Sandwich Review in NYC #34 (Charlie's Sandwich Shop)
My brother-in-law and I made a trip to Bay Ridge to shop for a new car. Rarely visited neighborhood means visiting a highly rated sandwich shop. It's your typical Italian deli joint--cash only, no seating whatsoever, Sopranos, Yankees, and colorful names for hoagies.
We ordered two subs and split them together:
The Menny Special -- roast beef, melted swiss, melted provolone, balsamic mayo
The Papa Sal -- chicken parm and fried eggplant
Ratings -- We both agreed the roast beef sub was special and worthy of a 4/4. Juicy beef that's dripping off the first bite, savory cheese, perfect amount of balsamic mayo. Simplicity is lethal. The chicken parm was a fine 3/4. Parm subs can just feel a bit tomato-ey each time after the 5th bite or so.
Anyway, then I decided to get a new car--2025 Mazda CX-5, a compact SUV, if you care. This decision was spurred by a weekend of borrowing my father in law's 2003 Rav4 with 120k miles and then suddenly not being able to start the car. Cars aren't really worth it in NYC if you aren't driving everyday. High parking (300+ a month) and insurance costs (2000+/year) make the carrying cost unpalatable. Now you have to throw in congestion pricing tolls as well. We're just weekend drivers at most. For us, it's just nice to have the reliable option to drive outer borough for a day trip or possibly upstate/out-of-state for longer trips.