The first thing I noticed when I bit into a Just Like New York pastrami sandwich from Cecil’s Deli in Saint Paul was the textures. The soft, freshly-baked roll contrasted nicely with the crunchiness of the carrots and lettuce in the coleslaw. Poppy and sesame seeds rolled off the sandwich into my mouth, cracking in my teeth as I bit down. The pastrami was stringy enough so that with each bite, it pulled some of the coleslaw out, spilling over my hands in a not wholly unpleasant way. Not wholly unpleasant because I got to lick it off. The meat was richly flavored, with pepper, mustard seed, and other spices I couldn’t identify.

All in all, a fantastic sandwich. 5 out of 5. Good job, Cecil. And goodnight.