Bob's Italian Foods — Restaurant in Medford

I used to frequent Bob's quite a bit back when I used to live in Somerville, not too far from there, for over three years. I heard about the place from a few friends, saw the hype on Yelp, and being a lover of Italian food, decided to drive over to check it out. Upon walking in, I knew that this place was special.

I slowly eased myself in as a consumer. Originally, for the first couple of trips there, I didn't get much more than a sub and a drink but eventually I decided to brave the lines at the deli counter and haven't looked back since. Whether you want some great cheeses, meats, olives or Italian delicacies, this place has you covered. My wife and I drive there annually now to get some cold cuts for the traditional post-Christmas party we attend and everyone loves it every single time. We also swing by when in the area.

From my numerous visits there, I've always left very happy, except one instance. The service, the prices and the selection is fantastic although parking can be tricky since it's street parking only. And the only time I wasn't fully satisfied was during Christmas vacation when I placed my order in over the phone. I arrived to an extremely busy store to pick it up and they have essentially tripled everything that I wanted in my order. I could have had it adjusted, but that would have meant having to wait in line for 2+ hours to get it adjusted and to pay so I just paid and left instead. I guess there could be bigger problems in life then too much prosciutto, salami and provolone.

Aside from the cold cuts, deli items and subs, they also offer pizza and also have various convenient items like fresh bread, all kinds of dried pastas, salads and cheeses. They also import all kinds of Italian products like Nutella, olive oils, tomato sauces and also have a frozen food section where you can buy various frozen pastas. Overall it's a great store but depending on when you go, you'll just have to be patient. But you will be generously rewarded by waiting and Bob himself is a very friendly man and plays a big role in the...

I have liked Bob's a lot but the sandwiches I got recently were a disappointment. They were

1. a large 50/50 combo chicken parm / meatball for me and
2. a large Italian cold cuts for my friend.

The bread was good but the fillings were sub-standard and the sandwiches were carelessly, hastily and sloppily assembled making them difficult to eat. I know Bob's has good cold cuts as I've bought them at the counter but my friend said his sandwich was tasteless. The chicken in my sandwich was okay but a little tough and the meatballs seemed to be more filler than meat and they were too big to use in a sandwich.

Both of the sandwiches were generously filled - it seems they were trying to substitute quantity for quality. I have a robust appetite and it is rare indeed when I fail to finish what I order but I discarded most of a meatball and quite a bit of bread. The sandwiches were wrapped (actually wadded up) in aluminum foil and, the bread on the hot one at least, suffered. I think it would have been better had they been wrapped in butcher's paper and rolled up so that I could peel the wrapper back a bit at a time.

I have had sandwiches at Bob's before and don't really remember them being exceptional - good or bad - but I do remember that they do NOT include cutlery or napkins in the bag when you get take-out sandwiches. I imagine they would provide forks and knives and napkins if I could remember to ask. The meatball sandwich eating experience would have benefited from a knife and fork.

I will surely give Bob's another try at some point but the next time I'm longing for a sandwich, I think I'll wait until I'm going to Gloucester and get the sandwich...

I am writing to express my recent experience with one of the employees at Bob’s Italian Foods who treated me with disrespect. The event took place on Wednesday March 5 around 6:45pm. I accepted an order from Bob’s Italian Foods for a customer for UberEats. According to the restaurant’s instructions on the door, I rang the bell three times and waited for about 10 minutes outside. Since there was no answer and the weather was getting cold, I went inside the establishment to pick up the order. One of the employees was upset because I had entered the store instead of waiting outside. He screamed at me aggressively stating that I’m not supposed to be in the store and that I had to wait outside by the back door which is located near the trash. Then, he refused to give me the order and eventually threw the order at the counter. I asked for a manager to speak to but no one was willing to talk to me to rectify the situation about how that employee was mistreating me. Then, I left the store and was forced to cancel the order.

I have never experienced this kind of mistreatment from any restaurant while working for Uber Eats these past couple of months. I have been treated with dignity and respect except for this instance. This is unacceptable to treat anyone like this whether they are a direct customer or an Uber Eats worker. Thus, I am writing this report to complain about this establishment and I hope to find some solution to how I was treated so that this does not happen...