It’s food porn.
In many ways, it’s the perfect meatball sub. The meatballs themselves are finely textured and you can just tell they’re made with love. It makes me feel like somehow I’ve become Italian. Suddenly, I have a loving and doting Nonna, and I spend every Sunday at her house after church anxiously awaiting her delicious meatballs and there she is telling me that I’m too skinny, I need to eat more, doesn’t my mama feed me, make sure I keep doing good in school, and she loves me and is so proud of me.
None of those things are true or ever happened to me, but tell that to my mouth when I eat this perfect sandwich.
They slather it in melted provolone, and for this reason it’s best to eat it immediately. It’s not the ideal carryout or delivery thing, because any cooling lends itself to a slightly lessened experience, but hey, it’s still worth it even if you have to take it home to eat it.
Rocco’s has other excellent sandwiches, of course. They have probably my favorite rendition of the classic Italian deli sub, which they actually call their Love Letter to the Corner Deli. I grew up with an Italian corner deli (it was literally called Italian Village), and my childhood included homemade corner deli subs with fresh cold cuts, fresh sesame seed buns, and droopy tomatoes and onions slathered in vinaigrette. The ones at Rocco’s are a perfect tribute to that classic, and they’re really inexpensive.
Rocco’s Deli is on Cass Avenue, just north of MLK Blvd. Their website offers their full sandwich and prepared foods menu.
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