Best Hoagies In The Region Are At These Delco Spots, Philly Mag Says

DELAWARE COUNTY, PA — When thinking of food, outsiders always associate the Philadelphia area with cheesesteaks.

But local know another kind of sandwich is truly king in the region: hoagies.

No, not subs, not heroes, not grinders, or whatever else other parts of the country call them. Here, they're hoagies.

And a few spots in Delaware County are serving up some of the best in the area, according to Philadelphia Magazine.

Writers Bradford Pearson, Regan Fletcher Stephens, and Victor Fiorillo came up with a list of the "25 Essential Hoagie Shops."

"Maybe there’s some tiny spot down on Wolf Street that we missed, or a Delco shop you went to as a kid after Little League," they write. "But in a city of endless hoagie choices, these are the spots you can always count on.

Among the 25 spots were Ro-Lynn Deli in Brookhaven, Sangillo’s Farm Fresh Produce & Deli and Pagano’s in Drexel Hill, DiCostanza’s Sandwich in Boothwyn, and Mike & Emma’s in Folsom.

Here's what they said about each:

Ro-Lynn Deli — 3407 Edgmont Ave., Brookhaven

Between the laundromat and the Boost Mobile store, you’ll find a stack of Liscio’s boxes — 16 cartons high sometimes, waiting every day to be refilled with hoagie rolls. Pass by Hoagiehenge and into the deli, and you’ll be greeted by the first meat slicer, which inexplicably sits right next to the cash registers. Such is life at Ro-Lynn, which has dedicated every square inch of floor, wall, counter, cooler and even ceiling to making the best damn Italian food in Delco. Their signature Godfather hoagie (on a Liscio’s seeded, of course) starts with a meat-prov base beneath the veggie layer. Topping that is the Delco meat roll — a second layer of meat plopped on top of the lettuce, tomato, onion, and long hots. Like the shop itself, it’s overflowing.

Sangillo’s Farm Fresh Produce & Deli — 3801 Garrett Road, Drexel Hill

Yes, a great hoagie needs great bread. And a great hoagie needs great cold cuts and cheeses. But you can have great bread and great cold cuts and cheeses and sloppily slap them together, haphazardly tossing condiments hither and yon, and that does not a great hoagie make. Construction and method are hugely important, and this Delco spot is staffed with hoagie engineers who meticulously craft your sandwich just so. Our fave: a two-foot-long Uncle Tony Italian with long hots and actually sharp (reaaallllly sharp) provolone.

DiCostanza’s Sandwich — 1930 Market St., Boothwyn

Augie DiCostanza is the third generation of DiCostanzas to own this spot that’s one of the last Real Delis before you cross into Delaware. He served his first customer at age eight, standing on a box to reach the counter and make the sandwich, and those decades of experience show. Step up to the counter any time of day and you’ll spot Augie hand-slicing bright, glistening tomatoes to order. How he finds decent tomatoes in the middle of winter is anyone’s guess, but here, they shine — they’re so in demand that he charges a couple bucks extra if you want them on your cheesesteak.

Pagano’s — 1216 Township Line Road, Drexel Hill

If you’ve ever been to a Delco event with a hoagie platter, chances are it was from Pagano’s, the go-to when you need to feed 100 people. We like that we can get a turkey Caesar hoagie here, which is exactly what it sounds like it is. And they’re very serious about their Italian hoagies — so much so that they have nine versions. There’s even what is, essentially, an Italian hoagie stromboli on the extensive menu, which also includes some mmm-inducing tomato pie you’ll want to take home for later. Truth be told: We ate it on the car ride home.

Mike & Emma’s — 601 MacDade Boulevard, Folsom

If Mare of Easttown was more accurate, Jean Smart would have been hiding a Mike & Emma’s hoagie from the rest of her family, not that pint of Ben & Jerry’s she tucked into the frozen-veggie bag. Get the Italian Special, with capicola, ham, prosciutto, Genoa salami and provolone, and a t-shirt, with a slogan that might as well be the headline for this story: “It’s not a sub. It’s a hoagie.”

See the full list of the 25 essential hoagies in the region here.