P.M.P. Delicatessen

Name: P.M.P. Delicatessen
Location: 80 Harry L Drive, Johnson City, NY 13790
Phone: (607) 797-1131
Cuisine: Sandwiches/Subs/Eastern European specialty items
Price: $5 per person

Review:
The search for good subs continued today for lunch with a stop at the P.M.P. Delicatessen on Harry L Drive in Johnson City. This is a place I've driven by literally thousands of times over the years, but I've never bothered to stop in, and I wasn't sure if anyone else did either. My attempts to find out anything about P.M.P. on the internet always came up fruitless, and something about the place always looked kind of sketchy to me. Today was the day I found out I was wrong.

P.M.P. is a deli first and foremost, with the standard subs and sandwiches comprising much of their menu, but they also serve their own versions of regional specialty items like spiedies and City Chicken. This is one of the rare places you can get lamb spiedies, the original spiedie meat of choice at Sharkey's way back in the 1940's. There is a definite focus on Eastern European cuisine in P.M.P., as they sell traditional foods like kielbasa, holupki (cabbage rolls), and a shockingly good variety of German, Czech, and Polish beer. I was surprised to see things like Paulaner Salvator, Ayinger Celebrator, and even a few bombers of Southern Tier Back Burner, among others. P.M.P. won't put Sam the Beer Man out of business anytime soon, but they've got a nice little collection going. For those who want to eat there, there are a few tables set up, and the place is adorned with hockey memorabilia and other trinkets. It's an odd atmosphere, yet somehow kind of cool.

I walked in at 12:30 PM and was one of three patrons at the time. I got a chicken spiedie sub for myself and a turkey sub for Megan. The woman who took my order was extremely nice and seemed glad that I had such a simple order--apparently the previous few patrons had made large and complicated orders. In five short minutes our order was ready, I paid the friendly cashier, an older gentleman who kidded me that my $7 order came to "$50," and I was on my way.

My chicken spiedie sub was quite good. I was impressed with the meat and found the spiedie as a whole superior to Sharkey's, but not quite to the level of Lupo's or the Spiedie & Rib Pit. The meat was flavorful and juicy and was served on an Italian steak roll which did well to soak up the juices. Not amazing, but very nice, and at $3.49, very cheap.

Megan's sub was also pretty good. She was a little miffed about the fact that the meat was placed on top of the toppings she got (lettuce, tomato, onion, American cheese, mayo), preferring it the other way around. Her impression was that P.M.P. was "just alright." I tried her sub and I got the impression that the turkey and toppings were fresh and of decent quality, but it was fairly ordinary otherwise.

Living near Harry L Drive, I can definitely see myself stopping off at P.M.P. again, maybe next time trying out the City Chicken, pierogies, or other local fare, in addition to taking a closer look at their beer selection. I enjoyed the quick, friendly service and the spiedies were good. My search for the ultimate sub shop won't end here, but I will be glad to support this local business again in the future, and I'm hopeful this post will give them some online presence so that other curious parties can stop wondering from afar what the place is like and start giving them some business.

Grade: B