Certe’s Thanksgiving Dip is the Greatest Sandwich Ever Created

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Ok, well maybe that is a bit of an overstatement… but between this, the duck sandwich at FreeFoods, and the Mexican Cheesesteak from the El Rey del Sabor cart– this Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge thing is turning out to be the best thing I’ve ever done for… well… for myself.  Seriously.  I can’t believe how well this is going, and after trying Certe’s “Thanksgiving Dip” (on 55th btw. 5+6th), I am ready to declare this challenge thing a complete success- even if not another sandwich gets made.

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Unlike a standard “french dip”, where the bread is thick and can sop up the gravy, this “dip” is more like a burrito, with a thin tortilla shell. Strange, but it totally works. It’s $8.95, but a total gut bomb- and completely worth the money. Guaranteed you will not leave hungry. Mashed potatoes is the first layer to go down in this thing, and gets topped with thick chunks of turkey. On top of that goes a cornbread stuffing and a tiny bit of cranberry chutney. The whole things gets rolled, and grilled, and comes with a cup of gravy for dippin’. (You didn’t think that was coffee did you?)

Sorry the the close-up couldn’t be more “food porn’ish”, but my camera ran out of batteries- so I had to take this one with my phone. But you can get the idea.

The Thanksgiving kitchen sink sandwich is nothing new, but there is something about this one that really goes above and beyond the sum of its parts. The mashed potatoes could have made the thing too heavy (and for some people they might) but for me it was just right (and this is coming from someone who finds mashed potatoes to be the least exciting kind of potato you can get… I know- it’s shocking but true.) You could taste the perfect amount of salt and pepper and seasonings, and that tiny bit of sweetness from the cranberry chutney added the “mmmm, that is so good” moment of every bite. Of course the cup of gravy didn’t hurt either. I could go back and eat another one of these today.

One final thing… I have always found Certe to be a mildly intriguing version of the standard Midtown deli. Not only does their food look good, but they do a lot of interesting things… enough to have gotten me to consider eating there (although I never got around to it until now.) But the thing that puts the place over the top is how nice everybody is. I’ve never seen anything like it in all of Midtown. They know all their regular customers, and it is a total party in there at lunch time… so much so, you forget about how incredibly cramped it is to order and pay for your food. I had the other member of the Midtown Lunch Buffet Team with me, and they were totally cool about it- even though we were taking up a ton of room. They even offered us a free brownie. (Oh, maybe that’s why I liked the place so much.) And they didn’t know I was from Midtown Lunch. I just came in and ordered the sandwich just like any regular customer… they are literally that nice to everybody. The one negative… they don’t have seating unless you order from a waiter, but the Sony Atrium is just one Ave. away, and the perfect place to eat when it’s cold out (on 55th btw. 5th+Madison).

Oh, and one more thing. They have free brownie samples at the front (I had 2), but anybody can actually get a free brownie just by signing up for their mailing list. (The cards are also in the front.) This could be the greatest place of all time. I will definitely be back, and not just for the Midtown Lunch Sandwich Special.

Certe, 20 W 55th St. (btw. 5+6th), New York, NY 10019,    212-397-2020

41 Comments

  • My work gets Certe to do all our catering for events. It’s pretty good.

  • I have added this to my list of lunch stops to make soon. Sounds excellent! Thx again for the reporting.

  • Zach, you are absoulutely right about Certe. The people who work there are the nicest ever and their attitude makes one want to go back again and again. And the food is good. Not the cheapest ever, but pretty darn delicious!

  • That sounds awesome! The sammie looks fantastic! I could never eat something that glorious though, i would need a nap afterwards!
    MMM, free brownies!

  • The Turkey dip is the bomb

  • ALL I COULD SAY IS GOBBLE GOBBLE

  • …….:) a gobble has a WHOLE diff meaning here.

  • Zach, after that gloriously fatty duck bomb on Friday i’m going to have to wait a week to try this equally stupendous looking creation and I haven’t even gotten to the mexicans yet

    First Harry, now 3 more babies worthy of your loins – you are a virile god

  • I only eat Turkey twice a year. Thanksgiving and when that’s the only sandwich left at Walgreens. I just had the sandwich. It was really good. The Turkey was tender. The cranberry chutney gave it a bit of sweetness. And the stuffing gave it a lot of flavor. The gravy was very tasty too. I’m stuffed like a Thanksgiving turkey. I highly recommend it!

  • I cannot believe you allowed your infant son to eat one of those sandwiches, and even worse, you allowed him to comment about it here. How does he know he only eats Turkey twice a year, anyway, since he isn’t even a year old yet? My co-worker agrees with me.

  • It sounded great to me too, so I took a trip up there (from 37th St) today for lunch to find out that they didn’t have any. Is this some sort of elaborate hoax?

  • Seriously? Did they run out?

  • I went at 2pm and they ran out!!

  • Don’t know if they ran out or what…I started to hulk out so I had to get out of there before someone got hurt.

  • TurkeyGate!!!

    “There will be no whitewash at midtownlunch!”

    Sweaty top lip Zach?

  • Hello Midtown Lunchers,

    We had them today and sold out pretty quickly. We will be fully prepared to not sell out for the rest of the month.

    Our apologies,

    Cer te

  • Gosh, Zach. You’re like the Oprah of food. One mention from you and sales go through the roof. Bravo, most powerful one!

  • Just spoke with Edward from Certe on the phone. He indicated that the reason for the short supply is the fact that all the turkey is cooked fresh. I told him that the freshness is definitely welcome and appreciated. He promised that this would not happen again and insisted that I introduce myself when I stop by to try it for myself. It is obvious that these people care about every customer and take quality control seriously. Thus, without even trying the dish, I throw my support behind this establishment wholeheartedly. What a pleasent surprise to find people who actually care.

  • I guess I was lucky enough to pickup my sandwich before they ran out. It was pricey, but very delicious. The staff is terrific and the brownies were tasty … I’m going back to sleep (heh, heh).

  • Yes, i agree too.

    And so does my Co-worker.

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