Empire Deli

Big Eats from the Big Apple:
Empire Deli brings New York flavor to the heart of the Empire State of the South.
- Alex Bender

Soho. Manhattan. Studio 54. These may all be places in the Big Apple, but they are also all items on the menu at Empire Deli. Walter Foley and Laurie Irby recently opened Empire Delicatessen and Catering on Forsyth Road to bring New York-style subs down South. Thankfully, Empire Deli relieves us of our sore deprivation of things like gabagool, prosciutto, pastrami and other Italian ingredients found on a REAL sub.

Now, I’m no international food critic, but I am critical of food (even internationally sometimes). Despite what some people might think they know about food, I like to think I’m familiar with the best subs (hoagies as we call ‘em up North) and pizza in the country. See, up north of the Mason-Dixon, where I grew up, the mom and pop sub/pizza shops usually outnumber the gas stations in towns similar in size to Macon. The sandwich bread is made from the same dough as the pizza crust and you can grab a six-pack when you pick up your food.

Inside Empire Deli, the menu is drawn out artfully on large chalkboards that hang above the counter. All the meats and cheeses behind the glass display case are cut as you order. The Italian Stallion immediately jumped of the menu towards me, and I thought I’d go for a ride. Loaded with pepperoni, salami, ham, prosciutto, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, roasted red peppers and a balsamic vinaigrette, the Italian Stallion was an almost natural choice. I say an almost natural choice only because I would have liked to try about a half-dozen other things on the menu. The standard Italian sub is my usual choice back at home so this gave me something to compare it with. I ordered the foot-long for two bucks more and figured I’d end up leaving with half. If a sub’s good, it’ll still be a good leftover the next day.

I was impressed. The meat and other ingredients they use at Empire are top-notch quality, and they don’t skimp on the quantity. The roasted red peppers and balsamic vinaigrette gave The Stallion a unique taste that managed to deviate from the standard Italian sub without losing the basic concept.

The chicken Parmesan hero was another I had to try. If you can take an entire Italian dish and make it into a good sub, you’re doing something right. Empire nailed it with massive breaded chicken cutlets covered in sauce and melted mozzarella. The bread is baked fresh daily at Empire and is good but sort of generic as far as subs go.

They also feature a pretty impressive breakfast menu and a selection of omelets that rival their subs. If you don’t feel like ordering off the menu, you can pick and choose your own ingredients and bread to customize your sandwich. The wide array of chips, candy and snacks in front of the counter, along with a fridge of salads and dessert items, make rounding out a meal a breeze.

Salads bore me so I skipped straight to the tiramisu for dessert. It didn’t suck. It was light but still rich, which worked out for me since I was stuffed from my sub. There’s no soda fountain, but there is a cooler full of soda and sports drinks, and they also serve coffee for that late breakfast/hangover crowd. (Editor’s Note: At least he didn’t call it “pop”.)

The prices are a bit higher than you’d find at a franchise, but you get a lot more for your money at Empire Deli, both in the quality and quantity of food. Empire is a unique deli that gives the best sub shops up North a run for their money.

Eden'z

Eden’z Vegetarian Restaurant
by Laura Ryals

Normally, I am a meat and potatoes kind of girl, but I figured I would give Eden’z Vegetarian Restaurant a whirl—variety is the spice of life, right? On first glance, the Poplar Street restaurant is real low-key, plain and simple. But on second glance, I could see the charm. It has the sort of comforting warmth and closeness that brings people back to a neighborhood eatery. That’s important because Eden’z may be designed as an oasis for the health-conscious and vegetarian diners, but it has plenty of attractions for the curious carnivore, too.

Since this was the first time I had ever ordered anything from a vegetarian restaurant, I went with the special of the day: potato croquettes with dill sauce, curry rice, sautéed spinach and cornbread. I also ordered a strawberry-banana smoothie because those are always tasty. (They have 45 different health drinks—that’s no hyperbole either!—and several soy milk-based fruit smoothies.) The food was good, and the service was fast and friendly. If you’re a meat-eater and you aren’t paying attention, it isn’t hard to forget that you’re chowing down on an all-veggie meal.

This explains, in part, why owner Karen Andre is proud to point out that Eden’z has been in business for four years, which is quite an accomplishment considering that they’ve done so in a location with low traffic. That’s doubly impressive considering the fact that us Southerners rarely resist adding one type of pork or another to everything we eat. And it’s worth saying that their success in Macon has led to a recently opened location in Warner Robins, too.

If you’re looking to recreate some of this magic at home, they’re even willing to share some of their kitchen secrets with you.

“We offer cooking classes on a monthly basis,” Karen says, adding that Eden’z also caters and participates in health seminars.

The top three most-requested items, according to Karen, are the gyro, curry and sesame chicken. (The “meats” are made with gluten-free soy products.) If you want to try a variety, she suggests the lunch buffet that they offer Monday thru Friday from 11am to 2pm, and on Sunday from 12p to 4p. The buffet is served in the remodeled space upstairs that’s full of deep, rich colors. It’s perfectly quiet, making for an excellent place to catch up with friends and co-workers over a meal. Meanwhile, the downstairs dining room provides a perfect view for people-watching.

During my visit there, someone asked about the wheat grass smoothie. Hopefully I can get up the courage to try that one day. Also, if I hadn’t been so full I would have tried one of the desserts. I noticed that they have bread pudding, which I love. I have never been able to figure out why other restaurants around town don’t serve it.

Though the idea of eating vegetarian may be a little scary, I must admit that my overall experience was good. Eden’z is a great place to check out if you are looking for something different and affordable.