None of us really like junk mail, but I have to tell you, there is nothing like getting a piece of promotional mail that is announcing a new restaurant opening up right in your own town. Recently I received a promotional letter that was nice and shiny announcing the arrival of Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop in Hauppauge, New York right next to Panera’s. I had never heard of Capriotti’s Sandwich shop before. The town of Hauppauge is nestled in the heart of Long Island. This is an area that is filled with delicatessens that feature Boar’s Head cold cuts and delicious sandwiches. As a New Yorker born and raised, I have always believed that none of these corporate sandwich shops can ever really compare to a traditional New York mom and pop delicatessen. I always cringe when my son asks me to go to Subway to get him a hero. Their sandwiches can’t compare to a real deli hero. Of course, there’s Jersey Mike’s which recently arrived in town. It’s a much better alternative choice to Subway, but still not as good as a traditional New York Deli.
With my coupon in hand that was part of the promotional letter I received from Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop, I headed to the new store to see if they could deliver a hero that would make a born and raised New Yorker satisfied. The Capriotti’s Sandwich shop in Happauge features room for people to eat inside the shop at what seemed to be comfortable tables with plenty of room. The tables lined the wall just a few feet from the long deli counter. There were also a few small tables outside the store for people like me who still do not feel comfortable eating inside a small restaurant. (Covid almost killed me and I don’t want to go through that again). Nonetheless, I placed my order to go.
Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop had a pretty large menu about the size of most traditional fast food shops. On the wall were big signs promoting some of their sandwiches. When I read the one that said “Voted the Greatest Sandwich In America!” or something like that, I decided to go for their proclaimed winner. Who voted, I have no idea. The sandwich was called “The Bobbie.” I have to say I liked the way it looked on the wall.
The Bobbie came in two styles… hot or cold. Since “The Bobbie,” featured fresh-cut turkey, cranberries, stuffing, and mayonnaise, I thought the best way to go would be to choose the hot version. I picked the small eight inch version which cost $9.99. Of course, one must order a side to go with the sandwich. I could not be satisfied with just ordering a regular side of fries when I saw the various ways one could order fries at Capriotti’s. Once again, promotional prose won me over and I ordered the Capstrami Fries at $7.49 for a regular size order. I capped it all off with a Diet Pepsi of course.
What impressed me the most while waiting for about 20 minutes to get my sandwich as most of the workers were just sitting in a booth hanging out, was the refrigerator with the glass doors right behind the registers. Inside that refrigerator were stacks of Butterball Turkeys. Now that’s the type of turkey I want on my sandwich. I also noticed while waiting, many uber drivers coming into the shop and picking up orders instantly. That seems to be the way many people order food now. I eventually got my food and went out to my car to enjoy what I was hoping would change my mind about fast food hero shops. Here’s the verdict.
Capstrami Fries
I decided to open up the fries first so that I could have them ready right next to my sandwich. The shop had placed the fries in a separate bag from the hero bag. It was a very heavy bag. The Capstrami Fries were placed in a semi-small platter tray. Upon opening the tray I could barely see the french fries. The entire top of the tray was lined with coleslaw and bits of pastrami. Surrounding the cole slaw and pastrami was cheese. There also seemed to be black pepper sprinkled on the coleslaw as well as Russian dressing. I tried digging down and getting a french fry. It was completely smothered with coleslaw, pastrami, and Russian dressing. It was pretty good. I was not expecting the pastrami to actually taste that good, but it was really tasty. The only issue was I could only take a few bites as I could feel myself feeling up very quickly.
This was not a side order, this was an entire meal. I could see myself going there and ordering just the Capstrami Fries, but then again, maybe not. It’s definitely a lot of food for the price, but I really wouldn’t call this a side. The french fries were flat and the one or two that I was able to dig out all the way underneath that didn’t have much toppings on them tasted really good too. I said to myself, next time I visit this place I’m going to order just a regular side of fries, which I did the second time. That’s what I would recommend, just the regular fries, they are good, they are fresh and they are a bit unique.
The Hot Bobbie
Before I bit into the “Hot Bobbie,” I thought I should be playing some celebratory, music since I was about to eat what they promoted as “The Greatest Sandwich In America.” So I put on a little Foghat music in my USB player and unwrapped the sandwich. Once again, this was another heavy food item. Upon first glance, it did not seem like there was too much turkey on the sandwich. I also noticed that the Turkey meat was shredded. (I hate shredded meat) More significantly, I noticed that the turkey was a blend of white and dark meats. Now, I have never ordered a turkey hero before in my life that was not only white meat or at least white meat cold cuts. I was not happy to see Turkey meat from the thighs on my sandwich. It was real Turkey meat which was impressive, but the fact that it was shredded, a combination of white and dark meat was a huge disappointment. Furthermore, they were a little stingy with the amount of meat they put on the sandwich.
On the plus side, the stuffing and cranberries tasted really fresh and the mayo added a nice touch. The bread left much to be desired as it was too doughy and had a supermarket bread-type taste to it. In the end, the Hot Bobbie would get a grade of a B- in my sandwich rankings.
I went back a few days later to give them another try. I thought maybe I just got a bad sandwich last time. The look of those Butterballs in the fridge enticed me to order another Turkey sandwich. This time I ordered the Homemade Turkey sandwich which consisted of t turkey, provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, and mayo. It was pretty much the same experience as the Hot Bobbie. The Turkey was shredded between white and dark meat while the hero itself pretty much ruined the sandwich. In the end, at least so far, the shop has two strikes. I will try one more time and order something completely different to see if I can keep this place still in my lunchtime starting lineup. Until next time…..
Well …… it’s next time. Today I returned to Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop and ordered the cold version of the Bobble. While I have always been a fan of cold turkey sandwiches, cold cranberries just don’t seem to work. It might for others, but the cold Bobbie was a huge disappointment. Once again the bread was too thick and almost stale. The turkey meat was a shredded mess of white and dark meat. The one thing worse than cold cranberries is cold stuffing. I’m not sure who voted this the Greatest Sandwich in America, but if you are going to give the Bobbie a try, I highly recommend the hot version over the cold. Grade C- Strike Three!
New Article Update January 12, 2023.
Okay, well sometimes a pitch can be argued and in this case, we decided to change strike three to a ball and give the place another chance at a hit. We went back to Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop and decided to try a sandwich other than one of their turkey subs to be fair to the restaurant. There is just something about this place that keeps pulling me back. On my fourth visit to the sandwich shop, I ordered their American Wagyu Roast Beef Sandwich. This sandwich is described as being filled with “ultra-premium American Wagyu beef slow-roasted, piled high then topped with provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayo.” Well okay, most of that is correct with the exception of the roast beef piled up high. As you can see from my picture below, the roast beef is not exactly piled up high. Yet, I really did not mind the roast beef not being piled up high as I am trying to watch my cholesterol.
While the sandwich may have been a little heavy on the lettuce and mayo, the mix of all the ingredients made for a wonderful sandwich experience. The roast beef was very tasty and like all their sandwiches, it was very fresh tasting. This was the best one so far and a definite hit. Keep an eye on this article as it will be constantly updated with new sandwiches that we try at Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop. Batter Up!
Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop Review article published on BigCityReview.com© 2023
BigCityReview.com claims ownership of all its original content and Intellectual property under United States Copyright laws and those of all other foreign countries. No one person, business, or organization is allowed to re-publish any of our original content anywhere on the web or in print without our permission. All photos used are either Amazon affiliate photos in which we make a commission on any products purchased from Amazon, public domain creative commons photos or photos licensed officially from Shutterstock under license with BigCityReview.com. All photo credits have been placed at end of the article.
We are not responsible for any items purchased or locations visited based on our recommendations as we do not sell or manufacture any of the items we have reviewed. All health and beauty reviews are for entertainment purposes only and are not a substitute for medical advice.