Mario’s Meats and Gourmet Deli, located at 75-55 Metropolitan Ave. in Middle Village, honored New York City Republican Mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa with a sandwich named after him, “The Curtis Sliwa Hero,” with Sliwa visiting the location to try it on Tuesday evening.
The sandwich is the restaurant’s sandwich of the month, with less than two weeks to go before the mayoral general election on Nov. 4. It features grilled chicken, roasted red peppers, fresh mozzarella and arugula, with spicy calabrese chili spread on fresh ciabatta for $16.
“It is an honor to have a sandwich named after you. I mean, the ultimate New York salute is to have a sandwich named in your honor, especially by such a chef extraordinaire,” Sliwa said. “Of course the red peppers are for the red beret.”
Sliwa said the experience brought him back to working in his uncle’s butcher shop, where he was in charge of cutting sausage and veal.”
Mario’s Meats and Gourmet Deli Owner Joe DiGangi said Sliwa was “the only real New Yorker in the race.”
Sliwa heaped praise on the sandwich, saying that if it were his last meal, he would be content. He also made it clear that he is not content with dropping out of the general election, with his focus still on eating up the competition that is Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani and Independent candidate Andrew Cuomo.
Not long after his visit to Mario’s Meats and Gourmet Deli, Sliwa made a special appearance at the Queens Community Board 5 meeting that evening at St. Margaret’s Parish Hall in Middle Village. In addition to talking about the mayoral race, Sliwa answered questions from those in attendance.
