The Pastrami at Parkway Deli, Silver Spring, Montgomery County, Maryland – John Tanner’s Barbecue Blog

The Washington Wise Men’s monthly meeting returned to the Parkway Deli at 8317 Grubb Road for lunch last recently, and it gave me a chance to update their performance for my Washington area hot pastrami sandwich survey. I plan to post a Top Ten list after I get through posting on all the meals from my flurry of trips. And some ongoing Washington area meals. A guy’s gotta eat!

I had bad luck with an earlier pastrami sandwich at Parkway, which turned out to be a cold pastrami sandwich on toasted rye, which made no sense. But then it was over Thanksgiving, when shoals of friends swarm the Parkway Deli to get together — the place was slammed and I had to settle for carryout, where the line was merely long. Parkway is a Third Space, the sort of place to which people gravitate when they return from college or are back in the area to give thanks with family. My friend Al Lang happened to be there with a group of his buddies during our Wise Mens’ outing.

So I ordered a hot pastrami sandwich and loaded up at the pickle bar.

Actually I think I loaded up before I ordered and then went back for a second round. Question for readers: who else in the Washington area has a pickle bar? I know of Altman’s and Mikey and Mel’s. Are there any others?

Anyway, here’s my pastrami sandwich, with bad lighting … .

Bob Berendt meanwhile ordered a pastrami and corned beef Reuben.

Here’s another view.

Bob was very high on his Reuben. It had a lot of meat and he loved the way all the various ingredients melded. That’s a fine sandwich.

And here’s an action shot of my pastrami sandwich.

As you can see, that’s a nice portion of juicy pastrami. It was properly tender and seasoned well. And it arrived hot, which isn’t a given. I liked the sandwich, and it’s very much in the picture for the Top Ten — a lead pipe cinch if I rate the pastrami at 2fifty and other barbecue places separately.

Parkway has a lot going for it, what with the neighborhood feel, the pickle bar, that two-meat Reuben, very good chopped liver, and a hot pastrami sandwich that you really want to try.

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