Pastificio

1528 Packer Avenue
Packer Park Shopping Center
Philadelphia, PA 19145
(215) 467-1111
Website

If there is a mecca for hoagies it's Philly. If there is an eden inside that fantasy world, it's South Philly. You can literally find a different sandwich every couple of blocks, all unique, and almost all delicious. Pastificio is located in a strip mall by Chickie and Pete's, and the sandwiches there could inspire pilgrimages.

One part pasta company, one part Italian market, one part sandwich church, they pack a lot into a narrow but long footprint.

They also sport their own wrappers, which is a nice touch.

The hoagies come on Abruzzi bakery rolls, which are perfectly crunchy and chewy, and rank among the best in the area (and obviously the world). Below are the namesake "Pastificio" on top, and the "Stu Gatz" below.

The Stu Gatz is a simple creation, packed with mortadella, sliced cured green olives, 4 cheese Italian blend (Asiago, Parmesan, American, Romano – packs lots of flavor for one kind of cheese), and sliced tomato. This sandwich is perfection. Salty and briny olives transform this from a fancy ham sandwich into something magical.

The tomato cuts the salt just a bit, and the pistachio flecked ham is rich enough to stand as the main meat.

I honestly could barely put this down to chew.

The proportions are spot on as well. Look at that perfectly thin-sliced meat to bread ratio.

The Pastificio is Italian hoagie holiness. Sopressata, capicola, and sharp provolone. My two favorite meats and favorite cheese (for hoagies). Everything was sliced razor thin (as it should be), and the typical Thuman's "The Deli Best" quality was apparent. Shredded lettuce, thinly sliced onion, tomato, banana peppers, and a shake of salt/pepper/oregano rounded out the party.

And, of course I got my usual oil AND "little bit of mayo."

Again, everything was in perfect balance, and this Italian was quickly devoured. But not before I savored every bite.

They also have a great selection of frozen pasta, sauces, and various meats. Come for lunch, take home dinner. This place deserves every cheesesteak.

Wayside Market

469 S Old Middletown Rd.
Media, PA 19063
(610) 566-9989
Website

Every once in a while, a gem escapes my radar. It makes me so happy to stumble upon a place that I never heard of. And love it.

When I walked in and saw the Lisco's bin, I knew I was in the right place.

To really gauge a place, I look to the big two: cheesesteaks and hoagies. In this case, I also ordered some BBQ ranch fries to go alongside as I was feeling particularly chubby.

The "Old World Italian" took the DelCo meat wrap to the extreme. This thing was literally draped with thinly sliced Italian meats.

Sharp Provolone, Genoa, Cappicola, Ham, Coteghino, Pepper Ham, Prosciutto, olive oil, lettuce and tomato are the standard fillings. Works for me. The Liscio's roll held everything together perfectly (as usual) and the ultra thin, fresh sliced cold cuts melted in your (my) mouth.

They didn't over-stuff the sandwich, but rather let the quality of the ingredients (and construction) speak for itself.

The cheesesteak was another no-frills winner. There was no gimmick, just extremely quality meat, a nice ratio of melted cheese throughout, and some sweet caramelized onions. This is how it should be done. My only concern was that it was dangerously close to having too little meat. The quality and seasoning of the chopped beef inside was so good, I let it slide. But I could see that being a complaint.

It was really true of both sandwiches, but they were so good I didn't care. I don't need a mound of meat to chew through, when I can have a great ratio of carbs-to-protein like we have here.

The BBQ Ranch fries were a surprising sleeper hit. The fries were very crispy, fluffy inside, and the salty dry rub was quashed by creamy ranch dressing. Another big winner.

This is the kind of out-of-the way market I LOVE to find. And it truly is out of the way. I don't know how anyone would ever drive past it unless they were lost. Or they heard about the hoagies.

Bob's Haven Deli

1442 Charlestown Road
Phoenixville, PA 19460
(610) 933-8788
Website


Bob's Haven Deli is a local joint in Phoenixville that has been around for ages (over 63 years according their website). They also have the most amazing pizza .gif on there that I have ever seen (see above).

There is a LOT of prep space here, with a large enough waiting area. I was trying to get a picture for a friend who recommended the place and was yelled at by who I can only assume was Bob himself.

They have "Zep's" instead of hoagies. While Zep's are usually a Norristown sandwich, they do pop up sometimes in the surrounding area. As is typical, the Zep is a hoagie with extra raw onions, tomatoes, and NO LETTUCE.

This was not a small sandwich by any stretch. At about $8, it was reasonably priced. I was hoping the hot pepper request would yield hoagie spread, which is the standard for Zep's. Unfortunately, it consisted of a few cherry pepper slices hidden along the bottom of the roll. There were also a load of onions on this. More than even an allium-lover like myself would typically have the pallet for.

Look at the girth of the onion pile. This was a spicy meatball. All in all, the bread was good, the meat was freshly sliced, and the sandwich was pretty well constructed. I would say the combination of onions being a bit much, the lack of hoagie spread on a Zep, and the fact I was yelled at resulted in a three cheesesteak rating. For Phoenixville, not too bad. Of course, this place is also just a hop, skip, and jump away from Foresta's, so I would be hard pressed to forgo the reigning champ for a Zep.

Foresta's Market

1098 West Bridge Street
Phoenixville, PA 19460-2370
(610) 935-1777
Website

Any place that can stay open since the 1930's (serving Phoenixville since 1934) must be doing something right. Even if some of them are entirely overrated. Foresta's is the kind of family-owned market that that makes you wish you lived next door. Quaint, reasonably priced, and with fantastic customer service (aka attitude), this is a throwback to times when things were just plain better.

Now I hadn't been here in decades, but my fond memories of summers spent working at the local skatepark and spending an hour's pay for a lunch that left me rolling on the ground in pleasure/agony were quite strong. They were not wrong. Taking the stroll down memory lane out of the equation, this was still one of the best hoagies I have had in 2015. That made me happy.

The deli is nothing to write home about visually, but it is packed with homemade goods that are a combo of Italian and Pennsylvania Dutch, each with their own comfort food specialties and followings.

The bread was from Amoroso's, which initially caused me to scoff. They have long been the gold standard for Philadelphia area sandwiches, though in recent years have yielded the throne to competition like Aversa's and Liscio's which have that crusty outside that makes a sandwich stand up to the wet ingredients. Lo and behold, you pick your own roll at Foresta's, and I was directed by the wonderful girl working the counter to the bottom row, second from the left. Amoroso's makes a crusty roll I never knew about. Fantastic.

My take from this haul. An Italian hoagie with sharp prov on a CRUSTY Amoroso roll. Pepperoni bread, and Italian mother lickin' hoagie dip. The hoagie dip alone would warrant a five cheesesteak rating. With the other pieces, this was bound for glory.

The Italian was perfectly balanced. They shave the onions, freshly slice the meats, and did not skimp on the sharp provolone. I am not joking nor embellishing when I tell you this is the perfect Italian hoagie. They even used hoagie spread instead of beat old banana peppers or cherry peppers with stems.

The roll held up perfectly, and dare I say, was every bit as good as my current favorites, if not better.

I also got mayo without so much as a wince. Because mayo and salty meat go hand in hand. Look at the construction of this thing. You will not find a better hoagie. Parallel, possibly, but you can't improve on perfection. It's the thing fat kid dreams are made of.

If the Italian wasn't enough for you, the Italian hoagie dip had all of the components, just minced together. The addition of the hot pepper relish gave this some acidity and spice, and the result was a flavor orgy on your tongue. I ate this whole container within a couple hours' of eating the hoagie, but that can be our little secret.

Finally, for dessert, I had a healthy serving of pepperoni bread. Look at the cheese vein running through this roll. Pepperoni worked its way through every fold, and the cheese spanned the width. Airy, well baked, and full of ingredients, you could do much worse for $5.59.

Foresta's reminds you just how much you lose in today's age of extra large super markets and automated everything. They have an incredible butcher, a great little grocery store, and a deli to make you forget all about that "diet" you were pretending to hang on to.

Carlino's Market

128 W Market Street
West Chester, PA 19382
(610) 696-3788
Website

Carlino's started as a DiBruno's-style shop in Ardmore, but has since branched out to West Chester. The West Chester iteration is much larger, though just as claustrophobic as the original. They offer a wide variety of pre-made Italian food, as well as cheeses, meats, coffee drinks, and two sandwich counters.

When you look at the layout below, it seems like there is plenty of space. But when you are actually there, the mere presence of five people in the below area causes chaos. In my half hour of shopping and eating, I was in the way, or annoyed at someone in the way at least a dozen times. One of the issues is the islands displaying additional goods for sale scattered around the store. It broke up the flow of traffic, and led to bottlenecks at every turn.

There is no question they offer quality goods, the cured meats alone could occupy me for hours. Plus they offer illustrations by Hawk Krall himself, one of my favorite local artists/food experts. See illustrations below.

One of the best things they offer is the tomato pie. It is thick, chewy, has great acidity from the tomatoes, and is just simple perfection. I am a big fan. It was the best thing I ate on this trip by far.

The "Ultimate Italian" was not so ultimate. It came on a decent roll, though it was no Liscio's, and held prosciutto, mortadella, Calabrese hot salami, hot capicola, rosemary ham,and aged sharp provolone. While the meat was definitely all high quality, the cheese was lost, and it was pretty dry overall. In a different geographic location, this would be a fantastic hoagie. Around here, it was good, not great.

The bread left a LOT to be desired...

The mortadella had beautiful pistachios studding it, and the hot salami was a nice touch. The cohesive package was just nothing special.

The beef meatballs "Sicilian Style" held fried eggplant, ricotta, and grated locatelli. This was the most disappointing of the bunch. The meatballs were under-seasoned, the locatelli was sparse, the eggplant soggy, and the bread fell apart in the three minutes from receiving to eating. Would not recommend this one.

I felt there should have been more salt and a bit of spice to really make this sandwich worthwhile. In addition, the bread was not hearty enough to contain the ingredients without ripping.

It was like they got their rolls backwards here: the Italian was dense and stiff, almost stale and the meatballs were in a spongy, seeded roll. So maybe if they were swapped, I'd be writing with a different opinion. But alas, my one experience at Carlino's will likely remain my only.