Hot Pastrami Sandwich at Neo Cafe, University District

Working at UW, I spend much of my lunch hour scouting new and old restaurants until I find my favorite of every cuisine. And if you're a Bay Area transplant like me, you may have noticed a lack of specialty sandwich shops here in Seattle, especially in the U District. Last week, I visited the newly opened Neo Cafe, next door to MOD Pizza. I was happy to see a variety of Boar's Head meats and cheeses displayed behind the deli window. 

While I appreciate suggestions on sandwich ingredients, nothing makes me happier than to customize the architecture of my deli meat transporter. When I asked if I could make my sandwich to order, the lady happily pointed me to a box of short pencils and a skinny white sheet of paper. Instantly, I was brought back to my high school days. With only 35 minutes for lunch, my friends and I would race from the parking lot to Ross Grocery, grab a pencil and paper from the bin and ferociously circle as many ingredients as could fit on a large sourdough roll.  

Back at Neo Cafe, I had the option to choose from ciabatta, focaccia, sourdough, wheat or french bread, a plethora of meats and cheeses, as many veggie ingredients and spreads as my roll could hold, and of course avocado (only 50 cents). At the bottom of the paper I also chose to have my sandwich heated in a panini maker. After picking up a 1L bottle of San Pellegrino I excitedly awaited the delivery of my  edible vehicle.  It was perfectly delicious and nicely heated and pressed with a good portions of each ingredient, especially the pastrami and avocado slices. This by far, is my favorite deli sandwich restaurant in the University District.