The Astorian Lunchbreakers, left to right: Mathias Lehman-Winters, Jeanne Huff, Anne Williams, Olivia Palmer and Ysabella Sosa. Not pictured: Jasmine Lewin. Photo by Jeanne Huff

Sometimes you have to break the ice with a new crew and I don’t know of a better ice-breaker than a free lunch. So, to launch our first official newsroom meeting, we ordered in from the Peter Pan Market & Deli up on the hill. By the way, if the tsunami hits, that’s where I’ll be heading.

And it turns out the name of the place — Peter Pan — was sort of inherited.

“It felt like changing (the name) would be a betrayal to the community,” said Co-owner Sheena Martin, via email. She and Co-Owner Kristen Rimell run the place. Martin said the store and the neighborhood were actually named Peter Pan after the Peter Pan cannery that existed on the Columbia at some point in time. “It has nothing to do with the Disney cartoon, which is what a lot of people assume.” 

Martin said the building itself is over 100 years old. “I believe it started as a grocery store, then became a butcher shop … then a butcher and deli, and it evolved into the model you see now about 40 years ago.”

Martin said a few months ago, a Peter Pan fan travelled from several states away to be at the deli for his 70th birthday. “He told me his father had been a butcher here and he showed me a photo of his father standing in the front of the building with four other butchers, all of them in their uniforms,” Martin said. “It’s an amazing thing to be a part of an actual time capsule, a piece of Astoria history, and to share these memories with the people who breathe life into this building.

“I always like to make the joke that we don’t really own Peter Pan, but we’re more like its caretakers,” said Martin. “It’s a living part of the community. It’s our job to make sure it’s well cared for and here for generations to come.”

Thank you, Sheena and Kristen, we here at The Astorian think you’re doing a great job.

 

Anne Williams, customer service/office coordinator: Peter Pan’s roast beef sandwich — a satisfying classic with a twist

This was my first sandwich from Peter Pan Market, and I would definitely order it again. It had a generous helping of perfectly seasoned roast beef and slices of provolone (a favorite cheese of mine) on a sub roll. It was dressed with mayo, lettuce, tomato, red onions, and horseradish cream cheese spread. I must disclose that I am a picky eater. So, I was a little leary of the horseradish cream cheese spread, but it was actually fairly mild. It gave the sandwich just the perfect hit of heat. I am also one of those odd folks who doesn’t care for red onions, so those were removed. Overall, this was a very satisfying version of the classic roast beef sandwich and I would be happy to eat it again!

This sandwich also came with a side of potato salad. As I have already mentioned above that I am a picky eater, it will probably come as no surprise to you that I am also funny about potato salad. My idea of a good potato salad is one that is light on vinegar and dill pickles. This potato salad had just the right hint of both for my taste. The potatoes were cooked well and the celery and dill pickles provided the ideal crunch factor. I would definitely eat it again, no arm twisting necessary. Heck, I’d order a larger container next time! 

Ysabella Sosa, reporter: Good salami and tasty macaroni 

I’ve only been in Astoria for 2 weeks. During that time, I heard that the Peter Pan Market & Deli “had the best sandwiches in town.” So I was excited to try their “The Working Man” sandwich.

The best part of my $16.50 sandwich was the salami. As a former pescatarian, the taste of the thin-cut salami brought me back to those summer days where I would make myself a ham and salami sandwich with a side of fruit.

The sandwich also came with a side of macaroni salad. It was tasty. Even though I don’t normally go for macaroni salad, it was good. 

Jeanne Huff, editor: This Reuben is groovin’

Whenever I try a new sandwich place, and a Reuben is on the menu, that’s my go to. I’m a longtime fan of the two-hander. The corned-beef-sauerkraut-Swiss-cheese-on-rye combo drizzled with Thousand Island or Russian dressing is one of those perfect savory/sweet concoctions that checks off all the boxes. When it’s done right, that is. Oh, I’ve eaten plenty of disappointing Reuben-esque concoctions — chewy, fatty or even rubbery corned beef, too much or too little sauerkraut and/or dressing — you get one of the ingredients wrong and the whole thing can fall apart, sometimes literally as you try to salvage the best components of what was once the whole. 

Thank goodness all of the parts and pieces of my Reuben sandwich from Peter Pan came together as if they were singing a three-part harmony love song to my taste buds. Plus, there were a couple of house choices that gave the grilled sando the Peter Pan touch. For one, this place uses Russian dressing, not too much, which to my discerning taste was just a bit sweeter than the more traditional Thousand Island. And the bread was a marble rye, my favorite — not too heavy on the rye, so that all the other flavors have a chance to be heard.

The corned beef was great all around, too — nice and lean, thick with stacked tender slices. The only thing that might have elevated this lunch experience? Maybe homemade sauerkraut. 

But really, I have no complaints .I ate the whole thing, plus the delicious cup of homemade potato salad and accompanying crunchy pickle.

Olivia Palmer, reporter: The Bistro

There’s something about Peter Pan Market and Deli that feels like home to me. 

Maybe it’s the wood floors, or the drink coolers, or the art. They all remind me of a deli I’d go to after soccer practices and elementary school graduations as a kid growing up in West Seattle. Like this deli, that one had a chalkboard. 

Most of the time when I visit Peter Pan, I give the chalkboard menu a thorough read. Then I ignore all of it and build my own sandwich (what can I say, I have particular tastes). This week, though, I was determined to try something different from my typical turkey-provelone-tomato-spinach-onion-pickle-mustard-mayo-sourdough order. So, I chose The Bistro.

I was pleasantly surprised. The rustic white bread, mozzarella, spinach, tomatoes, turkey and pesto aioli were a winning combination — and the balsamic glaze, which I’d feared might make the sandwich overwhelmingly sweet, actually added the perfect touch of tartness, almost like a fresh squeeze of lemon juice. 

Let’s be honest: The Bistro is really not all that different from my typical order. But “The Bistro” is a whole lot easier to say than “turkey-provelone-tomato-spinach-onion-pickle-mustard-mayo-sourdough.” Especially when there is a line behind you.

Now, when I go to Peter Pan, I know there’s at least one sandwich on the chalkboard I can count on.

I’ll be ordering The Bistro again. 

 

Mathias Lehman-Winters, reporter: Pretty good lunch

 

I looked upon my sandwich, together we sat in the conference room. There were others around, but my hunger had me solely focused on the food in front of me. I had skipped breakfast in preparation for this event; it was now 1 p.m. and I was sufficiently famished. 

 

After taking a photo, Roast Beef with a side of potato salad and pickle, I began to dig in. First was the pickle: I skewered it on my fork and bit into it — crunch. It did not disappoint. I took another bite, then one more.

 

Quickly, tragedy struck, the pickle fell off my fork onto the carpet below. I stared, heartbroken, bitterly disappointed. With sadness creeping over me I scooped it up and threw it in the garbage. Such a shame.

 

To distract myself from the utter failure of the pickle I launched into the main course, the sandwich itself. The bread was soft and fluffy, like Subway bread. I intentionally got my sandwich not toasted because I’m not a fan of crumbs. 

 

After my first bite, the warm smoky taste of roast beef spread across my taste buds. I am a big proponent of roast beef you see, and when I had seen it on the menu, I instantly knew it was going to end up in my belly. Poor sandwich never stood a chance.

 

Suddenly snapping me out of my roast beef trance, the sharp biting taste — sensation? — horseradish gripped my entire face. It started with the flavor, bitter and sharp, then quickly spread to my nose. It made me remember how my dad always gave me horseradish when I was sick, to help clear up congestion. Perhaps because of this memory, I have developed an affinity towards the condiment and while it was a surprise to my taste buds, it wasn’t necessarily an unwelcome one.

 

I’d like to say that I savored the sandwich, that I made every bite count. But in reality, after that first bite all bets were off and I virtually inhaled the rest of it. Bite after bite in sharp and increasingly quick succession, in no time at all the sandwich was gone.

 

A little disappointed in myself, I turned to my last remaining scrumptious victim of my appetite, the potato salad. It was small, no bigger than half of a computer mouse (this was the closest size comparison I could find in my immediate field of vision while writing, apologies). 

 

This, too, I finished in a handful of bites; after I was done I scraped the bottom of the little container and its lid with my fork looking for whatever remaining morsels of sauce I could find.

 

The potato salad was soft, and the fresh taste of fennel was very prevalent. Not in a bad way, just a noticeable one. I deeply appreciated the sparing use of mustard in it, I could hardly taste any. This was welcome, as the last time I had potato salad the mustard was overpowering and it almost turned me off from it altogether. The salad (which, let’s be honest, should hardly qualify as a salad) had bits of crunchy celery that made it feel fresh. 

 

My meal was done. And to my pleasant surprise I was full and satisfied. I found myself not mourning it, but solely glad that I’d had the chance to partake. I put my trash together in the wax lined brown to-go box, leaned back in my chair, and slid it into the garbage bin.

 

Jasmine Lewin, reporter: The cheesiest

Though I do frequent Peter Pan to rent pickleball paddles and buy a beer or

two, I rarely go for food.

 

The few times I have, however, I have been able to rely on their Grilled Cheese 3000, and today was no different. The sandwich was predictably and comfortingly cheesy with its melted mix of provolone and swiss and had an unexpected kick to it in the form of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce.

 

I have not historically been a huge fan of warm tomatoes, but I did enjoy the inclusion of the red bell peppers for their crunch and crispiness. All in all, the 3000 was creative and engaging but not to the extent that it forgot what it truly was: a good grilled cheese.

 

While I intend to continue ordering this sandwich in the future, I would also like to see a tuna salad or tempeh on the menu to give a few more options to pescatarians and vegetarians.