Fat Sal’s is “makin’ sandwiches” over in Pacific Beach

By Henry Kittle
STAFF WRITER

Look out Rubicon, there’s a new sandwich shop in town and its not for the weak hearted. Fat Sal’s, located on Garnet Avenue in Pacific Beach, is the cutting edge culinary vision of three friends from New York.

The founders are made up of food lovers Jerry Ferrara, better known as “Turtle” from HBO’s hit series Entourage, Joshua Stone, who began working in an Italian Deli at age thirteen, and master chef Salvatore Capek also known as, “Fat Sal.”

The three entrepreneurs first opened Fat Sal’s in Westwood, LA. on the outskirts of UCLA’s campus with a simple goal in mind: to bring sandwiches as delicious as they are over the top to food savvy West Coasters.

Common ingredients in their signature “Fat Sandwiches” include steak, chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, french fries, onion rings and crispy bacon all neatly layered on extra wide, hero garlic bread.

The business model is ideal for college students. Fat Sal’s is open daily from 11 p.m. – 3 a.m. and offers a plethora of drunk munchies and greasy hangover cures.
USD students have certainly picked up on just how tasty the Fat Sal’s food is.

“I always eat the first half [of his sandwich] really fast and then slow down on the second. The sandwiches are heavy but so good” said senior Ian Blom.

The shop opens up to the street and the walls are covered with massive flat screens featuring all major sporting events going on around the world.

Besides their ultra saucy, meat stuffed sandwiches, the menu also has a selection of salads, wraps, hot dogs and few leaner sandwiches for the more health conscious customers such as the Albacore tuna.
But, the meats permeate almost all aspects of the food. For example, there is a Korean BBQ steak salad as well as bacon cheeseburger and buffalo chicken cheese french fries.

Where meat cannot be added, substitutes are made to keep things interesting. There are five specialty milkshakes on the menu, one of which includes vanilla ice cream, a whole slice of New York cheesecake, strawberries and graham cracker crumbs. The options for additions are numerous and certainly keep the sandwiches interesting.

“The sandwiches have everything you never knew you wanted in a sandwich” said junior Christian Rosier.

The pinnacle of Fat Sal’s menu is the “Big Fat Fatty,” a sandwich that makes professional eaters quiver.

The colossal beast of a sandwich is made up of cheesesteak, five cheeseburgers, pastrami, chicken fingers, bacon, mozzarella sticks, fried eggs, jalapeno poppers, fries, onion rings, chili, marinara, “fat” sauce, all melted onto a 27 inch garlic hero.

The sandwich costs $49.95 and is only available for their food challenge. If, however, someone miraculously finishes the monster in 40 minutes or less, the sandwich is free. Best of all, the winner of the challenge may create and name their own “fat sandwich.”

Fat Sal’s New York inspired slogan, “We’re making sandwiches over here” says it all. Fat Sal’s has attitude and they’ll keep making sandwiches whether you like them or not. With new Fat Sal’s being built in Hollywood, CA. and Austin, TX. there’s no telling how big Fat Sal’s can get.