La Grotta Del Fromaggio – The Cave of Cheese
Located next to Fratelli Bakery on The Drive is La Grotta Del Fromaggio… or the The Cave of Cheese.
When I was younger, I thought that they only sold cheese here. But then, on a visit to Fratelli, I noticed that it’s more like an Italian grocery store that also serves things like freshly made sandwiches (much like Benny’s Market in Strathcona).
I also noticed that they sell those cute little Italian candies that you get at some restaurants. I just love these things and they come in an assortment of colours.
They have small pouches of these that you can buy or, as I learned, you can actually buy a huge bag of these (I think I had bought a 2kg bag once).
The thing is that these candies don’t last forever (especially in heat) so it’s better to just buy a small bag unless you’re got a really big sweet tooth.
Back to the hand-crafted sandwiches… you can choose pretty much everything that you could want for your sandwich including the type of bread and all of the toppings. I picked a medium sub ($7) which they brushed with olive oil and vinegar, edam cheese, mortadella, chipotle mayo, dijon mustand and a little bit of all of the veggie toppings (including lettuce, tomato, red onions, roasted peppers, artichoke hearts, green olives, hot peppers, and what I think was pickled eggplant).
Then they grill the whole thing up in one of their panini presses. This place gets really busy during the lunch rush and I have to say that the sandwich was pretty good if you’re looking for an Italian-style sandwich.
1791 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, BC
Posted on March 16, 2014, in Candy, Italian, Restaurant Review, Sandwiches and tagged Candy, Commercial Drive, Farfallina Fruit Candy, Food, Italian, restaurant review, Sandwiches, Vancouver. Bookmark the permalink. 6 Comments.
Penny and Rusty's Food Blog 
I love the great selection of deli meats that you can get on your sandwich at La Grotta. You can really taste the superior quality of their ingredients compared to that of the big franchised sandwich shops.
Mortadella is my absolute favorite. I’m so there.
If you like mortadella, you should try a “Benny Burger” from Benny’s Market in Strathcona.
!!!!!! Looking it up right now!!!
Renzullo Market (1370 Nanaimo Street) also offers made to order paninis (including mortadella). For $4.50 you get your choice of meats and cheeses plus mustard and mayo. You can then buy any other other toppings from their deli bar to be added to your sandwich. A good sandwich, but a rather awkward method to order it.
Mmmm!!!! Thank you so much! Being new to the city, trying to find out the good spots!