2230 SE Hawthorne Blvd

http://www.grandcentralbakery.com/store_hawthorne.html

Date of visit: November 6, 2009

Price for 2: $18.65

Before we started this blog project, we hit up Grand Central almost every week. The funny thing is, my only real issue with it was I thought it was a little on the spendy side. Now that I’ve tried tons of different places and seen what’s out there, I’m pretty sure that Grand Central Bakery is actually one of the best lunch options on Hawthorne, in terms of price and quality.

As the name implies, the star of the sandwiches here is the fresh-baked bread. Different sandwiches come on different breads, everything  from baguettes to como bread to calamata olive bread. From reading this blog you might notice that I am partial to tuna melts, and honestly, I usually get a tuna tosti, which is “Herb and caper tuna salad and sharp white cheddar cheese served hot on Sourdough.” But I stared feeling self concious that people might think I was some weird George Costanza-type, and today I got a special, the pulled pork sandwich. Unlike most things on the menu it came with a side of coleslaw in addition to the usual pickle and at $6.25 was definitely a good deal. The sandwich was awesome, super soft bread, tender pork and flavorful BBQ sauce. Super simple and on par with “authentic” pulled pork I’ve had in the south. It wasn’t particularly messy either, which was nice. As for the coleslaw, it wasn’t the best I’ve had in Portland (that is a tie between the Delta Cafe and Clay’s Smokehouse) but it did have a nice texture and decent flavor (I would have preferred it a little sweeter.)

The coleslaw was a definitely bonus. Usually, sandwiches don’t come with a side (just a pickle) and you have to opt for the “sack lunch” that adds $1.80 to the price. Jared always goes for this option, which includes chips and a cookie, and I usually just steal a few chips from him. (He’ll tell you, I always steal his food.) I guess this would be another gripe with this place though, I would way rather get a drink than a cookie with my meal deal. But that’s just me, I don’t really care for sweets.

Speed: Pretty average for fresh made sandwiches

Veggie options: Several sandwiches and usually at least one special

Mediterranean Tosti Sack Lunch

Pulled Pork Sandwich

4626 SE Hawthorne Blvd

www.pdxdeli.com

Date of visit: October 20, 2009

Price for 2: $14.50

A good deli can actually be hard to find in Portland, so when a vegan friend told us we had to try East Side Deli, I was initially skeptical. But this place is hands down the best deli I have ever been to in Portland, and it just so happens it’s on Hawthorne and in the 4600 block, at that.

The sandwiches turned out of the open kitchen are huge and more importantly, completely customized with super high quality ingredients. No limp, shredded ice berg lettuce here, the stuff they use is fresh and leafy. And it’s like that for everything you choose, from the cheese and meat, to the veggies and sauces.

When you go in, you grab a dry erase card and select what you want. First you choose from breads. A six inch sub is giant, so I usually go with locally made Dave’s Killer bread. Then you choose hot or cold, meat, cheese, spread, veggies, extras (s +p, etc) and then add-ons that cost .50 extra (bacon, avacado..) Today I went with tuna on toast, with Vermont cheddar, sun dried tomato mayo, pickles, tomatoes and avocado. I’ve previously gotten the roast beef with horse radish, which on my next visit, I will probably go back to because damn, the roast beef is good.

Jared got the field roast, which is sort of like veggie roast beef, stacked high with every type of veggie you can imagine. Add on $1.50 for each for chips (a selection of Tim’s and Hawaiian kettle chips that even for bagged chips is pretty awesome) and a can of soda for each, and you have basically the best tasting, cheap lunch money can buy.

Of course, there is some bad news. Even when the place is empty, the sandwiches take some time, and on some of our visits the place has been packed to the gills. There is also limited seating (one indoor table and a bar, and a few outdoor tables) so East Side Deli is a better grab and go spot than eat in. And hey, if you call ahead, they’ll have your sandwich waiting for you.

Veggie options: Tons of veggies and Field roast “vegan meat”

Speed: For a deli, it can be kind of slow. Depends on how busy it is.

Tuna melt with Sun dried tomato mayo

6" field roast sub