Zia's Delicatessen — Restaurant in Davis

Best sandwich place in Davis (sorry panera!) But Zia has been around since 1995, that's 30 years!

My go-to is always the Lucca (turkey) on sourdough roll. I ask for without oil and vinegar to keep things dry. When I ordered this recently, at least 4 others in line got the Lucca. The sandwich quality is as I remembered it as a college student in Davis.

There is so much to see in the store, and so many non-typical treats to try and buy. It's like walking into a little Italy, and I just love the decor and atmosphere. They also have a bunch of neat drinks and gelato ice cream in their fridges.

Just know those lunch rushes can be a pain, and it does take time for people to make it. It takes about 5 minutes, sometimes longer if they have many orders.

Seating-wise there are none inside. You have to sit outside, but it's usually not too packed. Parking-wise, it's free 2-hr street parking Mon-Sat. Not sure why, but recently parking in downtown Davis has gotten busy around noon. Regardless, this is a must-try sandwich spot in Davis.

Pro-tip: san-pelligrino's taste so good with...

I bought the Viareggio (turkey pesto mayo) and some desserts for a picnic at the park nearby. The sandwich was just okay. Decent price. The bread was a little stale at the butt end piece, which was surprising since the long line is evidence of high turnover. The pesto mayo had barely any pesto or green flecks at all. I barely tasted pesto. The desserts came in these cute little glasses. The lemon was nice and light. The espresso creme brulee flavor was terrible. It had a huge layer of about 1-2 Tbsp brown sugar on top that was not bruleed so it was overly sweet. Dumped it all off. Then, the part beneath I thought was frozen because it was so hard. I tried it and it was kind of filmy on my tongue. Didn't like the flavor so I scooped it out to keep the glass. Oddly, 30 mins later it still hadnt melted. I have no idea what that dessert is made with. Butter? Finally, the staff are extremely nice but they are not fast and the payment line is disorganized. Be...

Welcoming environment, super pleasant and accommodating employees, FANTASTIC sandwiches. I went in just to check out the hype and felt like I had walked into a little shop in Italy. Lots of unique specialty Italian food all over the deli walls, like pasta, sauces and imported candy. The young woman who took my order was sweet and very patient with all of my questions, and me taking forever to order. I got the Lucca and copied another reviewers idea of adding the spicy roasted red pepper sauce and brown mustard. Also added Brie cheese. So delicious! Then I went and ordered another one because everything sounded so good. Got the Siena- as is. Maybe even better than the first sandwich but it’s close to a tie. Had some spumoni gelato while I waited, also really good. I was recommended this place by my Italian family in the area and from my experience, it lives up to all of the hype and awards. I would not leave Davis without stopping in...