Antonio's Pizzeria and Walnut Deli: 527 Walnut

For some reason I always avoid the places on the east side of walnut. Never been to Vivace, because its name reminds me of 5th grade piano lessons. The owners probably have no idea what it means. Or maybe they do, and just have an inflated sense of how great the place is. Anyhow, nestled close by is a nice little lunch spot called Antonio's.

Antonio's has a menu a mile long. I have mixed feelings about this, mostly because it took me 10 minutes to find a freaking sandwich without mayo on it. Mayo is disgusting. All the sandwiches are named after celebrities, which is nice but unnecessarily dates the place about 5-8 years before the present. I mean, who has hear the name 'Ally McBeal' since like 1999? As you can imagine the McBeal is a low-cal alternative, which is relatively funny. Anyhow, their sandwiches are really good, made with higher quality meats, cheeses and bread--this already puts it head and shoulders above most other sandwich places downtown. That shouldn't be the case, but it is.

Prices are decent, about what you would expect. My last visit there I ordered a nice sized turkey sandwich with stuff on it, a bag of chips, a delicious fountain soda, and a cookie for about 8 bucks and change. Normally I would get the sandwich and nothing else which would put me in the 6 dollar range. But I just want good food, I'm not gonna split hairs over three bucks unless it tastes like crap or is served by annoying people.

Antonio's advertises itself as a pizzeria, but I have not had the pleasure. Pizza is really not a lunch time food unless you're talking slices. I don't even know if they are open in the evenings, this really doesn't seem like a dinner restaurant, but then again, nothing in the river market really does. But I'll warrant the pizza is good here, just judging from the quality of their ingredients.

In summary, I'm a fan of Antonio's because the selection is good and the sandwiches are made like the give a shit about what they are doing. That shouldn't be too much to ask for. in most cities, Antonio's would be just a good, run of the mill option, but here it outshines the rest of the crappy competition. I plan to go back often.

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