Dickie Dee's — Restaurant in Newark

When I hear native East Coast friends rave about sandwiches with the word “Italian” in it I know it’s worth a try. I had no business being in Newark, but was actually surprised by the # of Spanish restaurants that kept popping up in my searches. I was in town on a layover detour strictly for Dickie Dee’s. A sandwich on an American style fry bread/pita with fried potatoes and fried hot dogs.

Cash money is the name of the game and it’s not unheard of to wait a good minute in line. The location is small, very old, not dingy, but certainly not modern. Great exposure to natural light. Service is pretty good, albeit sloppy. They are not east coast rude for the sake of being east coast rude. They are certainly in the name of keeping it OG being it’s 3rd generation owned. Price point is still very good and those potatoes really fill you up.

The bread is not standard pizza bread, it’s not standard pita, it’s almost like a fry bread, but slightly more loaf ish. It’s cut and the middle cut open for filling. This is crucial to avoid the typical “blowing your back out” which is common in armature burger eating and “blowing your bottom out” when overloading typical hotdog buns. It’s moist, sturdy, yeasty. It stands up to all that oil from the fried inners.

The hot dog is fried to a level just before ripper. 2 are put on the bottom with mustard, fried onions, peppers, then fried potatoes equivalent to half a large russet then ketchup. It’s very filling, even the single. It holds up to the what feels like 1 pound mobile feast.

I honestly thought the potatoes would have some seasoning on them. They are kind of bland. You have to get the peppers and I would have liked some sautee’d onions and not fried for more crunch.

I didn’t get to try the pizza’s but can say the cold subs were blah and the only hot sub that caught my eye was the sausage parm which instantly reminded me of a traditional ragu and I liked it more than most chicken parms.

Apparently their version of “cali” is lettuce, tomato, raw onions, mayo and ketchup. The tomato and ketchup combo is really more popular in Utah, but your probably not going to sell any Utah Steak’s or Utah Burgers. Weird how they did diced sautéed onions in my burger, but not my Italian double or single dog.

It’s pretty hard to specialize in this Italian dog, cheese steaks, burgers, pizza’s, cold and hot subs. Stick to a few and you’ll be around another 60 years, otherwise no one will order the cold subs which was apparent in talking with locals. They only get a handful of items, ever.

If I’m ever in Newark again I’m coming back. IF. IF you are ever in Newark you too...

I've been going out since a kid and I was born in the city of North I'm also a Blogger and a food and drink critic if I wasn't in the industry I will still give this place👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽 & a 🔟 The service is Great I actually went there today for a super cheese steak potato in sausage sandwich with extra onions in sauce... The senior man that was at the The council was so nice he showed his all the pictures he said town Terrence Howard had just been at the restaurant 2 weeks prior and point to a pitcher the younger cook happens it be his nephew and he cooks with the family's cook.. They both even laugh and joke with us the didn't know that I was undercover food service Blogger but they let me record them making my sandwich not such a big spot kind of reminds you of the pizza parlor in the nineties to top it all off I said to the woman then I was with The happen to be Italian Have you ever seen, Do the right thing by Spike Lee Appointed to are the pictures on the wall going all around of all a talion Irish And white men,and At the end of the world was a picture of Muhammad Ali Autographed by the man himself Next to that was a picture of Michael Jordan, Don't let it fly over your head but altogether I will be giving this spot a 7 for food 2 Service in store front originality and a 1 for The fact that they have a open view grew facing towards customers with thick plastic plexi glass So that customers case seafood while being prepared 🌭🍔🍣🥪🧀🍞🥖🥓 #NJFOOD FINDER Series 2 Newark NJ Professional food critic

@LARON COOK ON...

It had been more than twenty years since my last visited here . As a kid in the 60s and 70s, I would make quite a few appearances here, owing to a cousin knowing one of the cooks here. The food was always superlative here, and the atmosphere always light-hearted and joyful. I finally got the time to make a visit recently with nostalgia in my heart. Sometimes you just can't go home. Upon first entry, I was caught by the pictures on the wall and the large TV in the corner. The building however, was just darker, and the counter area appeared worn down. The guys behind the counter spent a few minutes yakking with each other for almost two minutes before greeting me. My choice was the classic cheese steak, which was quite substantive, with a generous amount of potatoes on it. The trouble was, it wasn't supposed to have potatoes on it. I was given the Super Cheese Steak instead of the Classic, a more than dollar and a half extra sandwich than what I had intended. The thing that got me more than that, was that this Super Cheese Steak sandwich was more potatoes than anything else. A few small slices of steak, an almost indiscernible amount of cheese, onions, and peppers, and a ton of potatoes. It was for all intents and purposes, a potato sandwich. There was just no comfort level here; no jolly atmosphere, almost a vibe of "Just get going". It was just too uncomfortable and seemingly unwelcoming. Not a good nostalgia trip, and because of it, my last ever appearance here. Whatever charm Dickie Dee's once had for me...