I have not seen my little sister Holly in about 5 years.  I, living in the Midwest and she, living in Washington D.C., made it hard for reunions.  But thankfully she is a Yankees fan and had come up for the Yankee vs. Red Sox game.  So I decided to take her and her friend Jenifer on a sandwich adventure (well not some much an adventure as a little foray).

We met at the subway stop at 103rd & Lexington.  Wow, she has the same eyes as I do, I thought as I first saw her.  I had forgotten about that.   We hugged and kissed and talked for a second.  She introduced me to her friend Jenifer who was Holly’s self-proclaimed NY protector. I smiled at them both and said we should go eat.  Thankfully, I had already made that decision: we were going to Torrisi Italian Specialties at 250 Mulberry Street.  I was excited, both for the sandwich I was supposed to have (Chicken Parmesan) and that I was going to spend time with my little sister.  So I bought the girls day metro passes and off we went downtown.  The train ride was uneventful, with talk of my sister’s school plans and summer up until now.  She was happy, and I was happy she was happy.

We got to Torrisi’s in about 20 minutes.  We went in and wow, was it crowded. It’s a small place, only seating about 18 people, and there was a long line of guests waiting to get sandwiches.  I had tried to get a sandwich from this place the night before, but unfortunately they only serve sandwiches during the day.  :(  So here we were: Holly, Jenifer and myself standing in a crowded, small resurant around noon and waiting in line listening to Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall album.  IF there are no sandwiches at night they were certainly flying out of the kitchen in the daytime. All they served during lunch are SANDWICHES.  Heaven.   

Four or five cooks stood behind a counter cutting bread, slicing meats and preparing sandwiches for those in line.  I was ready.  I had done my research on this place and the Chicken Parmesan hero. It was described by Josh Ozersky of Time magazine as “juicy, salty, intense, pan-fried in good olive oil and served with handmade mozzarella that gushes salty-tangy milk onto the cutlet”, so I cannot understate my excitement as I ordered it.  My sister and her friend Jenifer ordered the Italian Combo, which also looked great.  All the meats here looked fresh and tasty.  There was some roasted turkey sitting on the counter that looked like it had just come out of the oven and, when sliced, a warm tangy smell came out of the kitchen that made you want….well, a turkey sandwich.  I kept my composure though. and stuck with the Chicken Parm.   We waited outside the resurant and got sodas at the bodega across the street.  After about 15 minutes our sandwiches were ready.

We got our sandwiches and left for a park down the street.  It was a nice park with trees, benches and a group of Spanish men playing domino’s and yelling at each other in Spanish.   What a New York moment.  We found a seat and started to eat.  Ummm… I took a bite, and well.. it was really disappointing.  I had gotten chewy instead of juicy, burned instead of fresh.  It kind of tasted like the chicken had been cooked earlier in the day and had been sitting on a tray most of the day and then heated up just for the sandwich.  The sauce was good and tangy and the cheese was excellent but when the meat, the protein , the main part of a chicken sandwich is not good well, nothing can save it.  Now, I did finish it.  Rarely do I not finish sandwiches

My sister’s and Jenifer’s sandwiches were AWESOME.  I stole a bite from my sister and found that you could taste every individual ingredient on the sandwich. The spiced pepperoni, savory ham and salami, covered with rich and milky pieces of provolone cheese, all mixing together into a phenomenal taste sensation for my taste buds.  I was jealous, but relieved that this sandwich shop could still produce a sandwich that they could be proud of preparing.

They finished their sandwiches soon after me, and it was just about time to get them back on the train and up to the Bronx to see the Yankees hand it to the Red Sox.  Of course, they first had to do some window shopping in some of the boutiques of SOHO, which was fine with me cause every moment I spent with my sister was special and I found that we still laughed at the same things and were able to be just as silly as we were when she was 16.   Laughing at everything and anything, even things that her friend just didn’t understand why we thought was funny.  Family is like that sometimes.  Genes and experience just makes it easy to get along.

I got them to the game on time - after teaching them about what personal space on an uptown subway train is all about.  All and all, not a bad afternoon.  Torrisi is a good sandwich shop but come early for the Chicken Parm or don’t get it at all. Go for the Italian Hero, it’s a winner. 

At night when they do not serve sandwiches :(

My sister and I hugging at 103rd and Lexington

Paper Bag O’ Sandwiches

My sister and her friend Jenifer smiling in the sun

The well reviewed Chicken Parm Hero

Before my first bite and the disappointment

Holly and Jennifer enjoying their sandwiches much more than I did

Domino’s in the Park

I have had many Meatball (yes, in this blog Meatball will be capitalized) sandwiches in my life.  I have had many Meatball sandwiches in many different places in this country: Florida, New Jersey, Missouri, Washington D.C., Pennsylvania and even Nevada, and honestly, I am never really satisfied.  Usually the sandwich was not hot enough, had bad cheese, chewy or just burnt Meatballs.  So, it was a refreshing surprise to come upon the Meatball shop on 84 Stanton St., Manhattan NY.  

I had to walk to the Meatball shop from the Canal St. station.  What was interesting is that I passed a green space that I never knew existed called Sara Roosevelt Park…  You remember her, she was FDR’s mother and kept he and Eleanor together when FDR had started an affair with another woman by threatening to disinherit him.   Who says money doesn’t save marriages?  …and although I had lived in Chinatown before I’d never been, so it was a pleasant walk with sounds of rainbow-colored children laughing and big red rubber balls bouncing. 

When I got to the corner of Stanton and Forsyth I saw the restaurant and my friend Gary standing outside.  I was late so he had been waiting, but he put us on the list to get a table.  This place is small and packed with people eating… well, eating Meatballs.  I haven’t seen Gary in person in some months, so we talked while we waited for a table inside.  After about 30 minutes a very nice hostess came out and told us that out table is ready, and they brought us to a small table sandwiched (pun intended) between two other small tables.  Gary and I looked at each other despairingly as we tried to fit our husky frames into the seats.  

Seated and as comfortable as we can be at this table, I took a look around.  It is a very simple restaurant with wooden tables along the wall, a long bar on the other wall, and a large wooden table in the middle where couples and small groups sit family style next to each other.   Every seat in the place was filled and people were talking and laughing, but none of that keeps Gary and I from starting a nice conversation. 

Soon a busser came to bring us water and silverware, and to tell us our server will be over in a moment.   That moment was not long, and Catherine came over, introduced herself and started talking about the menu - and, of course, Meatballs.  She was professional and very pleasant.  I told her that I had come for the Spicy Pork Meatball hero, and Gary asked her to order for him.  She took my order down and said that she is ordering Gary a bowl of the classic beef meatballs with an order of white beans.  “White beans?” I thought to myself, but I trusted that Catherine knew what she was doing.

Soon Catherine brought me an iced tea sweetened with honey - wow, was that a refreshing iced tea!  It was sweet, but not overpowering, and the tea was not burnt or stale like at so many other places.  It was perfect.   

In about 20 minutes, after I had talked Gary’s ear off with all that has happened to me in the last two months, our food arrived at the table.  WOW!   I was impressed.  Their sandwich is served on a Il Forno Baguette and is soft, but has a hard crust.  The Meatballs on the sandwich are well prepared and have a nice spicy twang that went well with the perfectly-melted Mozzarella cheese on every bite.  The tomato sauce, which is usually the downfall of many a Meatball sandwich, was sublime: not salty or overcooked but tangy… it definitely brought the whole sandwich together.  The sandwich also came with what I am calling a Triple A salad: Arugula, Apples and Apple cider vinegar.  It was so good I actually finished it all, which is not normal for me when a good sandwich is around.  

Gary’s Meatballs (I had to taste them) were also of the same quality as the Meatballs on the hero but not spicy.  The focaccia bread was soft and warm like it had just gotten out of the oven, and was perfect to dip into the classic sauce.  

Finally, the white beans.  I had thought earlier they wouldn’t go with anything, but actually went surprisingly, eerily, with everything.  They were soft, well-done and topped with parmesan cheese. 

Of course, soon all this good food was gone, and Gary and I sat for a while not talking but just digesting our small feast.  Catherine came over and asked if we wanted desert.  We both said no, we could not eat another bite, and she then brought our check, which was another pleasant surprise.  Our bill was under 25 dollars.  For Manhattan, that’s a DEAL! 

All I have to say is that I’ll be coming back to the Meatball Shop to have another sandwich.  This place was fucking great and is going to be hard to top.

Great Signage

Gary and I sweating and waiting to get into the Meatball Shop.

Meatball Sandwich before

Plates after, even the salad gone!

Gary Before Sandwich

Gary satisfied after.

This is me eating salad when I should be eating Meatballs.

Catherine our Server she was great!