This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef

DIVE BAR atmosphere where you can enjoy pretty BOMB SANDWICHES!!

love how the HERO BREAD holds up to all the JUICES! (i doubt the rolls do)
---"That Way" sandwich on hero bread: BEST ROAST BEEF SANDWICH i've had!!! i liked how the meat was juicy and tender!
---""The Other Thing" sandwich on hero: it's NOT the best pastrami sandwich i've had because the coleslaw was kind of sweet, but the pastrami was tasty!! (& it wasn't sliced but halfway between shredded & cubed)

DON'T FORGET THE HOT SAUCE!

NOTE: we used the Scoutmob deal for BOGO free sandwiches!!

I am once again wowed by the Artichoke Pizza Team! I stopped by this stand-only tiny sandwich shop and was completely pleased by the flavor and price of their sandwiches and Fries.

We got the "This Way" - Roast Beef sandwich on a kaiser roll with Chiz-wit melted and Pastrami Sandwich with Coleslaw on Rye bread. Also, we had 1 order of hand cut fries. The total came down to about $13, which cannot even buy a Katz Deli pastrami sandwich!

To be fair, Katz's sandwich is bigger and it is very tasty but with the same amount of money, I could probably buy 3 sandwiches here. The flavors of these sandwiches are amazing - juicy, tender, right combo of mustard, coleslaw and meat together.

I am so happy I live 1 block away! This is going to be my favourite stop in the hood!

I am LOVING the food here. Hubby, my son and I came here with a voucher for four sandwiches and some hand cut fries. We had the This Way which is Roast Beef, Au Jus & Cheese Whiz, the That Way which is Roast Beef, Gravy & Mozz., The Other Thing was Pastrami, Coleslaw and Mustard and The Popeye Way was Roast Beef, Au Jus, Provolone & Spinach. All the sandwiches were awesome. They all tasted great and I would have wanted to order more food if I could fit it in my stomach.

My son and I shared the Lobster Bisque and it had a great taste to it. I would have loved if it were a bit thicker but the taste was spot on and it had little pieces of lobster swimming round so I was good.

They have some good beer choices but the seating is a bit tight. This Little Piggy is meant for you to come in, enjoy the food and leave happy. In that order. I love finding these little hole in the wall establishments that offer some damn good and unique food.

Definitely deserving of a revisit.

Living social Deal - 4 Sandwiches:

Feasted on the This Way (roast beef au jus with Cheese Whiz), That Way (roast beef with gravy and fresh mozzarella), The Other Thing (pastrami with coleslaw and brown mustard), and The Popeye Way (roast beef au jus with provolone and spinach).

All my sandwiches came out soggy...but thats probably because I ordered to go. They wrapped it in tin foil, which usually traps the steam and moisture of the sandwich in, making the bread super soggy. If they packed it to-go in a container (which usually has vents on the side, making it breathable) the bread might've came out still soggy, but maybe not so much like a we sponge.

The only sandwich that did not come out soggy was the Pastrami on rye. This is a little smaller than what you would get at Katz (and cheaper too), but still, patrami is soft and moist, they put cole slaw in the sandwich which gave it a little twist.

The That Way (roast beef with gravy and fresh mozzarella), This Way (roast beef au jus with Cheese Whiz), andThe Popeye Way (roast beef au jus with provolone and spinach) ALL Tasted almost exactly the same! The only thing different about the Popeye way was that it came on a hero and had some green spinach in it. But all tasted the same!

If they stopped being so cheap on the packaging when you order to go, I might come back and order out again. But I would only come back for the Pastrami on rye when I'm cheap and crave for soft moist pastrami.

This little piggy really likes these sandwiches.

The Popeye Way is the best one - really garlic-y (in a good way), and a delicious combo of flavors with the salty meat and spinach along with the provolone.

That Way is the next best (roast beef, au jus and mozzarella).
This Way comes next (roast beef, gravy and cheez whiz), as it can be a little too mushy from the whiz.
And then comes the The Other Thing (pastrami, cole slaw and brown mustard). This one is definitely delicious too, but it is underwhelming compared to the others and much better versions can be found close by (e.g. Katz's).

The meat on all the sandwiches was very high quality - really soft, juicy roast beef that wasn't fatty at all.

The hand-cut fries are also awesome - they were super hot and crispy which made them 10 times better than they probably are normally. They are very thick and potato-y, like really thick steak fries, which I don't normally like, but these were excellent.

I see where some of these reviewers are coming from complaining about the sandwiches being soggy - this seems like it would definitely be the case if you take them to go. So you should definitely go on a weeknight like I did - it was nice and empty, and everything was served hot and fresh and there were plenty of seats in the tiny place to sit and enjoy in a relaxed environment. Definitely avoid coming on a weekend when it's way too busy - I usually walk by and see crowds of tourists all sitting on the curb wolfing down their sandwiches.

Ok, so I'm gonna review this place, even though I don't eat roast beef. In fact I have never even eaten beef, of any kind, as I'm a life-long vegetarian (pescetarian if you want to get specific because I eat fish). Now, I understand my roast beef reviewing credentials are suspect..... but, rest assured, I base my opinion on my roast beef loving man. I have been watching him eat roast beef for a long time, and I rarely have seen him as complimentary as he was eating his roast beef hero 'This Way' style. I have seen him eat a lot of Roast beef sandwiches, and he said TLPHRB was one of the best he has ever had. That is a compliment.

Now, for the vegetarian review, I had a grilled cheese sandwich. I have had this sandwich in many a roast beef/philly cheese steak shop, and the one I had here was good, even a little better than normal because they made it with mozzarella cheese. Most of the time I get served a hamburger bun with cheese wiz on it, so this was definitely an upgrade.

Service was a little bit of a letdown. They were nice, but a little over it. They kind of had a "yeah I know I have good sandwiches" attitude, which isn't rude, but if you're a fan and really excited about something, you'd like to have a little bit of that excitement reciprocated.

Anyway, here's the breakdown:

Roast Beef Sandwich: 5 stars

Vegetarian sandwich: 4 stars

Service: 3 stars

I was torn on ordering the "This Way" or the "That Way". Yet there are so little times I see Cheez Wiz on a menu, so I gave the "This Way" a shot.

The sandwich was actually not that great. The meat was tender and juicy, but the Cheez Wiz-to-meat ratio wasn't even. Way too much Wiz (which was mostly on one side of the sandwich). It would have been nice to have some grilled peppers and onions for added flavor as well.

The Stew fries were actually the part of the meal I enjoyed. Very hearty stew on steak fries that were piping hot. A good meal in itself.

I would go again to try the "That Way" sandwich and will see if it's better.

I've never walked into a room, seen a bunch of drunk girls looking completely wasted, recognized one of them, and thought to myself: "this little piggy had my roast beef." I just don't think in those terms. Maybe something like "ooh I remember that, so much fun", or "damn I wish that hadn't happened," but definitely not "this little piggy had my roast beef." I mean it's not that she didn't, per se, it's that I don't think of women as piggies. I think some women think of me as a piggy though but I'd rather not go into that. Instead I'm going to tell you about this sandwich.

But before I tell you why this place is one of my favourite in Manhattan, I have to tell you something awful...

It's gone. It's kaput. It's no mas. It's RIP. It's over.

I don't know why it happened, but sometime between last Spring, when I was thrilled for the third time by their wondrous wares, and last summer, when I took my goddess friend (who found TLP for me in the first place a few years earlier) to try it, and it no longer existed. It was heartbreaking.

Let's see why they were so good, in numerical format.

(1) The Roast Beef sandwiches were some of the best I ever had. The meat was so tender. The cheese was like heaven (and I don't even like cheese). The bun was delectable. The juice all over it was a heavenly godsend (and I'm not religious). I don't know why it was so good, but it was.

(2) It was consistently amazing all three times I got it. "That Way" was the sandwich I had, and let me say, no wonder the Backstreet Boys wanted their sandwich "That Way."

(3) It was cheap for NYC. Filling and well under $8 as far as I can remember.

(4) It was open extremely late at night, when a lot of great places had already closed.

(5) Not only was it open til 2am or so, but they'd actually serve right up until closing. Without the usual attitude.

(6) The customer service was wonderful. The guys in here (usually just one, late at night) was always so helpful and friendly and personable.

(7) One time I hit someone's bumper in front of the shop. The employee ran out and checked it out and told me it was fine and not to worry. Of course I checked it for myself and he was right, but I felt like he went out of his way to help me, whereas most employees wouldn't have cared. Or maybe it was just his car... lol.

It was easily one of the best sandwiches in NYC, and one of the best Roast Beef sandwiches I've ever consumed. Only "Old Nick's Roast Beef" in Philly was better in this category. I'm pretty gutted to have lost it, but there are worse things in this world. There's still room on my wooden horse for two. I was Jonathan to your David. You're still King. Visions of love recollected. Have we ever been true? I know that I have. It's time for me to go. It's all in the stones that you throw. I want you to know.

Rest in peace, This Little Piggy. I hope you found your Miss Piggy and are living somewhere in luxury and happiness. With emphasis on the happiness part. Maybe on Sesame Street perhaps mayhaps? If so, are you making Roast Beef at your place these days? If so, can you tell me how to get... how to get to Sesame Street?

Normally, a soggy sandwich is not a good thing.
Normally, Cheese Whiz is not a good thing.
Normally, eating a enormous roast beef hero drenched in au jus so quickly that you feel like vomiting for a good hour afterward is not a good thing.*

But at This Little Piggy, the juicy, decadent This Way defies the odds, and satisfies me completely. I make such a huge mess of myself in the window that tourists walking by stop to gawk at the animalistic way I tear into my sangwich.

And when I spray bits of beef and bread all over them as I offer directions to the nearest subway station, they bow their heads in gratitude. Because it's just that good.
_________

*Actually, this really isn't ever good. The hero's big enough to split with another person, and you probably should.

There is a bar up in Homer, AK called the Salty Dawg Saloon that is famous for dollar bills pinned to the walls and ceiling. Tourists flock from all over to leave money and messages for their friends, in other words to buy them a drink when they visit or so the tradition goes.

This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef reminds me of that bar. No, I have never been to Alaska but I do watch a lot of tv.

I ordered a This Way and it arrived piping hot with roast beef, cheez whiz and au jus on a roll. I'm glad there were rolls of paper towel on the counter because that sandwich was messy. It dripped on the counter, on my sleeve, down my chin, and somehow got on my cheek. I've never felt sexier in my life. This Little Piggy is a total date place.

I did enjoy my sandwich. It satisfied every salt craving I had in my body and just hit the spot. I kept thinking, "This is how I wish a cheesesteak from Philly would taste like." I also contemplated putting up my own dollar on the window for self promotion. I saw an area of prime real estate.

These Artichoke brothers have really made a stamp in NYC. I like This Little Piggy. It definitely has it's charm but until it reaches Salty Dawg like fame, it's just A-OK for me.