My grandfather used to say you can judge a town by its sandwich shop. Not the chain on the corner with the laminated menu, but the real one where someone’s uncle has been slicing prosciutto since before you were born.
Virginia has those places. More than you’d expect from a state better known for its rolling hills and small-town charm.
Scattered across Virginia’s back roads and old downtown blocks, these Italian sub shops are still doing things the hard way. Cured meats sliced fresh, bread baked that morning, oil and vinegar measured by instinct rather than a squeeze bottle…