After a long morning of driving and adventuring and a past couple of days with high temperatures, a good sandwich sounded delicious. So while we were on the way home from our adventures we swung over to the Downtown Deli in Auburn for a bite. We had never been in before, but seeing “Rated the #2 sandwich and sub shop and #3 catering in the area” written on the sandwich line as well as loaves of fresh, baked-in-house focaccia bread gave me a good amount of excitement.
Chelsea decided on a half “Michael Myers,” one of Downtown Deli’s signature sandwiches with smoked turkey, melted cheddar, bacon and garlic butter on house focaccia. With all of four ingredients on a sandwich, we were both hoping that the flavors would shine through instead of being overcrowded and the sandwich definitely did not disappoint. The turkey was plentiful and delicious, cheese melted nicely but not overdone, bacon was warm and crispy and the focaccia was insane. The bread was the major standout, bringing a delicious herby and salty flavor, super light and fluffy bread with a gently crispy crust. For a simple sandwich, the flavors were anything but.
I went with my usual go-to for a sandwich no matter where I am, an Italian. Marketed as “ham, salami & cappy with mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion, Italian tomatoes & sub oil on focaccia,” I opted for no sliced tomatoes but keep the Italian tomatoes, which are diced and marinated tomatoes, onions and olives. Once again, the focaccia was out-of-this-world good. My sandwich was stuffed almost to the point of exploding with thick sliced ham, salami and capicola, two perfectly sized pieces of crispy iceberg lettuce, and sliced onions and the Italian tomatoes brought a nice freshness and brine from the olives. The only thing that could have made the sandwich better was a couple of slices of provolone cheese, but it didn’t come on the sandwich by default and I wanted to try THEIR version before making any changes (other than no sliced tomatoes, I can’t eat raw tomatoes because I am allergic, but cooked or marinated tomatoes I can do).
We also ordered (but forgot to take pictures of) a fresh baked peanut butter cup cookie and a walnut brownie. The cookie was delicious and soft with copious amounts of melted peanut butter cups and the brownie was rich and chocolatey and had a generous amount of chopped walnuts in the mix. We also grabbed two quarts of fresh lemonade (one strawberry and one blue raspberry) from Tony’s Lemonade. It’s always awesome to see local businesses supporting local businesses and who doesn’t like a real, fresh squeezed lemonade?
All in, we were about $47 for the two sandwich combos, two desserts and two quarts of lemonade, so it may seem a bit pricy at first but it’s worth every penny. Downtown Deli’s website touts “Where a Half is like a Whole” and they aren’t kidding because a half a sandwich filled both of us up perfectly. Not too much, not too little, just a good amount of delicious sandwiches. The owner, Rick, was also there and was one of the kindest, bubbliest people we have met. He was thrilled to have new people come in and when a regular came in Rick greeted him by name and with a handshake. For a sandwich joint, this is it. The focaccia alone, which is also sold by the loaf, makes the sandwich worth it because it’s wild how good it is. Stuffed-to-the-brim sandwiches, awesome owner and friendly staff and delicious flavors all around make Downtown Deli a 10/10 for us, but the fact that they have a loyalty card and after 10 sandwiches you get the 11th free just makes it an 11/10. Byrne Dairy and Wegman’s Subs, watch your backs. Downtown Deli is a serious contender for the best sandwich joint we have ever been to.
217 Grant Ave, Auburn, NY 13021
(315) 252-2600