I love a good sub, don't you? Circa 1941, Benedetto Capaldo, a deli owner in New London, Connecticut, made a living by furnishing the nearby Groton submarine base with sandwiches. His creation was named after his best customers and the submarine sandwich was born. They aren't hard to find anymore. While quality might be a question from some places, the sub sandwich and all of its creative variations are abundant. That wasn't always the case though. As a boy, my father (perhaps sensing my future as a food geek) used to take me to a little Italian deli that made a wonderful sub with just the right amount of everything on it. It was in the same plaza where mom grocery shopped so I looked forward to grocery night when dad and I could steal away for our sandwiches. In those days, there was no Subway or grocery store deli counter so you were forced to go to an Italian deli. Those were not, however, on every corner in rural Florida. But this little shop in Spring Hill, about 90 minutes north of downtown Tampa, made one helluva sub. Owned by a first generation Italian-American, this guy could make a sandwich. To-go was not en vogue yet, so dine-in was the option of choice. I recall the sandwich being served in a red plastic basket with checked paper and filled with chips.

This article appears in Apr 15-21, 2009.