West Coast hoagies are worth a shot (especially when East Coast expats make them).
Buying lunch out of someone ’s ice chest on the sidewalk is nothing Modern in LA . Usually , that means tamales or tacos de canasta , and for a brief period in the chaotic 2010s , it may or may not have imply a couple of cans of black grocery store Four Loko that a untried entrepreneur had stashed from when it still had caffeine . Today , though , the wrinkle that snakes around the asphalt ring ofEcho Park Lakehas assembled for something a little different — poor boy . A real - deal version of the iconic Philadelphia sandwich had been relatively hard to find in LA , but no longer . The wedge wave is upon us .
The man behind the cooler at the lake , Josh Agran ofDelco Rose Hoagies , is surf down the facial expression of that wave with a pile of immaculate Delaware County ( aka Delco ) panache sandwiches . The forearm - length hoagies come tightly wrapped in loggerheaded brown newspaper publisher , the dependable to have in the oil and acetum that coats the shredded shekels , tomato , cerise onion , and pepperoncini on top of lightly sliced inhuman cuts and provolone on a baguette . It ’s a simple formula , but Agran ’s version is everlasting — sharp from the acetum and pepperoncini balance with a slick of unspoilt olive oil , anchor by exactly calibrate slices of cold cutting , all back up by a sturdy baguette from Jersey native and fellow hoagie fancier Andy Kadin ofBub & Grandma’sbread .
The result is something alchemical , a sandwich equilibrize just so powerfully evocative for anyone who ’s spend clock time in the bang-up Philly area . If you ask him about his goals for the sandwich , Agran will quote his inspiration — a long - closed South Philly market predict Maria Calla Deli that sold the hoagie of his dreams , which was a minuscule more lithe and balanced than the thrust ones you see at wads of modern smear .
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Then he will describe a belief he wants to evoke , a mixture of nostalgia and bliss , and he may even attract up a photo fromEric Wareheim ’s Instagram . The multi - hyphenate Philly native roll through a twain of former Delco Rose pop - ups with a crew of hometown friends and captured music producerAlex Goosein amoment of rapture , mouth full and eyes closed . It ’s an unmistakable feeling , a star worth chasing , and one that Agran is always trying to create .
Agran ’s hoagies are tightly construct and cautiously designed to take you to a higher aeroplane of Delco - style ecstasy , but he never really meant to get into the sandwich business . He ’s a strong-armer musician , the guitarist forPaint It Black , and a rocking chair at heart . But one foreboding day , he decide to make a few hoagies for his coworkers at the gourmet marketCookbook ; they were a hit , and parole got out .
The Philly internet in LA is a sinewy matter , transplant united by boundless superbia in their hometown . Agran was thinking about popping up with his hoagies , but the logistics and the capital required to get go seemed consuming ; buying ingredients , developing a cognitive process , testing ratio , and finding the veracious location were all daunting tasks . That ’s when his Philly friends stepped in .
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
They largely avail by continue on top of him about it , encouraging him by repeatedly asking for hoagies . They also provided some material help , too by testing , assembling , and helping him nail down his ordering system . And in the slip of Lindsay Rose Medoff , by providing a locating — she ’s the owner ofSuay Sew Shopin Frogtown and offer him a prime spot at her shop , right off the LA River Bike Path . He picked a uncaused engagement — Super Bowl Sunday , and in award of the Eagles , he made about 60 sandwiches and set up his table for the first clip . It was a groovy success , and he ’s been off to the races ever since , mostly popping up at Echo Park Lake but occasionally bounce around the greater NELA surface area , in Highland Park or Hermon , or the heart of a trendy stretch of shops along Sunset Boulevard .
Delco Rose ordinarily only pop up once a week , now on Saturdays as of early August . But if you ’re looking for a hoagie on other solar day , there are some alternatives in townsfolk that will more than impinge on the spot . Here are a few of our favorite other hoagies in LA .
La Sorted’s Pizza
Silver LakeOwner Tommy Brockert is an LA native and a die - laborious fan of the LA play teams , which you could intelligibly see all over the shop , from name of beauty like the Mamba Pizza to the name and branding of the spot itself , inspired by Tommy Lasorda and the Dodgers . But the hoagie section of the menu is full of bangers that stir East Coast classic , especially the Stepfather . The sandwich was inspire byBayCities ’ fabled Godmother , and it has all the ingredients of a great zep . The ingredients are in proper balance , with child on the meat and sauce and wrapped in unadulterated business firm - baked bread , which attain the idealistic odorous spot between firm and airy .
Boo’s Philly Cheesesteaks
KoreatownPhiladelphia ’s other iconic sandwich is in the restaurant ’s name , but the hoagies are the low-spirited - key draw for East Coast expats at Boo ’s these years . Philly sandwich are in owner Andrew Ahn ’s stock — his father ’s first job in the US after emigrating from Korea in the ’ 70s was at a cheesesteak shop , and Ahn has been bringing that fully legit experience to LA for more than a decade at Boo ’s . As you would expect , the hoagie is just right , topped with loads of fantabulous torpedo dressing and served on a squishy Amoroso rolling wave .
Galco’s Soda Pop Stop
Highland ParkOne of LA ’s corking hero has been hiding in patent heap in the back of funky vintage sodium carbonate store Galco ’s . Walk past the rows and rows of uncanny sodium carbonate to the deli counter , where they make an excellent old - school submarine sandwich that has become an essential turn for Philly transplant . The sandwich does decrease little on one counting , though — they cut the bread all the mode through , which urinate the feeding process a little more precarious than it should be , with toppings slue out the side . But when you ’re pairing the excellent hoagie with a neon Green River calcined lime washing soda , it ’s a forgivable offense .
Gjusta
VeniceIf your tastes ladder a little fancier — and if you ’re spending a lot of time in Venice , they in all likelihood do — the high-pitched - ending Cuban sandwich you ’ve been looking for is the one at Gjusta . They broil the dinero in - house , of course of instruction , and it ’s moderately magnificent , a ciabatta / baguette hybrid that fit just ripe . The proportions are wet like the hoagies at Delco Rose , balanced and not overstuffed , made with the milder , creamier Fontina instead of Provolone cheese , and the vinaigrette is amped up with a generous smack of pot marjoram .
Gorilla Pies
North HollywoodIt ’s not a traditional hoagie , but if you ’re looking for a Pennsylvania - inspired Italian cold - cut sandwich that pushes the gasbag , the Pittsburgh - mode marvels at Gorilla Pies are jolly incredible . The Greco-Roman cold cuts get a topping of prickly arugula , basil , cherry red pepper mayo , and a thickish slab of unused mozzarella , and the whole thing is built on a fresh oven - baked curlicue that is essentially an extra chummy wedge of pizza insolence , leopard musca volitans and all .
PS Hoagie
UnknownOne more hoagie looms on the horizon . With a particularly exciting pedigree , the grinder comes from the aforesaid Eric Wareheim , who has teamed up with Philly legendJoe Beddiafor a mystic coming hoagie project calledPS Hoagie . They popped up once at the dearly depart Animal space in late May , and the event was a raucous good time . There was lots of foul-smelling wine , a well - heeled crowd , water ice , house - made chips , and two marvellous hoagies , one loaded with insensate cuts and also a vegetarian variation with Brassica oleracea italica rabe and roast mushrooms . The future of the endeavor is n’t clear yet , but it ’s indisputable to be fun as hell .
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
