There are certain things you just like to have in your neighborhood. A dive bar. Decent takeout food. And in my case, a great Italian deli.
Luckily, I happen to live minutes from one of the area’s best, The Italian Store, on Lee Highway in Arlington. I’d heard good things, and my roommates implored me on Sunday to treat myself to one of their sandwiches. Let’s hope this isn’t the beginning of an addiction.
I had a prosciutto and mozzarella sandwich with onion, tomato, vinegar, oil and oregano. It was heaven. With one bite, I was taken back to Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, where I spent my college years. The ingredients were fresh, the portions were generous, and the taste was authentic.
But expect to wait for it. I grabbed a number and there ended up being a good 15 people in front of me, leaving enough time to browse the store, pick up a pumpkin spice frappucino from Starbucks next door, and still feel a bit impatient. The many workers behind the deli counter certainly move quickly, but the demand here is great. Sandwich selections abound – I was tempted by the capri, featuring spiced ham, prosciutto, genoa salami and provalone, and other options from the mortadella-anchored Genoa to the spicy Napoli, looked equally enticing. Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out how I can work pancetta into the menu for my upcoming birthday party.
My sandwich, a small version, cost me around $8 once they added in all the fixings, and in general, the place’s selection of imported pastas, wine, cheeses and other ingredients doesn’t necessarily appear cheap. But it’s good, and if I can’t waste my money on food, what can I waste it on?
Next time, I’ll try to resist a sandwich and give the place’s pizza a try – the pies looked pretty New York-tastic upon first glance. But does that mean no prosciutto? No worries. They’ll even put it on your pizza.
The Italian Store
3123 Lee Highway
Arlington, VA 22201
703/528-6266
-
14Sep
6 Responses
You are in for a treat when you try their pizza…I recommend the white pizza. HOLY SHIT it’s so gooooooood. Pardon my french.
Their pizza is certainly one of, if not THE best in the DC burbs when it comes to “NY Style Pizza.” If they opened up a separate delivery business, they’d make a killing off of my orders alone!
My family moved to McLean when I was ten years old and we immediately found The Italian Store. It was awesome. Everytime I go back to DC to visit I always make sure to get a sandwich.
I live in New York City now but The Italian Store ranks in my top three Italian Deli.
Thanks for this post. I have been going to this site for months but have not commented until now
Well, if you’re in NY now, you must at LEAST be enjoying the Marco Polo and other creations over at Mike’s Deli in the open air market in the Bronx…I miss it so.
Yeah, the Italian Store’s sandwiches and pizza are very very good, and I’m speaking as a New Yorker. I recently moved from Arlington to Silver Spring and am looking for places that will at least be a good substitute. So far, I’ve had sandwiches at Santucci’s, Lucia’s and DiMarco’s. I’ll try Marchone’s shortly. Santucci’s was pretty good, but well short of the Italian Store. Lucia’s would have been really good, but they used a soft roll. (I don’t know if they have hard one’s… maybe they just thought I was a local rube, no offense to you soft roll eating locals…) I’m hopeful about Marchone’s. If someone knows about any other good deli’s in Montgomery county, that’d be great. I’ve been meaning to post this question on chowhound, but haven’t gotten around to it.
MJF- I see your posting and I know it is from a while back. I am not sure if you have tried Marchone’s or not, but it’s good. I hear what you are saying about the soft roll. I am a Marchone. We do surve soft rolls, unless you ask for a hard roll. Let me tell you, as a montgomery county native, everyone knows the name Marchone’s if they want a good cold cut. What does everyone else call them an italian sub????? Anyway, if you don’t want onions or hots, be sure to tell them. If you are saving some for later, be sure to rotate it in the fridge, you don’t want the bread to get soggy. ENJOY! I am sure you will.