Where can you find the best sandwich in Sunbury? There are certainly lots of options, and we got to sample most of them at the Sunbury Sandwich Stroll today!
With 17 different samples to taste up and down Market Street, it may, at times, have felt a bit more like an eating contest than a stroll. But by taking one sample to go, and taking just a bite of the second sample, and with great perseverance and sacrifice to our waistlines, we made it through.
We loved every minute of it! It has taken us years to visit just a few of the restaurants in Sunbuy, and after today I know we'll make more of an effort to stop as we pass through the area. There are some REALLY great cooks in this town.
Participants are given a "map" and a list of restaurants, and tickets to hand in at each location for our samples. The map is a bit vague, with just dots that were not named, but we found that most of the stops were well marked with balloons and signs.
Our first stop was Big Mambo's Latin Bistro, and it set the bar pretty high!
Big Mambo's Latin Bistro has only been open for 6 weeks. Located on a side street, they are a walk up counter - no indoor seating yet. You order at the window, and there are outdoor patio tables, although many appeared to be picking up to go. I'm always fond of restaurants with outdoor seating, that allow dogs.
This cuban sandwich was nothing short of incredible. It was my husbands choice for best sandwich of the day, and we are excited about getting back here for dinner some night soon! We spent a few minutes chatting with the owner, who said that with almost no publicity (only facebook) they are super busy. A little restaurant in an alley, with a small sign over a window to order from, and no publicity, and they are non stop busy. THAT is how good this sandwich is. (Big Mambo's won the people's choice award at the end of today's event)
Our second stop of the day was my favorite. We've been to Pop Snyder's Lunch. We've eaten here before, I like this place a lot. I love the vintage decor, and this sandwich today, Pop's Twisted Muffuletta,reminded me of a Primanti Brothers Sandwich, but I think it was even better. I love the slaw on this, and this was my choice for favorite sandwich today, although I admit it took me a while to decide between several great options.
McGuigan's Public House is a place I have wanted to try for a long time, but we just do not get to Sunbury often, especially since the construction in Northumberland these past couple of years. Now that Duke street is once again open, it will make it much easier to get here... and after trying this french bread pepersteak sandwich, we definitely want to come back! A sign out front unbelievably advertises a $1 burger and $3 fries on Tuesdays. If there burger is even half as good as their pepper steak, it's a steal at $1!
OIP loaded their sandwiches with good meats! They also individually wrapped their sandwiches in saran wrap, which was so nice - because by now, we knew we were only going to be able to sample a bite of each if we were to make it through all 17. There's an OIP in every town, but each one is different, and I always enjoy seeing the variations.
The Edison is another place we have eaten before. I love the decor inside, it's like stepping back in time, and the furniture is beautiful! There is also a mini musuem of sorts to Edison, with newspaper clippings and photos, that I love. When I mentioned in the past that I love this place, someone snidely remarked that they would eat there when it was renamed Tesla's. No matter who discovered electricity, it was Thomas Edison who brought it to Sunbury, so I don't think it will hurt to give him a little credit here.
The chef is quite talented, we were fortunate to taste more of his cooking at the Chopped Competition at Chef's Place in Milton last year.
Today's offering did not disappoint. He served incredibly flaky empanadas, with two different sauces that I'd love to buy by the bottle. Especially the Wasabi Aioli, which if I had in a bottle I just might use on everything, it was divine.
I love the sign here, but when I saw it, I envisioned a chain, with seating something like subway or McDonalds. If not for the sandwich tour, I doubt I would have ever stepped inside. And had I never stepped inside, not only would I have missed out on a really cute place (Lots of really cute seating!) but absolutely the best fried chicken I've ever had. I don't think I'd necessarily order the sandwich, but we really can't wait to go back here and order a bucket of chicken, the chicken in the sandwich was simply the best! AND they thoughtfully provided free bottles of water with their samples! Such a nice touch, it was nearly 90 degrees today.
Dynamic Wings express has a nice little seating area along the side of the building, that I think would be a great place to have an ice cream cone! They served a chicken cordon bleu sandwich, with a very nicely cooked piece of chicken!
Marlin's in Milton is one of my son's favorite restaurants, so we have eaten there at least a couple of times a year, for years. But I had no idea there was a Marlin's in Sunbuy! Surprisingly, this was our first traditional sub sample today - a roasted turkey that was quite good!
At this point, Dan realized he had somehow lost about half or our tickets. We have no idea if they fell out of his pocket, or if he left them on the counter. We easily could have stopped here.. but we really wanted to sample at least a bite of each before casting our vote. So back to the gazebo we went... planning to buy an additional ticket. The organizers recognized us from earlier, took pity on my husband, and replaced his missing tickets for free. We had been walking up until now, but the heat was pretty excruciating, so we got in the car here to drive to the other end of the street. And then I did not want to get back out of the air conditioning. The next group of sandwiches were all from vendors in the Sunbury Market House, an indoor flea market. There is not much seating in here, and I don't think our dog would have been allowed inside, so we took all of the samples back to our air conditioned car, making this series of photos a bit different from the rest.
Ali Deli, B& G's Spot, Cocina Tica, & The Route 61 Roadhouse are all located in the Sunbury Market house, which hosts a farmers market on Fridays and Saturdays. In addition to the food stands, market stands, and Fetters Meat Market inside, there were also rows of tables with produce on the sidewalk outside. While I was walking through, a car pulled up in a parking space, rolled down their window, and placed their order, which the vendor then carried to the car window for them! I don't know that that is typical, I do think most people probably walk up on the sidewalk to shop, but in a day full of unique and fun experiences, I also saw my first drive in farmers market stand.
Ali Deli served a hummus wrap. I love hummus! I regret that we were rushed at this point, I'd like to go back and see what else is available at his deli counter!
A Cuban from Cocina Tica - served in a really nice bread, with a great pickle!
This day was full of surprises, not the least of which was finding a bar in the back of the farmers market! (there is a separate entrance from the back, for when the market is not open) They have a full schedule of live music here. Today they served an ooey gooey pork slider - sliders being a great choice for today! The pork had a great flavor!
Mary's Jam's Jellies, and More served a bbq slider in these cute little cups!
B's Jibarito Sandwich is not normally on the menu, but after today, she may add it soon! Instead of the traditional "bread" made from plantains, this was served on a Hawaiian roll. Sliders was the theme of the market house today!
Little Addy's Cafe served a spicy chicken mango sandwich that won the judges choice award today. Great flavors - and their smoothies looked really tempting too, if we hadn't been so full at this point!
Our next stop was at the iconic squeeze in. Normally I would not get a hot dog from a restaurant, but this is a definite exception. I love this place. But I'm pretty claustrophobic, so I only eat outside here. Next door was the dine in, where they handed out ice cream sandwiches! Dan spent a bit of time talking with the owner, that was his favorite part of today, getting to meet and talk with all of the owners and chefs. As we were getting ready to leave, the skies opened up and it began to seriously pour down rain. We were really glad we had moved the car to this end of town! We drove back to the gazebo and Dan raced through the rain to hand in our ballots... not realizing until we got home that we had completely missed the Sunbury Sub Shop. So we'll have to go back and try them another day!
This was a great event. We met so many great shop owners, found so many great new restaurants, and experienced a variety of foods we may not have ever tried - all for $10!
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