Artisinal Cured Meats At Salumi

We finally made it to Salumi!! Having lived in Memphis for too long, I never thought I would ever hear the words 'pork overdose'! Well... looks like Seattle has something even better then pork bbq that will make you scream for m-o-r-e!

We've heard of this very popular small eat-in deli owned by the father of celebrity chef, Mario Batali, for the longest time... we heard of their artisinal cured meats, their sandwiches and the long lines that come with the experiance for getting a mere sandwich from Salumi. Alas, a mere sandwich they do not make!

Our favorite foodie friend, Julie, was the only one who'd been to Salumi before, so she packed us in her suv and got us promptly, as planned, outside the store fifteen minutes before it opened at 11am. As expected, a line was slowly forming already. Nice! We get the full experianced lol. ...this is a working Wednesday morning... and not everyone in line was unemployed and/or a slacker like the king and I lol. Well, Julie isn't of course. Only a few looked like they were tourists and most others were certainly locals! That's a mighty good sign to other customers if a restaurant has people waiting outside before they're even opened - without having to offer free food or money lol!

At the end of the line, I could see the not very decorated area where you can grab your food and have a quick sit and eat area. Two two-person table and a family style table that might fit ten - if you're in Europe. Not in America! ...the line moved fast. Well, fast enough since I hadn't even thought of complaining lol! We looked at the chalked written menu on the wall, the specials on another board and basically ordered almost everything that looked good to us. I think it scared the person behind the counter. She asked, "just three of you?! You're going to have lots of leftovers!". Obviously there haven't been some serious greedy and/or hungry people who've walked through those doors till us three...










Three large sandwiches (cut in thirds); a cotto salami sandwich with onions and peppers, a magarita sandwich with prosciutto and a meatball sandwich... an order of the white bean tuna salad, a simple tomato based penne (which the husband frowned towards me as I ordered it - c'mon I had a taste for pasta when I saw it!) and a last minute cold cured meat plate (with no cheese) by the husband. No wonder the lady was surprised it was only for three people. These sandwiches weren't exactly bite-sized :)

My favorite was the cotto salami sandwich with onions and peppers. Sooooo good! Almost like a mufeletta from Central Grocery in New Orleans... but not quite. The meatball sandwich was awesome also! There is no way I can eat another meatball sandwich anywhere else... I didn't get to try the magarita with prosciutto simply because I was stuffed to the brink. The delicious white bean tuna salad with chopped red onion and fresh parseley was practically addictive(!) ...and I had to have my fair share of the penne dish I'd insisted on having lol! For the record, the husband did not even try the penne which was al dente and tasty :) He did however enjoy the spicy sopressata on the cold cured meat plate. He says the next time we go, he's gonna' have that in a sandwich.

Yes, we were stuffed. Yes, we were satisfied. Another successful adventure with the mountain tortoise foodies lol!