Primanti Bros (Part 1)
This legendary Pittsburgh sandwich shop has been on my culinary bucket list for a while, so when I learned it was less than a mile from my work’s local office it instantly went on my to-do list. Full disclosure, it was rainy on my arrival day and I was short on time to begin with, so I did not get to visit in person. Instead this review is from an Uber Eats order.
Looking through the menu there were 2 sandwiches that immediately appealed to me. They were admittedly pretty similar, but I still couldn’t decide, so I got them both.
“The New Yorker” - This beast of a sandwich consists of pastrami, corned beef, swiss cheese, spicy beer-mustard, sweet & sour coleslaw, fresh-cut fries, and ripe tomatoes on fresh Italian bread. The meat is clearly the star of any sandwich, and it’s obvious that Primani Bros uses only the best. Well cured, slightly smokey, and fall-apart tender to the last bite. The sweet & sour slaw on this one combines with the spicy beer-mustard to create a tang that feels almost like a sour kraut, to the point that this one actually tasted more like what I expect from a “Rueben”. The fresh-cut fries really help balance this out by providing a salty buffer. The swiss cheese really gets lost on this sandwich though. There’s just so much else going on, and so much tang, that the subtle creaminess of the cheese just doesn’t stand out. The italian bread was fresh, light, and had a great flavor. One note on it though. Between waiting on the delivery, and taking pictures and notes as I went along, it was upwards of an hour between the food being made, and me finishing it. The italian bread held up as well as it could, but the sandwich was starting to soak through/fall apart on the last few bites. Definitely not something the average diner will have to contend with, and I wouldn’t mention, except that the rye bread held together to the very end.
“Primanti Bros Rueben” - This local spin on a classic sandwich has 1/2 lbs of corned beef, pastrami, swiss cheese, parmesan horseradish mayo, and grilled coleslaw on marbled rye bread. The Reuben features the same meats as the New Yorker, and they’re just as good on this sandwich. It’s the dressings that really set these two apart, and although I loved them both, I think the Rueben manages to edge out a win. The coleslaw on this sandwich is more of the traditional type you’d expect at a family picnic. With a creamy mayonnaise base and just the slightest hint of a tang. Combined with the parmesan horseradish mayo (maybe the sexiest three words I’ve ever typed), this dressing highlights the richness of the meats rather than contrasting it like on The New Yorker. This also allows the creamy swiss to come through more (not sure if they put more cheese on this one, but it definitely stands out more). If there’s a low-point to this sandwich, it would be the fries. They’re crisp and perfectly seasoned, but they just don’t have as much to do here since the sandwich doesn’t have as much tart to balance out. That said, they don’t detract from the sandwich in any way, and they add some “filler” guaranteed to fill up even the hardiest of eaters. Finally, we have the bread. This marbled rye is everything you want it to be. Thick, great flavor, and even as this “wet” sandwich approached 1 hour old, it showed no signs of breaking down.
Side of Fries - Since Primanti Bros is known for putting fries on the sandwich they obviously had to be good, so I got a side of fries to sample as well. For a “side” the portion is huge. Like one sandwich plus the fries would have stuffed me, after 2 sandwiches I hardly got to touch them. They were clearly fresh cut, rinsed, and twice cooked as any proper fry should be. Simply put, they’re a French fry executed to perfection. One unique thing about them though, they’re less seasoned than you would normally expect. I suspect this is because they pull from the same pile of fries to put on your sandwich and don’t want to overly salt your entrée.
In the end, I would say this great local place lived up to the hype. The portions are large enough that no one is going away hungry. But for such a large sandwich, the flavors are varied, delicate, and perfectly balanced. I would say that eating here is the culinary equivalent of watching a body-builder dance ballet. It’s rough and hearty in appearance, but surprisingly light on it’s feet. If you’re anywhere near one of their locations (they’ve branched out into a few other states) this is a MUST TRY.
