Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Pastrami Wars: the Barrio

"We get around," says Mike. "And this place is good."

Ron and Mike

He and Ron are with CSI scaffolding, working on the big Mercado shopping project that's going up across the road here in Barrio Logan.

Mike's eating the seafood sub. Ron's got a turkey and swiss. We're at the Ponderosa Deli Market (1897 National Avenue, 619-235-450).

The old house where the Ponderosa is, well, housed

Gilbert, sitting outside, recommended the roast beef sandwich

Me, I've got the Ponderosa's pastrami.

Like Mike and Ron's sandwiches, it cost $5.25. Large would be $6.75.

Kinda interested in the pastrami because just the other day I was at Tommy Pastrami's downtown, having this exact same thing.

How do they compare? Maybe the pile of meat isn't as high, but the whole thing is lusher, more liquidy. Scrumptious, actually.

Ricardo's the artist who made this little beauty. Been here years. Almost as long as Ellie, the gal behind the counter.

Ellie, with my sandwich

Ellie says she and her husband Eddie came from Jordan 26 years ago. They and their son Chris have been running this ever since.

"The barrio has changed a lot since then," she says. "It's so much better these days."

A couple of customers say they appreciate their prices and the fact that $5.25 for all sandwiches includes tax. Is that cool or what?

Their biggest customers? Probably the guys from the fire station across the road. But everyone working on the Mercado site seems to be coming, too. Maybe because Mike and Ron have put the word out.

If anyone should know, it's a construction worker, right?

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

San Diego Fix it Clinic, Gaslamp Holiday Pet Parade

Events December 14-December 18, 2024

"We get around," says Mike. "And this place is good."

Ron and Mike

He and Ron are with CSI scaffolding, working on the big Mercado shopping project that's going up across the road here in Barrio Logan.

Mike's eating the seafood sub. Ron's got a turkey and swiss. We're at the Ponderosa Deli Market (1897 National Avenue, 619-235-450).

The old house where the Ponderosa is, well, housed

Gilbert, sitting outside, recommended the roast beef sandwich

Me, I've got the Ponderosa's pastrami.

Like Mike and Ron's sandwiches, it cost $5.25. Large would be $6.75.

Kinda interested in the pastrami because just the other day I was at Tommy Pastrami's downtown, having this exact same thing.

How do they compare? Maybe the pile of meat isn't as high, but the whole thing is lusher, more liquidy. Scrumptious, actually.

Ricardo's the artist who made this little beauty. Been here years. Almost as long as Ellie, the gal behind the counter.

Ellie, with my sandwich

Ellie says she and her husband Eddie came from Jordan 26 years ago. They and their son Chris have been running this ever since.

"The barrio has changed a lot since then," she says. "It's so much better these days."

A couple of customers say they appreciate their prices and the fact that $5.25 for all sandwiches includes tax. Is that cool or what?

Their biggest customers? Probably the guys from the fire station across the road. But everyone working on the Mercado site seems to be coming, too. Maybe because Mike and Ron have put the word out.

If anyone should know, it's a construction worker, right?

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Rare Form’s pastrami sandwich

Would I step over other pastramis to get to this one?
Next Article

Barrio Logan: Eat your fruit!

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader