Over time and quite without trying we become experts in the comfort foods of our childhoods. We turn to our familiar refuges, passing by novel and more interesting items on restaurant menus with barely-concealed guilt. We are defensive, thinking: Fuck it, I just want what I want! Or we embrace our nascent expertise, thinking: Maybe they make it different here—I’d better find out! And this is how, over the years, you get to know a thing or two about chicken parmesan sandwiches.

Parm, the casual offshoot of Torrisi Italian Specialities, is all about that saucy, cheesy, bear hug of a sandwich, whether your preference is for chicken, meatball, or eggplant. Taking a cue from the awesome but reliably-packed lunch menu at Torrisi, Parm’s menu includes toothsome veggie sides, clams, ziti, calamari, and nightly specials ranging from fried chicken cacciatore to pork chop pizziaola. But don’t kid yourself. You’re here for a chicken parmesan hero, delivered in a red basket, with a napkin dispenser at your elbow. Make sure it’s full. You will need it.

You can order the sandwich on a roll ($8), hero ($11), or dispense with bread and get a platter with ziti or salad ($15), but between the roll and hero I’d suggest the sturdier hero. This was a very good chicken parm, with a generous amount of tangy tomato sauce and a perfect ratio of melted fresh mozzarella on a juicy chicken cutlet with slightly crunchy breading. The italian hero was very fresh, but about halfway through eating it, the bottom was a soggy mess. It still tasted delicious, but with chicken sliding out with every bite, it made for a very sloppy meal. For an example of bread that stands up to the chicken parm, check out Best Pizza in Williamsburg.

A side dish of roasted brussels sprouts with sliced onion, dusted with parmesan ($5) turned me on to a new, and unexpectedly green, comfort food. Even more surprising, I had the best ice cream cake I’ve ever had for dessert. A wedge of Parm’s house made ice cream cake came with chocolate, strawberry, and pistachio tiers layered with crunchy, but yielding chocolate cookie, and was topped with fresh whipped cream icing ($10). Normally I will not waste precious stomach space on ice cream at a sit-down restaurant, but seriously, don’t miss it. I started off the evening with a mulberry jam daiquiri ($12), which was delightfully sweet but not too sweet, and finished up with an Ommegang Rare Vos draft beer ($8). Our check, dinner for two plus dessert and drinks came to $80–pricey for what started as a trip to a sandwich shop, but probably fair for New York City once you add in the drinks.

One potential drawback is this place’s popularity. The restaurant is small, squeezed into a narrow Nolita tenement with original-looking tile floor, a 50s soda shop style bar in front, and a few tiny tables overlooking the kitchen in back. The wait for two at about 8:30 on a Friday evening was an unendurable two hours (they will take your phone number and call when a table is ready), but on a Monday at 7pm it was only twenty minutes. If you just want to try a sandwich, hit up their takeout service. But don’t pan to travel far, lest the bread disintegrate before you reach your destination.

Parm
248 Mulberry Street between Prince and Spring
Sun-Wed 11am-12am, Thurs-Sat 11am-1am