Sandwich Month Stop #2: A Nampa Deli That’s Been Doing It for Decades

I’m spending National Sandwich Month checking out locally owned Treasure Valley sandwich shops, looking for those places where sandwiches aren’t just something buried halfway down the menu.

Stop number one took me to Fat Guy’s Fresh Deli. For stop number two, I headed to downtown Nampa and a place I’d been looking forward to trying: Old Country Sausage German Deli.

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And this one is a little complicated.  Because I really liked this place.  I’m just not sure I loved it as a sandwich shop.

This Place Has Some Serious History

Old Country Sausage isn’t some new place that popped up six months ago.

When I stopped in, I had a chance to visit with the owner, Dimitri, who told me the business has been around for 50 years and moved into its current downtown Nampa location about eight years ago. He also told me they’ve been named Nampa’s Best Deli by the Idaho Press for six years running.

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Spend five minutes inside and you can understand why people love the place.

It’s homey. It’s friendly. And the deli case is fantastic.

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There are sausages, European-style meats and cheeses, and all kinds of German and European foods that you aren’t going to find at your average grocery store. A lot of the sausages are made right there, and this is absolutely a place I’d come back to when I want something different to throw on the grill or some authentic German goodies.

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But this series is about sandwiches.

And that’s where things get a little more complicated.

Four People, Three Different Sandwiches

I brought reinforcements for this stop.  My wife Sara came along, as did my father-in-law and my friend Ryan, so we had four people ordering lunch.

I went with one of the classics: the Reuben.

Sara and her Dad both ordered pastrami sandwiches, while Ryan went with the hot pastrami.

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Ryan also convinced me to order double meat on my Reuben. At first I thought, Really? Double meat? That’s going to be ridiculous. Turns out, I’m glad he talked me into it.

The regular portion on the sandwiches we received was essentially one slice of meat folded over. And we’re not talking about some enormous inch-thick deli slice here.

My double-meat Reuben wasn’t exactly what I’d call overstuffed.

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Here’s Where I Struggled: The Value

I want to be very clear about something.  The sandwich tasted good.  There wasn’t anything wrong with the flavor of my Reuben. Everyone in our group enjoyed the taste of what they ordered.

My issue was the amount of food for the price.  You’re looking at roughly $17 ($13 +$4 for extra meat) for my sandwich, and that’s the sandwich. If you want a side, that’s additional.

I added a small macaroni salad ($4), while Ryan tried the German potato salad ($5), putting lunch pretty quickly over the $20 neighborhood.

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And that’s where I have to judge this differently than I would if I were simply reviewing Old Country Sausage as a deli.

If I’m walking in to buy some terrific European sausage, meat, cheese or specialty foods?  Absolutely.

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If I’m specifically looking for a sandwich and comparing my options around the Treasure Valley?  For me, the value just wasn’t there.

So Would I Go Back To Nampa For Old Country Sausage?

Yes!  Just probably for something different.

That’s the strange thing about this stop. I walked out impressed with Old Country Sausage German Deli, even though it probably isn’t going to be near the top of my National Sandwich Month rankings.

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As a German deli and specialty market, I’d give this place an A. The selection is fun, the people were friendly, there’s a ton of history behind the business, and there were several things in that deli case I wanted to take home.

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I’d happily go back for sausages and specialty meats, and I’d like to explore more of the German foods they offer.

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But if a friend asked me, “Where should we go grab a really good sandwich?”

Based on this visit, Old Country Sausage probably wouldn’t be my first recommendation... not because the sandwich tasted bad. It didn’t.

It’s simply that when I’m spending around $17 for a sandwich, I expect a little more sandwich.

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And that’s part of the fun of doing this series. I’m not looking for the fanciest place or even necessarily the most famous one.  I’m looking for that local Treasure Valley sandwich that makes you take a bite and immediately think:  Yep. I’d drive across town for this again.

The search continues.