When someone tells me I HAVE to try out a place they’ve discovered, I generally at least look it up. So I don’t know why I waited four years to check out Flatiron Deli.
About four-and-a-half years ago, Flatiron changed hands. Not long afterward, I started hearing about their delicious sandwiches, as though someone had tossed a pebble into a pond and the ripples had finally reached me. Time and time again, someone would say, “You HAVE to go there for lunch.”
For some unknown reason, I never went. Flatiron is open only for lunch, and open only on weekdays, so maybe I was jealous of the hours they keep. Then a Chattanooga attorney said to me, “You HAVE to try this place. If you order their BLT, you won’t be able to eat all of the bacon,” he said.
His was no ordinary recommendation; he was throwing down a challenge. So the die was cast, as they say, and a few days later, I found myself walking through the door of the 706 Walnut Street deli, curious about the fuss.
I wasn’t the only one. Literally every table except one in the slightly cramped, brick walled space was occupied, so I claimed it and then made my way to the counter to order. Having looked at www.Flatiron-Deli.com, I already knew what I wanted: The Dagwood Combo. The BLT would have to wait.
Soon, I was walking my chips and drink back to my table and began waiting for the sandwich maker to call my number.
The weather outside was beautiful: the sky was clear, the temperature felt just right, and everything seemed alive. It was one of those perfect spring days that makes downtown Chattanooga the best place in the world to be. I thought about the walks to Flatiron I’d be taking this summer if the sandwich was as good as I was hoping it would be. I looked at the old but stately architecture that lines the nearby streets. And I listened to the deli’s patron’s talk about this and that as they enjoyed spending a little time away from their desk.
I wasn’t exactly lost in thought when Shnooks called my number, but my mind had drifted. Shnooks is one of the owners of Flatiron. When the owner of a sandwich shop is elbow deep in meats, cheeses, breads and condiments, chances are you’re going to get something closer to extraordinary than ordinary.
Did I ever. The Dagwood comes on a dark hoagie stuffed with warm roast beef, melted Swiss cheese, bacon, spicy mustard, and Hemphill coleslaw.
Now, Flatiron Deli has a fairly extensive menu that includes classic favorites, specialty sandwiches, salads, soups, baked potatoes, and daily specials. But my experience at the place is centered on the Dagwood, so I’m going to take it slow as I describe what went through my head as I took my first bite.
The roast beef and melted Swiss would have been enough to make me happy. The meat tasted like “the good stuff” you get from a deli, not like something that comes in a package. What’s more, the generous helping of cheese was the perfect complement to each bite. But the deliciousness did not stop there. The thing that gives the Dagwood its kick is the combination of the salty bacon and the coleslaw. “Wow,” I said to my lunch companion, who looked at me from behind the cloud of steam rising out of her loaded baked potato. “This sandwich is phenomenal!”
Yes, I said “phenomenal.” I’ll be the first to admit I tend to use hyperbole when describing food I enjoy, but don’t we all? Besides, even if I’m overstating how good the sandwich is, one or two notches below phenomenal is still way up there on the scale of tastiness.
As I regretfully swallowed the last bite of my Dagwood, my summer walks to Flatiron became a certainty. I want to swap my chips for one of their homemade sides. The bacon roasted sweet potatoes, cheesy potato casserole, and creamy Dijon pasta salad all caught my eye.
Flatiron Deli is one of those Chattanooga sandwich shops that are squeezed into a space between other businesses, and if you want to drive there, you’re going to need to take quarters so you can pay for parking. But if you work downtown, why not wait for one of those perfect spring or summer days and then walk there? Either way, you HAVE you try them out.
(Thank you to the attorney who suggested I try Flatiron. Your praise was well-founded. I’ll take up your BLT challenge during a future visit. If I see you there, we’ll see who leaves bacon on his plate.)