Jeanne Muchnick's Best Thing I Ate: sandwiches in Peekskill. See where you can get them
You can't help but feel happy the minute you walk into Benny's Brown Bag in Peekskill. The building itself, what looks like an old house, is welcoming and homey. And the retro vibe inside makes you feel like you've stepped into the 1950s, thanks to the old TV in the corner featuring VCR recordings of skateboarding videos, plus refrigerated cases with wording in old-style fonts.
But it's the simple brown bag, in its vintage lunch glory, that makes you feel like Mom just made you the best sandwich ever — if Mom made all her own sauces, thoughtfully curated her breads and used deli meats from Thumann's Inc, a New Jersey-family owned company (no Boar's Head here). Plus, there are imported Italian meats for their staples and specials.
The oversized Buffalo chickpea with vegan mayo, cucumber and arugula on thick white bread and the chili crisp turkey filled with Manchego, chili crisp mayo, housemade pickled red onions and arugula are the "best thing I ate this week," though next time I'm going back for the Southern fried chicken.
The take-out spot, open since July 5, is owned by Vincent (Vinny) Cox and Bettina (Betty) Warshaw, who combined their names to come up with Benny's. Both had previously worked in the corporate world and wanted to bring something fresh and new to what had been a long-standing deli. Phillip Dixon, a 2012 Peekskill High School alum — Benny's is across the street from the high school — heads the kitchen.
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Since opening, the three have been having fun coming up with interesting sandwiches such as the Chimi Chimi Ya Roast Beef (with provolone, creamy herb sauce, house-pickled red onions and crispy red onions on a Ciabatta) and the Bettuna Sando, ("herby" tuna salad, tomato, arugula on toasted challah), which you can "make orbital" with provolone and Swiss, horseradish pickles and salt and vinegar chips. I'm also a fan of The Rachel (Reuben's sister and NOT Rachel from "Friends" as I originally thought) with oven-roasted turkey, Swiss cheese, saukerkraut, Rush In-and-Out dressing on thick challah, served hot.
Most recently they did a collaboration with AEW superstar The Butcher, creating a custom sandwich based on his favorite ingredients. It's no longer on the menu but for the record it was made with smoked turkey, dill Havarti cheese, dill pickle relish, dill potato chips, housemade honey mustard, and pickled red onions, on a butter toasted ciabatta long roll.
They're also big into creating vegetarian sandwich combos, something their demographic has increasingly asked for. You can also get anything on gluten-free bread.
There are also melt-in-your-mouth desserts such as banana pudding, apple cider whoopie pie, chocolate chip cookies and rice crispy treats, as well as plenty of chips, craft beer and other groceries. Everything is done with purpose and also a sense of humor, such as the signage on the refrigerated cases that reads "Thirsty?" and "Here ya go!" in retro blue script.
A menu refresh will go into effect in November with the introduction of new sandwiches as well as the continuation of fan favorites. And, a big surprise Halloween event is planned for Oct. 31 so stay tuned!
If you go
Address: 1100 Elm St., 914-600-8848, bennysbrownbag.square.site
Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday; to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday
Look for: Soups this fall/winter and, down the road, "Bennyfied" breakfast sandwiches.
Jeanne Muchnick covers food and dining. Click here for her most recent articles and follow her latest dining adventures on Instagram @lohud_food or via the lohudfood newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Why Peekskill NY sandwiches are Jeanne Muchnick's Best Thing I Ate
