I don't know what I expected, exactly, the first time I ordered a sloppy Joe at Tommy's Deli. The menu description on the chalkboard ("turkey, roast beef, coleslaw, Russian dressing, three pieces of rye") made it clear that this was not the sloppy Joe I fondly remember from my childhood. Still, the kid in me hoped that there would be some resemblance.
Not a chance. In fact, it's hard to imagine two more different sandwiches, regardless of name. The sloppy Joe of my childhood recollection is the familiar classic: a wrist-drippingly juicy hash of ground beef, onions and peppers in a mildly spicy tomato sauce, served hot on a burger bun. The sloppy Joe at Tommy's Deli is a jaw-stretching triple-decker on seeded rye, served cold.
While my inner child might have been disappointed, the grownup struck pay dirt. The star ingredient of the sandwich, presuming you've ordered the roast beef version (ham is also available), is thinly sliced and chopped rare roast beef, piled on thick enough to supply at least two meals' worth of protein. The meat isn't sauced, but it's plenty moist as it is, and Russian dressing and creamy slaw make the sandwich even juicier. Add the turkey and rye, and you've got a sandwich that doesn't resemble a classic sloppy Joe as much as something you'd get in a Jewish deli. Maybe owner Tommy Hurley should have named it something like the Bronx Bomber.
