Michael P.
Yelp
It's been years since I've been back to Ellie's and was excited to give it another shot. I came in thinking of the roast beef sandwich. I suppose they rotate their menu items, I was inclined to order the braised beef panini when I saw it. It's a play on Italian beef from what I could tell. I'll be honest, this was a one-dimensional sandwich for me and didn't live up to.my expectations.
After the first bite I could tell it was a little flat so I quickly asked for some additional garlic aioli to go on the side. The staff was happy to accommodate and was quick to get that over for me. While it helped, it still didn't add what I felt was missing.
In my opinion, this was a rich, comfort food sandwich, if that's what you're looking for, you'll love it. If you're looking for exciting and some vibrant flavors, this won't do it for you. I wished there was more acidity. It could have used more of the giardiniera pickled vegetables and maybe instesd of a garlic aioli, it could have been a lemon garlic aioli with some lemon juice and zest added in. It really needed something to help it pop.
I'm a little disappointed that it was $20 and I didn't really love it, but I do have to be fair and confess I feel all the ingredients were high quality and for what composed the sandwich, it was executed well. The bread was crisp, caramelized, and texturally very nice. The beef had decent flavor, like I said, just fell a bit flat on my taste buds.
The pork sandwich that my wife got in the other hand, oof. That was top notch. I'd get that next time. Honorable mention for the side salad. Delicious dressing on there to go with the sandwich. Also, the cafe itself is comfortable, there are a good amount of seating options and people are up and out pretty steadily, so I don't think you'll wait long for a seat.
Overall, pleasant visit. Will likely come back for the pork sandwich.