Mikey & Mel’s
The Clevelander
Washington’s appetite for Jewish-deli fare is ravenous—just look at the crowds at this six-month-old lunch destination in downtown DC. While the menu is stacked with various iterations of corned-beef and pastrami sandwiches, our favorite overstuffed creation is more inspired by the Midwest. Brother owners Aaron and Harley Magden are from Ohio, and their hefty offering tastes like a Thanksgiving sandwich crossed with a club. It’s made with two kinds of turkey—both roasted in-house, one honey-glazed—plus bacon, provolone, lettuce, tomato, and generous slathers of mayo and housemade cranberry spread.
Dragon Hero
The Mario
At this Shaw sandwich shop that opened in February, each of the menu’s heroes is named for a dragon slayer. Our favorite is this Nintendo homage, which is really just an excellent meatball sub. Chef/owner Adam Campbell starts out with a low-and-slow marinara made with San Marzano tomatoes, then grinds three meats: pork chuck, beef chuck, and lamb shoulder. Campbell says the key to great meatballs is nailing the panade—the milk-and-breadcrumb mixture that keeps them moist—and he laces his with Grana Padano cheese for a hint of umami. The creation is all Campbell’s own. “I don’t have an old nonna as a grandmother,” he says. Could have fooled us.
Silver and Sons
Pastrami Reuben
The Reuben is a sandwich that’s all about proportions—the corned beef or pastrami, the sauerkraut, the Swiss, and the Russian dressing all have to be in perfect balance for it not to be either a bore or a sloppy mess. At this Jewish barbecue storefront in Bethesda, owner Jarrad Silver gets the sandwich right. Even though it’s not traditional—Silver makes pastrami from short rib instead of brisket, conjures a dressing from aïoli mixed with mustard barbecue sauce, and uses thick-cut rye sourdough—the spot-on flavors will satisfy a deli purist…