Daniel O.
Yelp
My initial hesitation at La Salumeria had nothing to do with taste, or the way the food looked. In fact, La Salumeria is exactly the type of place I love to visit: an Italian grocery store with a wonderful little deli in the back, this spot offers what you'd hope for in an Italian grocer, and more.
No - my hesitation came more from the size of the bread that I selected from the front of the store. My expectations were tuned to that of an average sandwich shop - and boy, was I wrong to do so!
In no world could my sandwich be cheap (in fact, you could even call it expensive), but the quality of the ingredients, combined with the sheer volume of it that was packed into a fairly small piece of bread, was wholly impressive. Certainly a gem within the city, and the best sandwich that I have had anywhere in a long time.
Of all cuisines, Toronto's Italian scene is one of the most highly developed. Our Italian food reaches deep in many avenues, including the humble sandwich - such as the one I had today. No - we do not have a widespread, popular item like the Muffuletta in New Orleans, but we do have many creative, or downright special offerings in this city, such as the sandwiches produced right here.
The awesome thing about places like this is that they are not bound by the rules that have been determined by "food experts" - the umami trend isn't necessarily a focus (though my sandwich had plenty of umami), and there's no adherence to the "rules of making a great sandwich". Nor does it need to! The sandwiches are perfect the way they are.
The sandwich I had here was the perfect encapsulation of what an Italian sandwich should be: simple, with great ingredients, surrounded by a fantastic and diverse grocery. Make sure to visit!!