‘East Coast-style’ sandwich shop serves house-smoked pastrami, homemade pickles in Tacoma

Since moving to Tacoma in the late 2000s, Trey Beattie has missed one particular thing from his upbringing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and that’s sandwiches.

You might wonder how that’s possible considering the number of restaurants that do, in fact, serve sandwiches here, not to mention the handful of sandwich shops that have their loyal regulars who will tussle over their favorite. But anyone who has lived on the East Coast, and the Northeast especially, will tell you: The sandwich game here just isn’t the same.

I might have a soft spot for what Beattie and his partner Megan Lafler are pursuing at Sandwich Starr, which opened last month at 102 N. G St., because I was also raised in Pittsburgh. I, too, often miss the easy access to delis and pizzerias that also serve bulging hoagies and cheesesteaks. In developing the menu, the couple wanted to invoke those East Coast traditions while honoring their West Coast home.

For Beattie, that has translated to toasted sandwiches (available in half or whole) like the flagship Starrk, featuring roast beef and salami with brie, tomato, red onion and a sweet chili mayo lathered on a French hoagie roll. The League combines mortadella, turkey and ham with white cheddar, cucumber, red onion and sweet-hot mustard. A new number, the White Rabbit, has a nam jim jaew aioli (with an assist from neighbor Moshi Moshi and their chef, Alice) with roast beef, prosciutto, green pepper and artichoke hearts. The vegetarian-friendly Johnny joins mozzarella with avocado, kimchi, bell peppers, that sweet chili mayo, gochujang and microgreens.

Those little touches — house sauces, microgreens from De La Mesa Farms and Nil’s Kimchi, both Tacoma-based — and unexpected flair help Sandwich Starr stand out.

They also smoke their pastrami in house because Beattie couldn’t find a source here — at least not one that was cooked “in a way that I consider the proper way,” he said at the shop in November. “Every time I eat it, it kinda tastes like home.”

After a rub of garlic, black pepper, mustard seed and onion, he roasts the meat for around 10 hours, in an indoor smoker, until it’s tender, and always uses thick slices. Try it in the Sir Robot with dill havarti, tomato and Dijon.

Another homemade star here: pickles, fermented for a few days in 20-pound batches, four buckets at a time. Every sandwich comes standard with not a measly quarter but a whole, entire pickle. Beyond the juicy crunch, they are surprisingly spicy thanks to a plethora of garlic.

Beattie was adamant about serving a whole pickle, Lafler said.

While she works an administrative job during the day, Beattie has worked in the restaurant industry, as a server and manager. He’s also a program developer and was a trivia host, which is how he got into the sandwich game. Sandwich Starr was the resident restaurant inside Edison City, the South Tacoma beer bar that closed earlier this year. They decided to search for another space and landed in the Stadium District.

Anthem Coffee occupied the unit for several years, giving up in 2023 only to briefly return. The main entrance is actually on 1st Street, across from Poquitos, Stadium Thriftway and a certain sandwich chain.

“I was never worried about Jimmy John’s being across the street,” said Beattie.

In addition to prioritizing local products, he has taken full advantage of the kitchen and hopes to expand the offerings, potentially baking his own bread. (The long rolls are currently from Macrina, delivered daily along with pastries.) It’s also more than just a sandwich shop: They brew coffee and espresso with beans from Tacoma roasters Naomi Joe and Outer Dark, tea from Mad Hat Tea, pour local beer — currently Odd Otter and Narrows, and wine from Structure Cellars.

“We really want it to be a community, all-day, hangout space,” said Lafler. They plan to add more local art and live music, comedy and perhaps trivia nights.

The shop recently launched morning hours, serving coffee, of course, but also made-to-order breakfast sandwiches — a rarity in the area. The flagship Breakfast Starr combines a fried egg and bacon with white cheddar, a little mayo and spinach on French bread. Two feature that kimchi and the Hollow the house pastrami.

The Costello is a fun, sweet-and-spicy take on a nut-butter-and-jelly, served warm: Nutella, brie and bacon-habanero jam on a challah bun.

SANDWICH STARR

▪ 102 N. G St. (main entrance 702 N. 1st St.), Tacoma, 253-223-3222, sandwichstarr.com

▪ Tuesday-Saturday 8 a.m.-9 p.m.

▪ Details: all-day sandwich shop with coffee, beer and wine; sandwiches $8.50-$10 for half, $14-$22 for whole (breakfast $7-9); online ordering and delivery available

▪ Happy Hour: 4-6 p.m., save on cheese bread, beer and wine

This story was originally published November 10, 2024 at 5:30 AM.