Domenics Domenates (with Bread)

Domenic’s Italian Bakery and Deli (987 Main St. Waltham, MA 02451) is incredible. On an unassuming block, in an unassuming deli, incredible sandwiches are made. Like Grandaisy, Domenic’s makes their own bread. This magical bread pushes their good-but-not-incredible sandwiches straight over the cliff to reveal not a screaming drop to a dry arroyo, but a gentle glide through a magical world with mountains of cold cuts and rivers of balsamic vinegar.

Show up before or after the lunch crush or you’ll have to wait in line. Not that it’s always a bad thing, since you’ll need a minute to read their menu, oggle the array of italian food in the glass cases and watch the break being made in the bakery to the left. After you notice the bakery, you’ll see the text “Your choice of soft or crusty bread” and you know you’re about to get something special. These guys know sandwiches.

We tried three sandwiches, all with the crusty bread:

Dom’s Special: Classic Italian (pistachio mortadella, provolone, natural casing genoa salami) with the addition of sweet capicola and prosciutto. Served with chopped lettuce, tomato and balsamic vinegar. ($7.99)
Manzo: house-made garlic roast beef, caramelized onion, Gorgonzola and arugula. ($8.99)
Lamb Panini: feta, lamb, oregano, lite mayo, diced tomato. ($8.50)

The lamb panini was a daily special and may not be available all the time, it’s okay though, the other two blew it out of the water. The trend for delis serving Italian sandwiches is to stuff them so full of mediocre meats, pre-cut tasteless cheeses and so much chopped lettuce you think you’re eating a salad. Thankfully Domenic knows better. this Italian is pared down to just the right serving size of high-quality essentials cased in soft-and-crusty Italian bread. That means there’s just enough chopped lettuce and tomato to add texture, it never becomes the only texture. This sandwich is a work of art and puts all other Italian sandwiches (and breads) to shame. Compare the photo’s below with your last Italian sandwich. It looks smaller doesn’t it? It looks simpler, more refined, more focused, more delicious!

The Manzo was equally impressive: the roast beef was tender, delicious and perfectly complimented by the onions, cheese and arugula. Like the roast beef from Defonte’s, it was a perfectly-done shade of light pink, not grey, and still incredibly moist! Take a look at the pictures below, you can see it shine and glimmer with tasty morsels in the sunshine. Yum. Just like the Dom’s special, there was just enough arugula to provide texture and not to overwhelm the other flavors. And again, that bread is to die for!

The lamb panini was less spectacular. The lamb was a bit too dry and the feta’s texture made it hard to take a few bites without a beverage nearby. It left us wondering “Maybe the lamb was leftover from the day before?” Unless the specials are really fresh, I’d skip them and stick to the proven sandwich menu.

Domenics is one of the few places to be solidly placed in high-strategy and high-execution sandwiches. For under $10 you can taste the food of the gods:

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