Photo by Cheryl Baehr
At Grand Sammies & Sides, the classic grinder includes charcuterie, provolone, tomatoes, plus iceberg, peppers, and onion and garlic aioli
Grand Sammies & Sides (3194 S. Grand), a new sandwich concept from the entrepreneurial team behind Salve Osteria and The Gin Room, opens today inside Grand Spirits Bottle Co., the natural wine and agave retailer on South Grand. The addition comes just ahead of the upcoming opening of experimental cocktail lab New Society in the building’s lower level. Here’s what to know before you go.
Photo by Amy de la Hunt
The Atmosphere
To understand the vibe behind Grand Sammies, it helps to look at the big picture for Grand Spirits. Co-owner Natasha Bahrami explains that it's all been part of partner Michael Fricker's “plan since its creation.” Fricker grew up on the East Coast eating consummate hoagies and cheesesteaks in New Jersey and Philadelphia. Those food memories and his background in fine-dining restaurants, such as Cinder House and places that he visited while traveling around the world, shaped the kind of establishment that he wanted to run one day.
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Photo by Amy de la Hunt
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Photo by Amy de la Hunt
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Photo by Amy de la Hunt
“When Mike and I first started dating in 2018, we took a trip to Argentina and visited Florería Atlántico in Buenos Aires, which is owned by a friend,” Bahrami says. “You walk into a flower shop and enter what looks like a refrigerator. You go down some steps, and it’s this insane bar. Mike saw that and said, ‘I need this in my life.’”
Photo by Amy de la hunt
Pick up door laden with baguettes
Although Grand Spirits isn’t filled with live flowers, it’s still a bright, colorful place where the vibrant bottle labels stand in for blossoms. The bar near the back is the hub for purchasing bottles and ordering wines by the glass. Customers can place their sandwich orders there, too—and pick up the food at the French door that leads to the kitchen.
There are several seating areas within the shop, as well as lounge-like sidewalk seating. It’s the kind of eclectic block where passersby might be going to a pole dancing class, the barber shop, a vegan pizza joint, or the post office. And many are headed for Salve Osteria and The Gin Room on the next block.
Photo by Amy de la Hunt
The Menu
Photo by Cheryl Baehr
Meatball hoagie
During the past year, chef Pat Skiersch has offered sandwiches on the monthly brunch pop-up menu at Salve Osteria, which fueled his passion before getting the green light to set up his own concept within Grand Spirits. The sandwich menu for opening day includes a classic grinder (with three types of meat plus Provolone), a vegetarian grinder, a meatball hoagie (Salve’s meatballs with tomato sauce and cheese), a turkey panini with fried shallots, chicken salad on brioche, and a breakfast-style sandwich with sausage, egg, and cheese.
Photo by Cheryl Baehr
Orzo pasta salad
All three sides receive Skiersch’s meticulous attention, from the house-made potato chips to the Cajun potato salad (based on a favorite family recipe) and an orzo pasta salad with veggies and vinaigrette.
Daily specials give Skiersch an opportunity to keep the creative juices flowing and to adjust to customers’ tastes.
The staff is happy to recommend a pairing from its selection of natural wines (available by the glass if you’re eating on site or by the bottle for to-go orders). Delivery is also available via Uber Eats and Doordash.
Once New Society opens downstairs, customers will have the option to see how Grand Sammies’ dishes pair with experimental cocktails from Fricker and business partner Meredith Barry of Platypus.
The Team
Courtesy of Natasha Bahrami
Pat Skiersch and Mike Fricker
While all of the concepts under one roof might be a lot to juggle for Bahrami and Fricker, the entrepreneurial couple is embracing the evolution. Bahrami is emphatic about giving people space to pursue creative outlets because she knows how difficult it is to establish one’s own identity in the hospitality industry. She was well-aware of Skiersch’s passion for classic sandwiches made with great ingredients—in fact, he often brought in his experiments for Salve Osteria staff meals. She also knew that he wanted to eventually open his own restaurant, inspired by his late father.
Likewise, she knew that Fricker “had been wanting to do something intimate and experimental, and he’d been waiting for the right energy and right collaboration.” Skiersch caught Fricker’s attention with his penchant for homemade bread and meats. Both men have backgrounds in fine dining and appreciate the many factors that go into creating an elevated classic sandwich.
Skiersch’s mentor in getting Grand Sammies up and running is Salve Osteria’s head chef, Matt Wynn, who’s consulting on the menu and ingredients. For now, Skiersch will work in both kitchens while others are trained to replace him at Salve Osteria.
Before expanding her footprint along South Grand, Bahrami spent more than two decades with her family’s beloved Persian restaurant, Café Natasha. She then branched out to start The Gin Room, which has grown into an award-winning establishment and recently earned a 2023 James Beard Award semi-finalist honor for outstanding bar. Now that Bahrami and Fricker are at the helm of several businesses in two buildings along South Grand, Bahrami is determined not to typecast anyone—which means the experiences at their steadily growing culinary and spirits enterprises defy easy categorization.
“You get a whole vibe where you can just enjoy,” Bahrami says. “You may not be sure exactly what to expect, but you can be confident someone is curating your experience the entire time.”
