Winnie’s menu has grown, and it now sports a half-dozen or so sandwich options in addition to a couple burgers and an obligatory wrap in addition to a number of other slightly whimsical and always well-crafted choices. I ordered a new sandwich for me, the East Coast Italian. It’s their take on the classic sub or hoagie, which I am partial. A lot of folks are partial to that style: it’s launched several national sandwich chains, after all.
The East Coast Italian has about a dozen components: mortadella, ham, mild capocollo – or cabbacall in my grandfather’s dialect or the cruder-sounding gabagool on the menu that’s familiar from The Sopranos – sliced provolone, a bit of tangy cherry peppers, relish, lettuce, tomato, sliced red onions, mayonnaise, oil and vinegar, and whatever exactly Italian seasoning is all within a fresh sesame-seed-topped hoagie roll from local Luloo’s bakery. Those all play very well together. It’s a great mix of flavors, with enough enjoyingly contrasting textures and easily-good-enough ingredients, notably the bread.
It's delicious and fairly substantial in a whole order, not quite tasting like a classic Northeast sub but something very well-suited for just about any cold sandwich-lover here. And something else to keep in mind when visiting Winnie’s. It’s been tough for me to go wrong here food-wise. Though it is a little out of the way for most for lunch – and that parking – with the quality of the sandwiches and other casual items and an approachable, comfortable setting, keep Winnie’s in mind for a lunchtime meal, especially on a nice day. And it is a straight shot on the light rail if officing downtown. You can be tempted by a cocktail, too.
Winnie’s
3622 Main Street (just north of Alabama), 77002, (713) 520-0660
winnieshouston.com