DiPasquale's Marketplace

What We Ate

Nate- Old World Italian with oil and vinegar (sopressata, cured capicola, prosciutto, fontinella cheese, tomato, and homemade olive spread): 5 out of 5 stars
Jack - Real Italian with oil and vinegar (capicola, mortadella, salami, and pepperoni, provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, hots, onions): 5 out of 5 stars
Alec- Sicilian fried rice ball stuffed with ground beef, mozzarella, and peas: 4.4 out of 5 stars

Today we headed downtown once again (we've taken close to 10 trips back and forth on I-83!) towards  Canton so that we could grab lunch at esteemed Italian deli Dipasquale's. I myself have been to the other store in Towson and can say that both are equally delicious and equally superior to any other deli in town. I can't speak for my fellow Senior Project companions, but for me DiPasquale's today provided to me one of the best Italian cold cuts I've ever eaten, and I eat a lot of cold cuts. Every ingredient was so incredibly fresh and clearly the product of a well run Italian deli/grocery store. You could simply notice by the crunch of the warm Italian bread and freshly sliced cheeses and meats that these guys take their food seriously. Not only did everything behind the deli counter look absurdly appetizing, but even the imported shelved goods in the store were enough to make even a non-cuisine-savvy chump appreciate the freshness and quality. You know a place is good when you want to buy more after your meal for the ride home. We grabbed a steamy hot baguette and gladly overstuffed our already bulging bellies on the drive back. Dipasquale's is for anyone in the mood for freshly sliced, off-the-vine, out-of-the-oven Italian lunch food. Guy's really leading us to some great places!

-Jack

Although not as glamorous as the sandwiches Jack and Nate ordered, my food was certainly delicious.  It offered a balanced meal of ground beef, mozzerella and peas encased in a ball of rice that was deep fried to golden perfection.  This was covered with a healthy ladling of some homemade tomato sauce that really tied the dish together.  I have to say, although it seemed smaller than my friends' stuffed sandwiches, it was a hearty stick-to-your-ribs kind of plate.   The tomato sauce had a handful of harmonious spices that obviously had been tweaked after years of family cooking tradition.  I truly believe that the sauce could have been served on a leather shoe and the dish would still taste good.  It reminded me of my grandmother's sauce, although hers is a little more sweet.  The outside of the ball (shaped more like a tear drop) featured a phenomenally crunchy shell that served as a good foil to the textural monotony of the tender ground beef and rice inside.  I really did not notice the peas until I was almost finished wolfing the dish down, but I suppose on this trip I will need to fit in vegetables any way I can.  I wish the ground beef had more spice and the dish had more mozzarella, but overall I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to pick up a quick and filling meal for only $5.
-Alec

The Old Italian (Yes, that is cheese)

Walking into DiPasquale's feels more like entering a museum of Italian food than just simply a great deli.  That's because the store does not just include a deli with freshly made Italian specialties but an entire grocery store filled with European, and mostly Italian, imported products.  For lunch I ordered the Old Italian (large) for around nine dollars.  When the waiter delivered the sandwich to our table, I was impressed with the array of deli slices, which includes sopressata, cured capicola, and prosciutto along with fontinella cheese.  While all of the meats were delicious, what made this sandwich was the crunchy bread and the homemade olive spread.  The first word that comes to mind when tasting these integral components of the sandwich is rustic.  It made me feel as though I were eating this Old Italian in an Etruscan square rather than a shop in Baltimore.  The bread was fresh and was the perfect casing for the meats and cheese.  The olive spread gave a fantastic tartness to the sandwich which complemented the flavors of the meats.  Sharing this meal over a large bottle of Orangina, I could understand why "It's an Italian thing" is DiPasquale's slogan.  You will have to make it to 3700 Gough St. in Baltimore, MD to find out why by trying their food.

-Nate

Legendary baguette and hat

An expansive Italian marketplace