Some delis have enough sandwiches on their board that you could come once a week for several years and never order the same thing. Then, there are shops like Arrigo’s, a cute Ridgewood Italian deli and restaurant offering a tight seven sandwiches during the day, and some small plates and pastas at night. The cold options here are more exciting, like a behemoth turkey deluxe that’s dripping with a mixture of pickle juice, mustard aioli, and horseradish. If you’re planning a beach day, or a park picnic, these forearm-sized sandwiches are easily enough lunch for two people.
The checker-floored interior is a nice place to wait for your sandwich (you can sit and eat here if you’d like), but when the candles start flickering at night, it becomes a super cozy place to hang out with a bottle of wine and a constantly changing menu of regional Italian food. If you live in Ridgewood, it’s a great weeknight option for when you just can’t be bothered to cook, especially so on Wednesdays, when they always have one wine bottle that’s half-priced.
Food RundownItalian Combo
Paper-thin, high-quality meats are the secret here. The red wine vinegar in the italian dressing cuts through all the fat from the coppa, soppressata, and mortadella. It’s great to split.
photo credit: Britt Lam
Turkey Deluxe
Be careful when you unravel this turkey sandwich—it’s dripping with juice from the freshly roasted turkey meat, and shaved dill pickles. It’s great, especially with a healthy smear of their horseradish and mustard aioli.
photo credit: Britt Lam
Dinner
Arrigo’s changes their dinner menu pretty much every week, but you can always count on regional Italian dishes. We loved our charred cabbage with a tangy pesto rosso, labneh, and pine nuts, and our al dente paccheri with rabbit ragú tasted like very comforting home-cooking.
photo credit: Will Hartman
Dining and Cooking