Popped my Bay City cherry....

[schrutefarms]

Yes, it's true, I had never eaten at Bay City Deli before. (Well, actually once, but I'm not counting it because I was a teenager and it was an un-memorable experience). So today I found myself with an hour to kill in Santa Monica. I decided to get a sandwich for lunch. I walked in to a PACKED deli (they were calling out the sixties, and my # was 95). After waiting for around 20 minutes, I ordered a small Godmother, with the works (mild peppers). I would have LOVED to sample some salads, and browse for some cookies and candies and pastas for a while, but I was on a tight schedule, and the overall energy of the place was kind of frenetic, so I just wanted to get my sandwich and split. So finally, after paying $6.35 (steal!) for my sandwich, I went outside to eat. It was DELICIOUS!!!!! The bread, the mustard, the meat....I could have ordered a second to take home! (And I kind of wish now that I had!) The ONLY complaint about the Godmother (and it's totally not a big deal) is that because the bread is harder than what's in it, everything was trying to slide out while I was trying to tug a bite of bread off. But like I said, not really a big deal. I never go to the Westside, but it looks like I'm going to have to make the trek occasionally, for I am now a Bay City BELIEVER!!!!

[groover808]

Popped my cherry too yesterday around 6:30 PM. Maybe because of the "holiday" or near closing, a ton of parking available. Maybe waited 2 minutes after being directed to get a number (guy I asked a little gruff, but not mean). I received a phone call so it had time to rest for about 10-15 minutes before we ate it outside. Definitely the bread makes the sandwich here (like that double baked rye at Langer's), kind of like a cross between a bready french loaf and dutch crutch. I detected a bit of sourdough flavor, but could be wrong. Got it spicy and it was a bit of a messy juicy thing, but tasty. Wish it was a little more packed with meat a la East Coast syle, but this is GOOD!

[Azizeh]

I live pretty close to Bay Cities and I am a fan. The only problem is that on more than one occasion, by the time I get my sandwich home it is disgustingly soggy. I've avoided this by asking for no peppers and then buying them on the side. Their hot counter is also pretty good. I like the meatball sandwich and the spaghetti and meatballs plate. They also have some interesting candies, my favorite being the "Happy Hippos." I know that if they have hot bread out (which is just about always) that it's impossible for my boyfriend to not buy a loaf and eat half of it in the car.

[Frommtron]

This is precisely why I very respectfully disagree with Dommy's preferred method of consumption. By the time you let the sandwich "rest," it's just sogged out.

I look at it this way, sometimes you get the fresh bread and the sandwich is truly divine. Sometimes you get the bread that's been sitting for a bit and it's got a little too much chew. then it's just very good. Them's the breaks.

I suppose you could buy a fresh loaf and have then make a sandwich from the warm bread, but I think they'd club you to death with your bread. Or at the very least the sandwich would end up costing more than it's already substantial amount.

[schrutefarms]

Okay, so this is what really happened with my sandwich....
I ate half of it there. Very chewy bread. I ate the other half at home, after it had been sitting for, oh, four hours or so. Really really soggy, but still delish. I think a good 10-15 minute wait would be perfect.

[Frommtron]

Hmmm. Could be the reason I like my second half better than the first!

However, if you are lucky enough to get a sandwich made with a loaf fresh out of the oven, dive in immediately. The crust is nice and crispy rather than chewy.

Either way, certainly one of the treasures of the westside.

[Dommy]

"Hmmm. Could be the reason I like my second half better than the first!"

Ya see... ;DDD

--Dommy!

[Frommtron]

:) Well, sort of. Any longer than 10 minutes and it's bread pudding . . . in a really bad way.

[sarcasmsk]

I mostly have the soggy bread issue with the chicken parm. When it's a cold sandwich with the works, it can sit for a few mins...by the time you pay and get out of there in a lunch crowd, it's perfect.

I also posted a topic a little while back about the place... http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/573753

[Frommtron]

Right. A few minutes MAX and everything is great. I just wouldn't keep if sitting around for hours and by the next day you might as well just put it on a new roll.

[nosh]

I love Bay Cities. I don't mind the wait for the cold sandwiches when it is busy; I like watching them work and there are always interesting things to look at and people to watch and talk with. But I avoid it during prime lunchtime because the parking situation outside can get so nasty and downright frightening. I often buy a couple of rolls to bring home, but do realize that they go stale if you just look at them crosseyed, so I bag them up and warming them for a minute in a warm oven helps to revive them a bit. Newcomers to Bay Cities should realize there is a separate line for the hot foods to the right nearer the door, and hardly ever a wait there. The daily special hot combos are a great deal.

[schrutefarms]

Maybe because it was my first time and the Gods were smiling down on me, but I got a meter right in front-beats waiting in the line of cars tring to park in the lot.

[Frommtron]

I often park at the Vons across the street. Sometimes they have a security guard during peak hours, but then you can get a spot by the Denny's. It's half a block away but that Bay Cities lot is tough to take sometimes.

[Dommy]

The bread issue is why it is KEY to the experience of the Godmother to give it a nice rest ... That way the dressing really penetrates the bread and the other fillings get a chance to settle and there is less sanwich slippage and more of flavor bomb all around..

--Dommy!

[broncosaurus]

I always liked the bread for the chewy texture. The hot peppers complete the deal.

[schrutefarms]

Good to know-will let it rest a bit next time.

[broncosaurus]

I'm wondering what the calorie and sodium counts are for the godmother. This is always nice info to have (all the fast food joints do). I think I might be able to come close if I had one in front of me. Their "po-boy" as well for that matter.