Between Two Slices: White House Subs
Growing up in Connecticut, we called them grinders. Other folks call them hoagies, po’ boys or heroes. But when you walk into White House Subs, the storied, frenetic sandwich shop on the corner of Mississippi and Arctic Avenues in Atlantic City, you best be calling it a sub. Opened in 1946 by Anthony Basile along with his Aunt Basilia and Uncle Fritz Sacco, White House Subs has been serving up colossal sandwiches at reasonable prices for more than half a century. Still family owned, this restaurant remains true to its roots with man-size subs made for hearty appetites and no credit card machine in sight. White House is best known for its steak-and-cheese and Italian subs, but the menu boasts a long list of favorite combos such as meatball parm, tuna fish and even a cheeseburger sub.
I showed up mid-afternoon with some time on my hands, which was a good thing because I had to park three blocks away. It’s been awhile since I walked through a true, hard-nosed Jersey neighborhood. I couldn’t help but smile at the nameless bars on the corners and the groups of guys sitting around on the sidewalks talking trash, smoking cigarettes and spitting. I felt like I was walking through a Scorsese set.
As it was Saturday afternoon, the line was already out the door by a good six people when I showed up. I got a brief introduction as to how things work from a local girl standing in line. You either wait for one of the ten or so tables, or make your way through the sea of people to the far end of the restaurant and pick a number. Once your number is called you can place a to-go order. I somehow managed to find a seat at the counter next to the cashier, an elderly Italian woman and I watched the cooks with great anticipation. As much as I tried to make small talk with the cashier, she wasn’t having it so I focused my attention to the litany of famous faces on the walls… Boxers, actors, Dean Martin, Italian politicians and loads of Frank Sinatra shots covered every inch of wall space. I asked the cashier when the last time someone famous ate here and she pointed to table # 2 and said the man in the booth was from “some rock band called Steely Dan.” She seemed unimpressed and went back to yapping with one of her girlfriends.
Choosing between a pepper steak sub and the White House special was no easy task. When I heard about the hot-pepper dressing on the special, however, I went for it and ordered a “half” sub. I just didn’t have room for a full-size — made on a full loaf of Italian bread so long that the to-go subs stick out of their brown-paper sacks like a periscope. My half sub still took two paper plates to handle when it arrived. Loaded down with quality deli meats and glistening with the hot-pepper dressing, I dug right in. About an inch worth of salami, ham, cappacolla and provolone sat atop a bed of crunchy iceburg lettuce. Topping off the masterpiece were fresh tomatoes, onions and the hot-pepper dressing. I must say that the mix of oil with the spice and sourness of the pickled hot peppers took this sandwich straight into the stratosphere. Other than a few pauses to catch my breath and wipe the oil dripping down my chin, I wasted no time devouring this sublime sandwich. When the check came, I was shocked to see that it was less than $10 for my entire meal plus a drink. It was by far the best $10 I dropped in Atlantic City.
