Second Street Bakery

On Monday, Second Street Bakery reopened after their annual two week vacation so I figured what better time to talk about them.

Second Street Bakery is not a bakery. At least, not in the sense of pastries, cakes and other desserts. Instead, Second Street is an old school italian deli with delicious sandwiches, stuffed breads, and other classic italian fare, all made onsite will all the bread baked in a coal-fired oven. It's family-run with a strong sense of tradition and familiarity. On weekends, lines will often go out the door (it's a small place and there's no seating) with firemen, policemen, and EMTs frequently stopping by. Neighbors shake hands, people ask about parents, houses, kids. Long time customers from other parts of NJ pick up party platters and huge brown bags filled with bread and rolls for family events. It's not new or trendy; it's just good, comforting food done the way it's always been done.

One of my favorite sandwiches is the chicken cutlet hero A large chicken cutlet is put warm onto a freshly-baked hero with fresh mozzarella, lettuce, tomato, and creamy balsamic and that's it. What makes it so good is everything is done well. The cutlet is crispy, warm, perfectly cooked and not dry in the least with the mozzarella adding a bit of creamy richness. The bread is fantastic, chewy but soft and holds up wonderfully to the sandwich. The balsamic is tangy, sweet, creamy, and although I've tried recreating it many times, I've never been able to get it quite right so I'll keep enjoying theirs. The lettuce adds a crunch and freshness while the tomato adds a bit more tang and juiciness but in winter, I find the tomato too pale for my taste so go without it and the sandwich doesn't suffer. I actually have a hard time ever ordering anything other than this sandwich. As good as it all is, I just hate the thought of missing an opportunity to enjoy it.

One of the most popular sandwiches is the Sausage Bread sandwich which is huge, heavy and absolutely delicious. It's made up of prosciuttini, salami, mozzarella, and roasted peppers served on what I estimate to be about half of a loaf of Second Street's sausage bread (bread stuffed with giant pieces of italian sausage).The vinegary taste of the peppers cuts through the richness of the sandwich and the mozzarella is a nice creamy balance to the saltiness of the meat. Be warned - they only make a limited amount and it does sell out quickly so if you're intent on trying this, go early.

Two other big sellers are the sweet ricotta calzone (just what it sounds like - dough folded over and baked around a ton of sweetened ricotta, delicious and indulgent) and the stuffed rolls. Second Street makes a variety of rolls fresh every day - the incredibly tender eggplant is one of my favorites as shown here, but they also have pepperoni, meatball, sausage, chicken, spinach, etc....They sell out of these quickly as well so if you have have your heart set on a particuar kind, best to go early or call ahead and place your order. If you're planning on eating it right away, just let them know and they'll heat it up for you.

Second Street sells a ton of other sandwiches including some cold cuts, all kinds of parms, and they have several pastas, soups, and salads constantly available as well.  You can also get breakfast sandwiches - eggs and a variety of fillings stuffed inside their homemade bread which are all very good and very filling. There's mini pizzas, cinnamon bread (sweet and very very cinnamony), loaves of italian bread...the list goes on. No matter what, you'll find something to eat.

All in All
Second Street, on Second Street just past Brunswick, is a classic Italian deli with all the options you could want. They know what they're doing and they care about doing it well. The prices are unbelievably low (especially considering how big the sandwiches can be), ranging from about 4-6 dollars, with smaller items like the stuffed rolls running $1.75 each.  They do close early, around 3-3:30 pm and on Sundays, by 12:30, sometimes earlier, and while they don't deliver, they are extremely accommodating of call-in and pick-up orders. Just go there. It's worth it.