Greenman's Deli vs. Marinucci's Deli

Greenman's Deli 2900 Robbins Ave Philadelphia, PA 19149 (215) 288-3336

Marinucci's Deli 2852 Saint Vincent St Philadelphia, PA 19149 (215) 333-3354

My morning started innocently enough. I was very hungry, and in the mood for something new. Greenman's deli was calling my name. Giant hoagies, and a bit of a lunch adventure. This place is old school inside. Which is awesome.

After I picked up my two-foot, five pound hoagie (for $11) at Greenman's, I decided to check out Marinucci's Deli, about a mile away. I have been told they are two of the best in the Northeast, so I figured I would see how they stack up.

Both places entailed a sideways glance from a lady on the deli slicer.

It was probably good that she asked if I knew just how big the whole hoagie was. I did. And I was still ordering one for myself. I also had ANOTHER hoagie in the car from their competitor, but that was my dirty little secret.

I made my way home with two giant meat-and-cheese torpedoes. I was kind of saddened to see that Marinucci's cut theirs in half and wrapped each separately. Greenman's really let you see the extent of your gluttony, with a huge hoagie, no cut. I threw some keys in for perspective.

I unwrapped the original from Greenman's first. It was a site to behold.

The layout of pickle and pepperoni was beautiful. At least to a fat kid, like myself.

The Italian from Marinucci's also looked damn good.

The difference is pretty apparent. Greenman's original ($11) on the left was bigger, with more girth, while Marinucci's ($13) was thinner with crustier bread. Big fan of the pepperoni on both, an underutilized hoagie meat in my opinion.

The Greenman's original had a unique stacking system in place. They also sliced their meats thicker and had chunkier vegetables. Ham, salami, pepperoni, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and hot peppers were carefully layered throughout the wide slightly crusty roll. This was a fantastic cheap, no frills hoagie.

The Marinucci's Italian boasted thinner meats, thinly sliced vegetables, and a more sturdy, crusty roll. You can see the similarities between these two, with the pepperoni hats they both wear. I imagine that's a regional specialty, much like the DelCo meat wrap ordinance. Either way, I am a big fan.

Both of these hoagies had their own personalities, and I can't say one is better than the other. Therefore, each being top of their class, they both received the highly coveted five cheesesteak rating, an unprecedented occurrence at Philly Phoodie. In my opinion, if you are already going up that way, you might as well get one of each and see which you like better. Each is supposed to feed 3-4 people, meaning you can spend $25 and feed 8 people. No brainer.