New York Deli Brunswick — Restaurant in Melbourne

We came across NY Deli Brunswick on Instagram when searching for a local eatery that does sandwiches, but not your typical “open a packet of meat” or “slice some cured meat” and slap it in between two pieces of bread, shop. So many sandwich shops are open now in Melbourne with new ones popping up weekly it seems. And it seems its pretty much the same thing over and over again.

The reviews of this shop look great, and we had to question them, so we started a convo with the owner Lusiano on Instagram to get a feel for the shop and its story. What I learned, and also learned more in person, was that all their ingredients are made in-house. From the pastrami, turkey, chicken, condiments, salads etc. They (Lusiano, his partner Mary) make everything (albeit the cheese), and that is a pleasant surprise, and we welcome that.

So, we decided to check the joint out for lunch. Now we have had sandwiches, toasties, rolls, wraps, paninis, focaccias, etc. everywhere, and we grew up with that (Mediterranean blood runs through our veins), so we know what is good, what is standard, what to avoid. We are really getting tired of so many people freaking out in awe and amazement (maybe it’s the Gen Z’s?) and stating that some salumi and mortadella between two prices of bread is AMAZING; yes it is, but nearly all cafes do it, and if you want a deli experience, go to your local deli and pay $10-$12 for a panini instead of $20 at a shop that is dressing up a simple sandwich you can essentially make at home by opening up some packets of meat and cheese. Yes, rant over. Hah, sorry we digressed, let’s get back to NY Deli Brunswick, but we had to set the scene because this shop serves up a different monster, a bit of a niche, something different that deserves the recognition they are receiving to date.

So, the theme of this shop is American style feeds, yep, and they aren’t shy (big serving sizes, so make sure you fast the day prior 😊), everything from sandwiches, bagels to a Philly cheese steak, and corn bread, and cookies. Anyhow, let’s talk about what we ordered. A Reuben and a Turkey Pesto.

Now, when we say these sandwiches blow others out of the water we literally mean that because as soon as you see them you will salivate, when you smell them you will drool, and when you take your first bite you will get moist, as moist as as the juicy and melt in your mouth pastrami and turkey is, complimented by the other ingredients in these sandwiches, but the other ingredients compliment the meat, they don’t disguise the meat.

You can clearly taste and tell that they smoke their own meats, roast their beef (and Luisiano tells me the chicken has a 2-day process to get them ready to serve up in a sandwich), they make their own pickles, sauces, chili and so on. Now this isn’t your standard fare sandwich by any means, the effort, prep and skill that goes into this is no easy feat. Lusiano and Mary are artisans through and through. Truly, and we mean this with 100% sincerity, we haven’t had a better sandwich experience in Melbourne. Well done guys! We’re impressed.We also tried corn bread as a side, with honey and some homemade chili. Never had corn bread before so didn’t know what to expect. It was delicious, crumbly, homemade, and damn delicious.

Service was second to none, attentive to us, but also ensuring all their customers were served promptly. They didn’t segregate their customers, the paid close attention to all which was good to see. After chatting some more with Lusiano, we learned he bought his first shop at 19 years of age and since then has been in hospitality. They (Lusiano and Mary) ran and owned a shop in St Kilda but then moved to Brunswick opening this deli. Lusiano learned at a young age that to get somewhere in life he needs to hustle, and that’s what he’s been doing for the last 12 years. The sandwich peddler, and being independent full support goes to you, mom and pop shop (albeit a young mom and pop – sorry ‘mum and dad’ shop) that you don’t see very often.

Thank you for a tremendous feed. Bless you...

Had spotted @NewYorkDeli.Brunswich and was going to visit their Sydney Road location but it closed, however, glad to see it pop up in Brunswick, so popped in for lunch for the following:

Pastrami Sandwich - House-smoked 8hrs Pastrami, pickled mustard relish, mozzarella, gruyere, slaw, chef's pickles

Reuben Sandwich - House-smoked 8hrs Pastrami, mustard relish, swiss cheese, sauerkraut, russian dressing

Both are well toasted, crunchy bread sandwiching generous amount of thin slices of tasty pastrami. The meatiness with gooey cheese, mustard tang of the relish, and slaw is delicious. I really like both and it's hard to split then apart. Really enjoyable, filling, messy, and yum!

I visited again. Lunch @NewYorkDeli.Brunswick for a couple of sandwiches: Fried Chicken - buttermilk fried chicken, pickle relish, American cheddar, slaw. Lovely crunchy exterior, juicy and succulent chicken but lacking a bit of seasoning, like the cheese and the slightly creamy mayo tying the burger's ingredients together.

Philly Cheesesteak - shaved roast beef, caramelised pepper and onions, provolone, gruyere. Served within a light crunchy roll, this is packed with plenty of tender thin slices of beef, gooey combination of melted cheese, and a touch of sweetness from the caramelised onions.

They also had cornbread so grabbed a portion of that. It was a bit sweet along with the drizzle of honey but that counteracted the spicy specs of chilli flecks. The cornbread is nice and soft and moist and very enjoyable.

Two tasty sandwiches washed down with a lovely cup of matcha latte.

I also eyed the cookie display and asked about the New York style cookies. I settled on a dark chocolate and peanut butter cookie for takeaway. Warm in the microwave for 30 seconds as advised and enjoy. Gooey, messy, yummy. Soft and tasty, inside is a gooey filling, the slight bitterness of the dark chocolate is a good choice, it's not a particularly sweet cookie which is good, and the balance of the peanut butter is just enough to not overpower the chocolate or make it too rich. The chocolate bits on the outside also provide some texture.

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I hosted our EOYF at a venue and needed a catering! Usually food is one thing most people complain about in previous EOYF’s that i have organised in the past!! But this year everyone was raving on about how good the catering was at this years party! We opted for a Graze table and the Canope selections which catered for 90ppl. From the Graza table to the canope selections the food was so good! The pastrami was amazing! The flavours of the different canope’s were so good! Everything was halal and there were lots of vegetarian options for our vegetarians who were just as happy as usually there isn’t much options for them. There was lots of food as well! So the quantity and the quality was excellent

I will be using the catering service for all our future events. It has always been a struggle trying to accommodate to all the different dietary requirements of all our staff and we hit the jackpot by finding a caterer that accommodated to us.

Lusiano and Mary thank you. We could taste the passion in your food! Thank you to your staff who are also very friendly and welcoming.

If you’re looking for catering for your next event look no further this is it!

Not the best photo due to lighting of the venue but it was amazing! We had a staff member there slicing fresh bread and pastrami on the go. My bosses were so pleased with the catering that he will also be using them for personal events he will host...