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!