Allie’s Adventures in Eating: Lunch(es) at Parm

Recently, Chris and I had lunch at Parm, which is the new offshoot of the New York City restaurant scene darling Torrisi Italian Specialties. If you’re not familiar with Parm’s sister restaurant, they’re well known for their uber juicy house-cured turkey and hand pulled mozzarella, in addition to their popular prix fixe dinners. We were looking forward to Parm’s opening for weeks, as they’re offering most of the old lunch crowd favorites from Torrisi–plus some new staples. To ensure we would sample as many items off the menu as possible, we took two lunch trips in a row.

One of Parm’s specialties is their calamari, as they only use fresh squid — never frozen. Since fresh calamari is not always available, they have a sign to alert diners when they’re able to order this delectable appetizer. Chris was thrilled to see the sign lit up when we arrived.

We loved the execution of this dish. The fried rings of glee were lightly coated and tossed with some peppers for spice. They were paired with marinara sauce and what tasted like a Tabasco remoulade — highly recommended. Chris ranked this as a “top 5, possibly top 2” version.

Keeping with tradition of trying as many items as we could on the menu, we ordered an array of other appetizers, and each was delicious in its own right.

1. B&G Poppers:  similar to jalapeno poppers, these were B&G pepperoncini poppers. They were coated in rice flour, stuffed with peppers and bechamel sauce, then paired with a spicy thousand island sauce on the side. I would order these over normal jalapeno poppers in a heartbeat.
2. Mozzarella Sticks: made with fresh mozzarella, these are top notch. Each bite oozes with cheese, and the coating is very crunchy–with a little spice. The marinara dipping sauce didn’t stand out, and I wished we received a little more for dipping.
3. Salami and Egg Bread: salami bread topped with pesto, salami, soft scrambled eggs and Parmesan cheese. As the flavor exploded in our mouths, I lamented that they didn’t serve an entree order– this was too tasty for a two bite dish.
4. Roasted Brussels Sprouts: as I may have mentioned in a previous article, Chris and I enjoy trying brussels sprouts at each new eatery, simply because they can be prepared with a variety of fun ingredients. Parm’s version were roasted, tossed with red onions and smothered in Parmesan cheese. We could taste quite a bit of black pepper too, as they had a slight kick. I would give these an above average rating.

The starters were excellent, but we were really there for the main attractions: their famous Turkey Sandwiches and Eggplant Parmesan with Baked Ziti.

1. Turkey Hero: **please note, that we took our turkey sandwiches to go because the other dishes were so filling. They are just as good at home as they were in person during our previous outings. ** I ordered mine on a hero roll “as is”, which comes with turkey, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, spicy sauce and mayo. Their turkey is so juicy on its own, but on a hero roll with all these ingredients–it’s 100 times better. It’s really “turkey on crack”.
2. Turkey on a Roll “Pro” Style: Chris loves to think of his version of the Parm turkey sandwich as “Pro-style”, as he orders his with just turkey, spicy sauce and mozzarella. He heats the sandwich in the oven at home just until the cheese is melted, and the result is what I consider an oozing mess. While I can certainly give his style originality points, I prefer mine “as is”.
3. Eggplant Parmesan with Baked Ziti & Ricotta: there is a reason this establishment is named Parm. Their eggplant parmesan is fantastic. Layers upon layers of breaded eggplant cutlets, fresh mozzarella, marinara sauce and Parmesan cheese. Each slice of the baked ziti is crisped on all four sides “so you don’t have to fight for the end piece”. The ricotta topping on the ziti was so creamy, and there were sprigs of fresh basil for added punch.