane’s Deli and Cheese Shoppe: With such a well-curated selection of sandwiches on the menu here, it is tough to choose just one standout. My many favorites include the mozzarella and basil with sundried tomato pesto (I like it grilled), the tangy pan bagnat and the grilled chicken with roasted chile peppers. The BLT, made with roasted tomatoes and herb mayo, is a standout in its genre.
But according to owner Steve Crane, the most consistently popular choice for customers is the BBQ Pork Sandwich. The menu describes is as “slow cooked pulled pork with North Carolina style barbecue sauce, topped with homemade coleslaw on a soft roll” – but I would simply describe it as finger-licking good.
“It’s our own secret recipe barbecue sauce, and we make the slaw with red and green cabbage, mayo and a little bit of sugar,” said Crane. “It’s kind of our go-to sandwich.”
Millburn Deli: If you’ve never had a sandwich order accompanied by bell-ringing and horn-honking, you haven’t lived. At the Millburn Deli, that’s what happens when customers order the signature creation known as The Gobbler.
The sandwich itself, a Thanksgiving dinner redux, is an addictive mélange of roast turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and mayo served on a soft white bread.
But then there’s the fanfare. When a customer orders one, the sandwich maker rings a bell, honks a horn and yells out in a voice that can be heard throughout the deli: “Gobbler!” The staff responds with a chorus of Gobbler cries and cheers – to the amusement, bafflement and occasional embarrassment of the unsuspecting patron. 
How did this odd but endearing tradition take hold? “When we first created the sandwich in 1994, we needed a way to signal the staff to heat up the stuffing as soon as an order came in,” said Andrew Morgan, whose family has owned the deli since 1991. “Whoever took the order would call out “Gobbler!” so the staff could hear, and it kind of grew from there.”
Customers in the know sometimes will call ahead with their Gobbler order and specifically request that the staff hold the entertainment. But most people love it. “Seventy five percent of our customers think it’s hysterical and get upset if we don’t do it,” said Morgan.
Mia Famiglia: This first-rate Italian deli and grocery store has already been praised on Baristanet. The signature sandwich here is the eggplant wedge: lightly fried balsamic-marinated eggplant, smoked mozzarella, roasted pepper and arugula. It’s served on “pitza” bread from Nicolo’s in Montclair.
Owner Manny Licitra speculated on the sandwich’s popularity. “I think because it’s vegetarian, but it has the meaty taste of the smoked mozzarella,” he said. It also is perfectly balanced, with the crispy eggplant playing nicely off the pleasantly bitter arugula and the rich and creamy cheese.
Licitra, who has owned Mia Famiglia for 15 years along with wife Sharon, urged me to come back to try the piadina: fresh ricotta, prosciutto and arugula on a multigrain flatbread. “It’s really unique,” he said.
ItalMart: This tidy and unassuming place in West Orange looks like a basic, almost bare-bones deli. A friend tipped me off to the specialty that reveals the ItalMart’s true Italian spirit: the Signature Chicken Cutlet Sandwich. Made with thin, perfectly fried chicken cutlets, fresh mozzarella, garlicky housemade roasted peppers and fresh arugula, dressing with balsamic and served on crusty bread, this is a sandwich to crave.
Owner Joe Vece bought the place from a friend just nine months ago, and he plans to change the name to Giuseppe Caterers. “That’s the name of my catering business, which is 80% of what I do,” said the friendly and culinarily skilled Vece.
So far, he has expanded the menu and plans to add even more dishes. “I make everything fresh, to keep it old-school Italian.” The deli draws a lot of neighborhood regulars who keep coming back for those fresh mozzarella and roasted peppers, among other items.
Town Hall Deli
60 Valley Street, South Orange
973-762-4900
www.townhalldeli.com
Maplewood Deli & Grille
149 Maplewood Avenue, Maplewood
973-762-6688
www.maplewooddeli.com
Crane’s Deli and Cheese Shoppe
175 Maplewood Avenue, Maplewood
973-763-2050
www.cranesdeli.com
Millburn Deli
328 Millburn Avenue, Millburn
973-379-5800
www.millburndeli.com
Mia Famiglia
277 Main Street, Millburn
973-467-5740
www.miafamigliainc.com
ItalMart
156 South Valley Road, West Orange
973-243-7890
No website
You had me at the last pictured sandwich — I want that one.
“Always share your sangwitch wid a friend, and you’ll have a cold-cut heart.”
– Albert Thomas Fragola, from “Folksongs of the North Bronx” by The Brothers Terrible, New York, 1957
I remember Sloppy Joe’s from elementary school hot lunches, but they weren’t anything like the NJ type. Ground beef in a tomato sauce on a bun. I guess we screwed up the original recipe up there in New York state.
These are all great sandwiches, but for my money it’s worth the trek down to Summit for Hoboken Farms Sandwich Shop. They have a brisket sandwich there with fresh homemade mozzarella called the Hoboken Plunge as well as every other delicious item on the menu, too many to mention here. Go try for yourself. All their bread is real bakery fresh and they have an entire section devoted to being gluten-free. The atmosphere in that place can not be beat. They are dedicated to excellence and play music off a vinyl record playing turntable. Here’s a link to their menu: http://www.hobokenfarms.com/shop/menu.asp
Since this is Part 1, I’m guessing that Rosario’s will show up in Part 2. Not much gets better than that. I just wish I could find a good Banh Mi close by. Does the Vietnamese place on Belleville make them?
Oops. Just re-read the second paragraph. See what happens when there are pictures of food at lunchtime?
The Gobbler is a relatively recent creation of the Millburn Deli. Those of us who grew up in Millburn and Short Hills revere the Millburn Deli’s legendary signature sandwich, the Sloppy Joe. Similar in composition to its South Orange counterpart, it’s good and gooey, combining nostalgia, comfort and calories into one tasty handful package.
My sister is a sandwich maven, and she often travels to Montclair with food from Mia Famiglia. The eggplant wedge is indeed delicious.
Handheld! Not handful. It’s always a good idea to proofread before submitting, rather than afterwards.
Shouldn’t this be called Sandwiches of New Baristaville? Are there no sandwiches to be found in Montclair/Glen Ridge/Bloomfield?
NJgator — she will have a part II featuring sandwiches of Ye Olde Baristaville (mentioned in copy)
@njgator, as Carolyn said, this is “Part 1, which covers sandwich standouts in SOMA. Next up will be Montclair and environs (let me know if there is a place I absolutely cannot miss.)” There are indeed lots of awesome sandwiches on this side of Baristaville. Want to suggest some? Stay tuned for the next installment. Until then, why not try something new?
@mitochondriac: I can’t wait to try Hoboken Farms sandwiches. I think their fresh mozz is absolutely the best, and I’ll be glad to have it year-round rather than waiting for farmers market season each year. The brisket sandwich sounds outrageous!
@kristin: I am not familiar w/ Rosario’s but it looks like a place I should try. What do you like there?
Now I can’t get the Gobbler out of my head. That’s my kind of sandwich. Extra cranberry sauce please!
Georgette: the Gobbler really is delicious. Great leftover as a midnight snack, too!
What is so very funny is that the sloppy joes were “born” in New York’s lower east side, using only Kosher Cold Cuts, and more oft than not, Pecther’s Jewish Genuine Rye Bread. The “cold” cuts, were always warm-to-hot and were mostly Corned Beef, Pastrami, Roast Beef, or a combo thereof. Usually with brown mustard, smeared on the bread and a big old fat sour dill pickle.
This is as differernt from the ones made by all of prior mentioned above, as a Corvette is from a Fire Truuck. They are cats that bark. They are sandwiches, probably very decent ones, at that….but, thwey are not (No Way) the real Mcoy Sloppy Joes. If you wanna try ther REAL thing, try either Eppes Essen in Livingston or NaNas in Livingston.
I eat almost anything (and often everything), but I always felt passionately that thanksgiving should remain in November and never go in a sandwich.
I saw this thread before lunch, and had to look away. I was raised on ham and cheese, a staple of our kitchen, a favorite snack anytime. In my teens and twenties I spent many a summer morning working up an appetite for roast beef on a kaiser roll with lettuce tomato and mayo, salt and pepper, and a bag of chips. Oh, the memories. Alas, at my age and girth, I must eschew the sandwich.
Oh……. I forgot something else ! Note the shape perfect cut of the meat in the top picture. That meat was cut on a slicer. A TRUE Slopply is ALWAYS & FOREVER cut by hand, using an ultra sharp huge knife.
Oh Walleroo,
You are mistaken. There is nothing better than Thanksgiving on a sandwich. It is so good.
As a child when I went to my Dad’s house on the weekends, he would take me to Two Brothers diner on Central Avenue in Jersey City for dinner. Every single weekend I would order a hot open turkey sandwich with gravy and extra cranberry sauce. Then we would cross the street to Carvel and I would get a coffee shake to wash it down. Heaven. Of course I was a pudgy little girl, but it was my favorite meal.
Depending on my mood, my last meal wish would be a Thanksgiving “Gobbler” sandwich or a huge ribeye steak.
Mastriano’s in Bloomfield. You can thank me later.
Funny, not long ago I was Mr. Mom one night a week and I would take the kids to Tinga or the Charbroil and then to Carvel, before it left Bellevue Ave, and buy them extra-large cones with sprinkles and a kiddie-sized one for me. Nostalgia is a powerful thing.
I’m with you, though, ‘gette, on the ribeye.
But let’s have no talk of last meals.
oh crap, this is where I accidently admit that eat sandwiches with a knife and fork and have someone, most likely cathar, call me a Euro-snob.
Speaking of ribeye, one of the best sandwiches I have made is a grilled ribeye with roasted tomato, mozz or shaved parm and arugula. You slow roast the tomatoes with onions and garlic, drizzled with plenty of olive oil. The tomatoes collapse and get nice and soft, and they make this delectable juice you pour on the bread. Oh my, I’m getting hungry again…
cmaynard,
OMG. I want one. After I eat a Gobbler.
I am not a fan of the fruit on my sandwich.
Rosario makes some dang good sandwiches.
Now I have Adam Sandler’s “Lunch Lady” in my head….”Sloppy joe…..slop, sloppy joe.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_-KbstEG4E
@cmaynard, don’t miss the sandwiches at Trend on Bloomfield Ave. in Montclair and yes the Gobble-Gobble, with a horseradish cranberry relish, is one of my favorites!
I guess you didn’t spend your teens and twenties in this area, Walleroo, because we only used hard rolls, no kaiser rolls. Alas, true hard rolls are not easy to find these days.
@Sandy, Sloppy Joes were actually invented at Town Hall Deli, so in that sense, they are THE real thing, and the others imitators.
http://www.townhalldeli.com/#!__page-2
Also, I’ve eaten them at Millburn Deli, Town Hall, Eppes Essen and Nanas, and my vote is definitely for Town Hall Deli, especially the “gourmet joe”, which features home made turkey breast and rare homemade roast beef. deelish!
I guess we arwe bth wrong – - “Who Knew ”
The Birth of the “Sloppy Joe”
By Julian Crewson November 7, 2009 6:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
(Chicago) From the Useless Information Department of WGN Morning News comes the story of the “Sloppy Joe” sandwich. It might surprise you to know this lunch room staple has a well-traveled past. And it has nothing to do with cafeteria ladies wearing plastic gloves.
The evidence shows this all-American classic was born 90 miles offshore, on the island of Cuba. Sloppy Joe’s Bar in Old Havana lays claim to this colorful piece of culinary history. The famous watering hole is said to be the first to offer ground beef on a bun, beginning in the 1920′s. If nothing else, the hearty offering helped rum-soaked patrons absorb buckets of Cuban Mojito’s. Many believe the cooks served up a spicy, seasoned version of ground beef that’s long been a favorite Cuban dish , known as Picadillo.
Nevertheless, Cuban food aficionados say the exact origins are difficult to pin down. My older relatives remember a slightly different version of the legendary sandwich at Sloppy Joe’s, known as Ropa Vieja (which translated to English means ‘old clothes’). Classic Cuban recipes call for marinated skirt steak stewed in tomato sauce, fresh garlic, peppers and a splash of cane sugar. And it’s served steaming hot on a hamburger bun or bed of white rice.
But on the other side of the Florida Straits, you’ll hear competing claims from Sloppy Joe’s in Key West. They say their establishment is the birthplace of the legendary ground beef sandwich. Frequented by Oak Park’s Ernest Hemingway, and the site of the annual “Hemingway Look-Alike Contest,” the people at Sloppy Joe’s have been serving up sandwiches to dangerously sun-burnt tourists for decades (along with unfathomable quantities of gin and rum).
But regardless of who invented the famous sandwich, here’s my argument for the best-tasting Sloppy Joe’s you’ll ever enjoy. At Old Havana Foods (the family-owned specialty food company we launched earlier this year), we offer a tantalizing version of the old Cuban standby. My famous Chili Cubano is a blend of centuries-old Cuban recipes that were passed down from my great-grandfather. And the great thing is it only takes minutes to prepare this all-natural specialty. All you do is brown ground beef and combine in a large pot with my ready-made saute seasoning (sofrito) and Old Havana black beans. Serve it over a fresh Kaiser roll and watch the kids go loco. My little crazies love the slightly-spicy but sweet family recipe.
So the next time a cafeteria lady with big arms serves you a “Sloppy Joe,” take the time to tell her the amazing story of this satisfying (but underappreciated) Cuban dish that’s served in cafeterias from Schaumburg to Havana.
That’s the Sloppy Joe I knew as a child. Last year was the first time I saw the other version of a Sloppy Joe, the deli sandwich.
I prefer my Joe with beef and sauce. Yum. Growing up my mom liked to buy Man’wich in a can, but I make a homemade version of Sloppy Joes that is delicious.
I, too, grew up with the ground beef sloppy joe. When I was about 13, I was turned on to the “Jewish Sloppy Joe” from the now gone Kartzman’s Deli in Irvington. Of course, since it was my first, I feel it was the best I’ve ever had. I like both styles of Joes equally.
Another note on sandwiches – while good quailty cold cuts are important, you need to have great bread to make the sandwich. I still favor Pechter’s rolls, rye and white bread for a good deli sandwich. For Italian type sandwiches, I like Nicola’s Bakery and a small bakery on Washington Ave. in Nutley (I don’t recall the name).
FYI, a must read: History of the Sandwich, Woody Allen