Monica's Mercato

Fellow Foodies (: this deli is an experience worth every minute of wait time. As soon as I saw the dried meats hanging in the window and I walked in with gusto. Upon walking through the turn style entrance you have entered a different century. I got lucky as there was barely any wait on Sunday at 2pm. You can see workers behind the deli counter creating sandwich masterpieces. But I was only interested in buying salumi and cheese by the pound. If you wait patiently, one of the workers will make eye contact with you and then you order. I decided on Genoa salumi and Manchego cheese. What a joy to watch her slice my salumi "see through" thin. The Manchego was left in a block cut. Oh my Ghandi, my first bite, I was in love. Come here ready for a great bite of meat, cheese, sandwich, etc. They sell lots of other goodies and bev' alcoholic and non alcoholic.

I walked in opportunistically upon reading a sign that read "Best Italian Sub in Boston". I had to try it! At $20 a sandwich, the prices are reasonable considering the largeness and fullness of the subs. What's unique about this deli service is that they slice the meat right in front of you! A very cool experience. The Italian sub was very good, the onions, pepper paste and balsamic being the right amount of heat and sweet, which pair with the meats perfectly. Personally, I think the sandwich is a little too meat heavy - but that's just my personal preference. I find deli meats to be a little too salty and I woke up with very swollen eyelids the next morning from all the sodium.Regarding the space, it's not a sit down place. More like a pick up and go kind of vibe.Is it the best Italian sub in Boston? It's the only one I've tried so, by default, YES!

this happened over a year ago, but I just remembered and got so angry that I needed to write a review immediately. I heard they had the best Italian sandwiches in the city so I went in person and put an order in at the counter. after I did so, the workers all started talking to each other and having a good time (which I'm totally fine with), but they did so without making my sandwich at the same time. then some randomly girl walks in (not a worker) and all the workers greets her and starts chatting with the girl over the counter. mind you, my sandwich was not being made. they took orders as people came in and then continued to chat. 30 minutes go by and the random girl leaves, then they started making my sandwich.sandwich itself was ok iirc. better than a subway sandwich, no better than any other Boston Italian sandwich.

Don't tell my family I said this, but this was one of two "food highlights" of our vacation in Boston this year. I'm not kidding when I say we stumbled onto this place, but what's that saying "God takes care of drunks and fools!" Monica's is the picture perfect provision store in all of Boston's North End! The sandwich I had, the Italian Sausage Special, was THE BEST SANDWICH EVAH! I'm not kidding.If you're in Boston, come here and buy lots of stuff, including sandwiches. If you're anywhere else in the whole wide world, get on a plane, train, automobile or boat and come here and buy stuff!The ambiance (I usually frown on such associations) is like something out of Godfather #1. This is a must-see North End Boston Italian treasure!

They have very large and robust sub sandwiches. Two people can easily share one. Very quaint Italian deli where everything is sliced order. Although they are slow moving and the line may be out the door it is still worth it. Stick with the Italian sub. There list is long but go with what they do best. I go the chicken parm and it was just okay.

Nothing better than a great Italian deli doing it right. My favorite sub, the Italian. You know I had to come get one! This thing was loaded and fresh and delicious. They slice all the meats as you order. Definitely recommend!

$18 for a ginormous and delicious sub! I wish I could have tried more of their sub combos, but they don't offer any half sized subs. Worth checking this place out in Little Italy

Best Italian sandwich ever! The end. Seriously, don't bother ordering anything else. This is it.

Picked up some sandwiches from here during our honeymoon. My husband got the Italian, and I got the turkey. Absolutely delicious and just about the size of a small child. We also picked up some Italian rosemary crackers (DELICIOUS on top of homemade chicken noodle soup by the way). 10/10 recommend!

Let me preface, I never write reviews on here despite eating out often, but felt inclined since my sandwich was honestly underwhelming, and I was pretty disappointed since It is a $20 sandwich.I was in the area on a Friday afternoon around 2pm, I was in a rush to find something to eat, and had searched "best sandwiches in Boston" on Google and TikTok, Monica's came up so many times as a must try. I did another search on Yelp to confirm and indeed the stellar reviews to support were there - especially for the classic Italian sandwich.I chose to ignore few 2/3 star reviews that said the meat was too salty, not enough oil or vinegar on the bread, flat flavor and stale bread. I mean, the ratio of bad to good reviews appeared to be 1 bad for every 10 great. Every social platform, yelp review, google article said lines are out the door during lunch so I pre ordered for pick up around 2pm and got there around 2:15 and surprisingly there was no line. I went up to the cashier and got my sandwich, quick in and out. SANDWICH REVIEW: - I ordered the classic Italian that they are known for which is stacked with PROSCIUTTO, MORTADELLA, SALAMI, PROVOLONE LETTUCE, TOMATO, ONION, OIL, BALSAMIC, HOTS, PICKLES, some kind of pepper paste-The sandwich is huge, definitely shareable for 2 people and a good deal- All the rare 2-3 star reviews on here mentioning things like "stale and dry bread, "not enough oil or vinegar," "salt bomb" all turned out to be true - The sandwich was dry and overly salty. The meat was fine, but the salty pepper paste, combined with the lack of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, made the whole thing taste flat - lacking moisture and acidity. After a few bites, I took it apart and saw that there was barely a tablespoon of olive oil and balsamic vinegar drizzled in the middle of the 12-inch sandwich. Overall, it was disappointing and one-dimensional in flavor. I ended up eating just a few bites of 1 half of the sandwich and tossing the restCONSIDERATIONS:-There were some other reviews that had similar experiences where they had too much balsamic vinegar or barely any, or lacked meat, forgot the hots, so overall it seems to be a lack of consistency in how the sandwich might be made. - It might have been an off day for whoever made the sandwich or perhaps ordering for pick up changes things-On the rare chance I give it another go, since clearly it's so loved by many, I'd try to order in person so I can watch them prepare it and request adjustments as it's being made