Nezüntoz Cafe

Name: Nezüntoz Cafe
Location: 50 Pennsylvania Avenue, Binghamton, NY 13903
Phone: (607) 722-7202
Cuisine: Breakfast/Lunch sandwiches
Attire: Casual
Price: $15 for two

Review:
So after yesterday's review of the Bagel Factory and my commentary on how there was a severe lack of local bagel/coffee shops in the Binghamton area, I was gently reminded by one of my loyal readers about Nezuntoz (pronounced "Knees and Toes," in case you were wondering). You see, Nezuntoz is located on Binghamton's South Side, and half the time I don't even remember that the South Side exists. For me, that part of town usually exists simply as a shortcut way to get to downtown from Vestal. Occasionally (read: rarely) we'll stop by the Number 5 or Whole in the Wall, but my point is...we just don't get down that way too often. Nezuntoz will hopefully help give me a reason to visit this unheralded part of town a little more regularly.

I stopped by for lunch today and was immediately impressed upon walking in. I thought I was in Ithaca for a second! In fact, I thought I was in Collegetown Bagels!!! And in a sense I was, since Nezuntoz gets their bread and bagels every day from the Ithaca Bakery...yes, the very same bakery that supplies...you guessed it...Collegetown Bagels! The place is reasonably sized with several small tables and would certainly be a fine place to hang out with friends and chat over coffee. I was greeted by a chipper and friendly young lady behind the counter who helped me select a sandwich.

There are many options for specialty sandwiches with all sorts of fancy names. I decided to go with The Grinch, which is allegedly one of their more popular items. The Grinch consists of Roast Beast [sic], provolone, lettuce, roasted red peppers, and horseradish sauce on multi-grain ciabatta bread.


There's half of it. I thought this sandwich was mostly excellent. One minor issue was that the horseradish sauce was a little too much on the warm side. I like things with a mayonnaise-type base to be cold. Warm mayo kind of creeps me out. All other aspects of the sandwich were right on the money. The ingredients were fresh and it had great taste. Moreover, it reminded me of sandwiches I would get years ago in Ithaca.

I got my usual cup of coffee, and was far more pleased today than I was yesterday. They had all sorts of different coffee options and I elected a dark roast with very robust flavor. Very nice.

If you haven't been to Nezuntoz yet, do yourself a favor and remedy that, because it's definitely one of the best places in town of its ilk. It has nice ambiance, quality sandwiches, good coffee, quick and friendly service, and is certainly in the same league as Ithaca's Collegetown Bagels. It might even give me a reason to head to the South Side of Binghamton more often! At any rate, Nezuntoz is head and shoulders above its fellow Binghamton sandwich-shop competitors. Highly recommended. Thanks Elise!

Grade: A-