Sandwiches at Anita’s Gourmet Express

Sometimes, a deli sandwich is the only food that will suffice. I was determined to find a spot in Medellin that makes good ones.

I remembered passing a place on Calle 4 in the Oviedo section of El Poblado called Anita’s Gourmet Express, a place I later looked up online. I wanted to see their menu to get an idea if I would like what they have. With options from roast beef to chicken to salmon, I believed I had found a great place.

It took a while for me to get there because I don’t spend a lot of time in El Poblado, but after eating there, I wished I had gone sooner.

It was hard to decide among the roast beef, the pollo supremo (chicken supreme) and the salmón fresco (fresh salmon). I went with the salmon because I hadn’t eaten fish in a while. It was delicious.

The fish was fresh and it came with dill, mayonnaise, cucumbers, lettuce and tomato. The dill is an important ingredient. It always goes really well with salmon. The sandwich came on a baguette big enough to fill me up.

Now, let’s be clear about one thing: if you’re expecting a New York-style deli, you might be disappointed. I love places like Pastrami Queen as much as the next person, delis where they stack the meat almost a half foot high, where the potato knish is as good as it gets when you’re filling up on carbs.

But just because the food isn’t exactly the same at Anita’s, it doesn’t mean it’s not good.

It’s really good. Just expect to pay for it. Prices range from 12,500 pesos (about $6.25) to 24,000 pesos (about $12). My sandwich cost 16,500 pesos (about $8.25).

Normally i would have just eaten the sandwich and left but the postres (desserts) in the glass case were too tempting to pass up. I went with the cheesecake. I’ve had better, but the raspberries that came with it made it worth the cost.

The service was great too. It’s not like a U.S. deli, where you usually have to come to the counter to get your food when someone calls out your order. The people working there bring your food to you.

In some ways, it’s more like a restaurant, like the sister business next door, El Cafetierre de Anita, a gourmet place with a variety of expensive seafood dishes.

Someday, I’ll eat there too. But before then, I’ll have a roast beef sandwich.