| There are some days when only a sandwich will satisfy daytime pangs. A good one has all the food groups, high quality condiments and bread, but doesn't have so much going on that the constituent parts blur into a big mess. I'll eat the fantastic sandwiches at Peppino (1240 Kensington Road N.W.) any day I can, and I'll also get some soup and homemade gelato to boot.
Peppino is a great little place. There are some Italian delis which are mainly deli and do takeout and sit-in food on request. In contrast, you can certainly buy Italian deli stuff at Peppino, along with not a bad selection of pasta and oil, but it's the ready-made stuff that is the star of the show. The reason the food is so good isn't a mystery – everything, from the pasta to the gelato, is homemade. It's easy for restaurants to call up Bridge Brand Food Services, for example, and get commercial pasta delivered, but at Peppino they've resisted the easy route, preferring quality over convenience, and this dedication shows.
The sandwiches are great and they're all $5 or $6. There are about eight choices in total, including a "Volcano" stuffed with hot peppers and hot capicollo; "Joe's Special" with capicollo, mortadella, lettuce and cheese; and a fabulous meatball sandwich made with homemade meatballs – I always feel a little like Paulie Walnuts from the Sopranos when I order a meatball sandwich.
There's usually a hot lunch available as well, and a hearty soup chock full of white beans, celery and pasta. And then there's the gelato. At Peppino, they don't use guar gum or xanthan gum or any other coagulants that commercial ice-cream makers use. Instead, it's just milk, eggs, sugar and natural flavouring. There's a vibrant green pistachio, espresso coffee and, my absolute favourite, straciatella (vanilla with hazelnuts and nougat). It's the best ice cream I've had in town outside of a high-end restaurant, no question.
The freezers are also stuffed with homemade dishes of cannelloni, lasagna and tortellini to take home, and the staff will give you cooking instructions. At first blush these dishes seem expensive, but if you think about the time it took to prepare them (stuffing cannelloni is a colossal pain) and the cost of high-quality ingredients, it's quite reasonable.
Kootenay Update
If you find yourself in Nelson, B.C. one evening, make every effort to eat at the All Seasons' Café. It's in an alley off the main drag, in a converted house. The menu is simple – we had pork chops marinated in Guinness, which were out of this world. The service couldn't have been better and the wine list is great. Best of all, it's not too expensive and is remarkably unpretentious. Don't miss it. |
