Porchetta...is it worth the wait?

[Sammy Diaz]

Its impossibe to get a seat in this joint...just curious if any CH'ers think the food is worth all the hassle?
Thanks!

[guttergourmet]

Since I couldn't celebrate Rosh Hashanah as I traditionally do at the Feast of San Gennaro (sorry-but I never went to Hebrew School), I stopped in at Porchetta. Sarah Jenkins of I Coppi, Il Buco and 50 Carmine Street fame is a genius. The porchetta was superb, garlicy with herbs and crackling and despite reports to the contrary mine was about 3 inches thick. The potatoes with burnt ends were sublime and I had complementary bruschetta with eggplant. Pure porky heaven. As good as a Tony Luke's Roast Pork Italian sandwich. I'm trying to convince them to add some Joe's mozzarella (which they offer as a separate sandwich) to the pork but apparently "real" Italians wouldn't do that though they said if I ordered one of each and combined them they wouldn't have me arrested.

[craig_g]

I've been twice now. Both times I thought the sandwich was very good, but not up to the hype (but I still plan to go back for it again). The crispy potatoes with burnt ends, though, are amazing and worth a trip from anywhere in the city and probably farther.

[erin07nyc]

It might be disappointing if you have to wait (esp if the quality suffers when it's busy). I've stopped in late evenings and really enjoyed the sandwich and brussels sprouts. Definitely worth it with no line.

[2slices]

I went once with no wait. It was fantastic, I'd wait up to 15mins, but I'm impatient.

[ExFlexitarian]

I may be the single voice of dissent, but I found the pork to be really dry, to the point where I got that panicky, bone-in-throat, half-chocking sensation when trying to swallow a bite. I also thought that the skin was way dried out, and uncomfortably crunchy (like risk chipping a tooth crunchy). The sides of braised chard and stewed white beans were good, but the pork is not worth the price of admission.

[HKFOODIETHUG]

I haven't had a problem with dried out pork but you are correct the skin is "risk chipping a tooth crunchy." I like it like that though :]

[rothsteg]

I was actually there at lunch when you posted. I and a friend each had the sandwich, and shared orders of cauliflower (today's special) and potatoes and burnt ends. We both thought it was terrific. It was weekday lunch and there was no line. If you're going to go at a busy time in good weather, you can call in your order and then take it out to Tompkins Square Park down the block, eliminating the hassle.

[silencespeak]

Porchetta's wonderful. My personal favorite thing there is the platter. Porchetta with beans and cooking greens. Mmm. Go at off peak times like early lunch on a weekday.

[hungrycomposer]

I think it's great. It's better when it's not crowded, though. I went on Sunday and it was packed, but three seats magically cleared for the three of us as soon as our food was up. I do think the food is prepared with a little more care when it's not a zoo. Even though I live in the neighborhood I think the food suffers when you get it to go,

[HKFOODIETHUG]

I find that the pork sandwich is still great when taking it home. I will need to try to eat in once!