5 of the greatest sandwiches in Monmouth County

By:  | August 26, 2024 |  Dining |  Monmouth County

By Ryan Loughlin

Finding a sandwich in Monmouth County isn’t very difficult. They’re everywhere - from the most highly revered delis and sub shops to the grimiest of gas stations. But, of course, the sheer volume of options makes the task of finding a truly great sandwich that much more daunting.

Daunting, but not impossible.

So, to save you the time of eating your way through countless underwhelming meals, we have taken on that task ourselves. And after an exhaustive and incredibly filling search, we’ve hand-selected our five picks for the greatest sandwiches in all of Monmouth County. Here they are, in no particular order:

The Taliercio, Taliercio’s Ultimate Gourmet, Middletown

Ok, if you are looking for an Italian deli that puts out sandwiches that are completely over-the-top and visually outrageous, yet still contain ingredients of the highest quality, Taliercio’s in Middletown is the undisputed king of this category. Each sandwich they prepare is comically large and is easily enough food for two or three meals, but attempting (and failing) to take it down in one sitting is half the fun. Their menu is dizzyingly long, and it may take you 10 or 15 minutes just to decide on which sandwich you want, but that’s ok, as the friendly staff behind the counter will likely toss you a few of their signature fried raviolis while you wait in line. It’s hard to go wrong here when it comes to sandwiches, but if we had to pick just one, we like the store’s namesake, “The Taliercio” — an utterly towering Jenga-like stack of ham, fried chicken cutlet, muenster cheese, tomato bruschetta, pesto and creamy Italian dressing all resting between a halved loaf of semolina bread.

Taliercio’s Ultimate Gourmet is located at 500 Route 35 in Middletown. TalierciosDeli.com

The Philly Cooper Cheesesteak, The Galley, Asbury Park

The Galley in Asbury Park has been steadily gaining a buzz thanks to its world-class menu of pizzas (they offer just about every style you can think of, from traditional to bar pies to Detroit-style, pan pizzas and more, and they knock EVERY ONE OF THEM out of the park).

And while the pies tend to hog the spotlight, the sandwiches are works of art as well. In a NJ pizzeria landscape crowded with ho-hum cheesesteaks, the Philly Cooper Cheesesteak off the secret menu at The Galley is on par with or better than anything you’ll find in the city of brotherly love. Pat LaFrieda ribeye topped with Cooper Sharp American cheese and grilled onions all on a lightly toasted seeded sub roll. These simple ingredients meld together in perfect harmony in a way that is all but unmatched in the cheesesteak world.

The Galley is located at 1313 Memorial Dr. in Asbury Park. TheGalleyAsbury.com

California Chicken Cutlet, Sorrento’s Subs, Freehold

A staple of Freehold for decades, Sorrento’s splits itself physically into two separate spaces, with one side selling breakfast and the other handling lunch and dinner in the form of some seriously tasty subs. All the standard cold cuts are available, but we love the hot subs, with the standout being the California Chicken Cutlet sub. Its less about fancy ingredients or Instagram-able visuals, instead relying on a simple, yet brilliantly executed combination of crispy deep-fried chicken breast, American cheese, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion and mayo on an impossibly crusty, crumb-laden sub roll. The roll is the closest thing we have found to the famous Leidenheimer rolls that grace the best po boys in New Orleans. The chicken sandwich as a concept has been riding high for the last few years, but Sorrento’s was on board long before the bandwagon began rolling.

Sorrento’s Subs is located at 690 Park Ave. in Freehold. SorrentosSubs.com

The General, The Speakeatery, Asbury Park

This small shop on Cookman Avenue in Asbury Park has consistently cranked out so many of the best and most delicious sandwiches we have sampled in recent years that narrowing it down to just one was borderline impossible. You could easily make a case for the incredible “Ol’ Good Time Charlie,” a strictly pre-11a.m. treat that seamlessly marries the cheesesteak with a traditional breakfast sandwich (cleverly adding a hashbrown to the pile); and you could also argue that nothing could possibly top their seasonally-produced Thanksgiving sandwich, known as the “Turk Diggler,” a mashup of smoked turkey, bacon gravy, roasted garlic parmesan mashed potatoes and a cranberry aioli all on a “bun” made from homemade stuffing patties. (Yeah, it’s incredible.)

But despite all the competition, our pick ultimately had to go to The General, a sandwich concept so brilliant and so obviously destined to be a hit that it blew our minds nobody had thought to do this years ago. A supremely crispy thigh of General Tso’s chicken rests between two “buns” constructed from steamed rice formed into patties (yeah it seems like it would instantly fall apart, but somehow it doesn’t.) Topping the chicken is a fabulous combo of broccoli cabbage and a scallion ginger slaw which delivers a cool crunch to balance out the sweet heat of the Tso. The internet damn near blew up when this thing first debuted a few years back, and now we understand why.

The Speakeatery is located at 705 Cookman Ave in Asbury Park. TheSpeakeatery.com.

The Killer, Colts Neck General Store and Deli, Colts Neck

Even if you are one of those rare folks that can’t stand sandwiches, we would still recommend a trip to Colts Neck General Store and Deli anyway. The building (which opened its doors in 1849 and is celebrating its 175^th anniversary this year) is absolutely dripping with folksy charm from the barn-like red exterior to the absurdly cozy interior which is packed to the rafters with just the type of knick-knacks and tchotchkes you would expect to find in a place like this.

But folksy fun can only take you so far, and the main reason we keep returning to this spot is for the utterly fab breakfast sandwiches. They run the gamut from your basic pork roll, egg and cheese to more extravagant choices such as The Cougar, which boasts a lineup of pork roll, bacon, eggs, cheese and a hashbrown all on a round roll. But those really looking to take the phrase “a hearty breakfast” to new heights would be foolish not to opt for “The Killer,” a mammoth sandwich consisting of eggs, sausage patties, bacon strips, ham, pork roll, breakfast potatoes and American cheese. This behemoth could only fit on a sub roll, which is exactly what they serve it on. Plan to skip lunch.

Colts Neck General Store and Deli is located at 171 County Road537 in Colts Neck. Facebook.com/ColtsNeckGeneralStoreandDeli