REVIEW

Mike’s Deli is the Italian grocery of our dreams! And it’s barely a grocery at that; mostly, it’s a deli counter, packed literally to the rafters with hanging prosciutti, curing dry sausages, cheeses, oils, imported dried pastas, breads and rolls, jars of pickled vegetables… the sights, sounds, and smells cause sensory overload.

Arancini are fried rice balls, here garnished with tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. They make a terrific snack.

There’s a lunch menu where you’ll find dozens of set-piece heroes, both hot and cold, along with platters of pasta or veal, or you can design your own hero, cured pork product by cheese by vegetable. Whatever you order, find an excuse to include some of their fresh and creamy handmade mozzarella. We enjoy it on a sub with that cured pork shoulder and neck known as capicola.

The Italian grocery of our dreams

Mike’s is iconic along Arthur Avenue. In fact, if you enter the url arthuravenue.com you will be taken to Mike’s website! Don’t let their fame and wide popularity discourage you, though. We think a visit to Arthur Avenue is not complete without a stop at Mike’s. They share indoor space in the Arthur Avenue Retail Market (instituted decades ago by Mayor LaGuardia) with shops specializing in seafood, cheese, olives, and meats. Most interestingly, you can also watch, close up, the production of hand-rolled cigars.

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FOOD: 

BEST THING TO EAT: Heroes