We are mostly all familiar with Sue’s NY Deli Restaurant at 622 Main Street, right? Well, did you know that the owners have opened up a new location on South Elmwood Avenue? The new eatery is located in the newly built Federal Building ‘kitty-corner’ to City Hall. Sue’s opened eight months ago to cater to the hungry workers at the Federal, and news has spread fast throughout the neighborhood that there’s a new kid on the block.
Sue’s has always been synonymous with healthy eating downtown, and now the deli is serving up their wraps and pitas in another up and coming neighborhood. With news of the Johnson Park renaissance as well as recent development in the area (Federal Building included), Sue’s is a natural fit. At first when I heard that there was an eatery within the Federal Building I was surprised. I figured that with the added security these days it would be tough as far as security went. That is not the case however.
Today a couple of us decided to go check out this locally owned deli. Being big fans of Sue’s downtown we were hoping that it was not a scaled down version. We parked on Elmwood at the corner of Chippewa (loaded the meter with quarters) and headed a block down to the Federal. Once inside, we were actually greeted by a security guard who pointed out our destination and added that he eats there every day and LOVES it. So much for me worrying about heightened security interfering with our lunch.
The inside of Sue’s sparkles with stainless steel designed tables, a brand new coffee station, clean floors, and an abundance of glass and lighting. The restaurant opens at 6:30am, so there are a few of ‘breakfasty’ type items from which to choose, including ‘breaky sandwiches’. We also found out that this location of Sue’s closes at 2:00pm so we only had a few minutes to get our orders in. Once again we were delighted to see that the menu board was jam-packed with healthy meals, including 15 different salads, homemade soups, and plenty of vegetarian choices.
I spoke with one of the owners, Sonia, who informed me that everything is made fresh every day. The ingredients are all delivered, the pastas are boiled, the soups are made, the bread is fresh from Balisteri’s, and there’s no such thing as iceberg lettuce! The only greens you’ll find here are Romaine, sprouts, artichokes and the like. These guys even whip up strawberry smoothies. I chose to have a turkey Tuscany Sub with a side of tuna pasta shells and a cup of chili. Actually the shells and chili was Sonia’s idea. I guess she didn’t know that I had to attend Polar Bites at The Hyatt later. But how could I refuse? The scary thing is that I ate it all… and a homemade cookie to boot. My friend had the Chewy Nut Salad with dates, raisins, and sunflower seeds, carrots, Jack Cheese, pita and a side of miso dressing.
The entire lunch was delightful (as are the owners) and we are excited to revisit Sue’s in the near future. In the meantime it’s great to know that we can scope out their specials online daily at www.Sue’sNYDeli.com.
Top Photo (left to right): Lem Lem, Will, Sonia, Sue, Seganet
Bottom Photo: Federal Building