Leo’s Latticini Mama’s
“Right next door is an old school huge bakery that reminds me of Queens back in the day.”
“You can't go wrong with a loaded mamas special, or even the homemade turkey and fresh mozzarella add some lettuce tomato and balsamic!!!”
“Amazing sandwiches and, quite frankly, a great place to park your car right before the mets game.”
Leo’s Latticini Mama’s
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
8 reviews
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This place is a compound of two of Corona's institutions, Mama's and Stasi's Pastry Shop. While the neighborhood has changed by leaps and bounds in the past 20-30 years, Mama's keeps churning out some of the best dang sangwiches and pastries you can find in NYC.
I'm fairly certain this was the inspiration for the Sandwich Day episode of 30 Rock, and rightfully so. The Italian is the best option, make sure to get it with all the fixings. The bread, cheese and mushroom/pepper condiment are really the best parts but that doesn't make the meats any less wow-worthy. For dessert, the cannoli and tiramisù are great.
This place, Lemon Ice King, and Spaghetti Park live on as the monuments to the Italian tradition in Corona, and I really hope they remain untouched for years to come.
Best Italian Deli in New York, Period! I define the best by not only the food,sandwiches,and specialties being served but by the three sisters that own and run this store, there are no finer. Mama did a great job teaching and sharing her food recipes but taught them the most important thing how to treat everyone fairly and with love. Mama's special, nothing like it, don't forget the mushrooms and roast peppers!
Visiting the store is an experience in and of itself. The shop is pretty small, but the ladies behind the counter are super sweet and very warm and friendly. This place is super old school and is more commonly known as just Mama's or Mama's of Corona, which is the name of their shop at Citi Field which has been at Shea/Citi Field for a number of years. I originally heard of this place from a show where Chef Mario Batali was showcasing Italian American delis and this was one of the places that they had featured. I really like how the employees wear personalized Mets jerseys that say Mama's on the back. Also, the bakery a few stores down is owned by the same people so you can take your sandwiches and eat at the bakery.
The food:
Mama's Special- Prosciuttini, Salami, Mozzarella with mushrooms and peppers. OMG the name of the store and the word special? Oh yeah, it has to be good. I thought this sandwich was great. The bread is sturdy enough to withhold the sandwich but has a nice, soft texture and has a nice crunch from the bread. All the ingredients blend so perfectly together especially with the mozz. I really enjoyed the mushrooms and peppers. This is a must get, it's a classic Italian American sandwich. yelp.com/user_local_phot…
Chicken alla Crema- with mushroom, peppers and mozzarella. The chicken is so tender and flavorful, then there is some type of crunchy pork product on top, think it might be some kind of ham, but it adds nice flavor and a slight crunch and it also has a layer of a breading layer than adds a wonderful richness. The homemade mozz is perfection, it is slightly salty when you eat it plain, but it is so perfectly seasoned and textured when you eat it in the sandwich. I thought this was great. yelp.com/user_local_phot…
Artichoke Antipasto- I thought this was made well, the artichoke was perfectly tender and the olives and carrots offered a nice textural contrast. The dressing worked well, it had a nice flavor to tie everything together with a nice pop from the vinegar. yelp.com/user_local_phot…
Rainbow Cookie and Cannoli- This is from the bakery a few stores down since it's the same owner. I thought the Rainbow Cookie was pretty straight forward, but I thought the Cannoli was excellent. It was super crunchy and the the filling had such a wonderful creamy texture and a really nice and not overpowering mascarpone flavor. yelp.com/user_local_phot…
I almost don't want to review it so people will leave me alone while I binge eat everything from here.
The deli part looks straight out of Italy — hanging cured meats, etc. Italian moms behind the counter, ready to make you a custom sandwich, or you can grab a premade Mama's special on the counter. Everything they make or sell is authentic and delicious.
Right next door is an old school huge bakery that reminds me of Queens back in the day. Dozens if not hundreds of baked items that are so fresh and delicious it's hard to pick just a few to eat. The cannolis are among the top 3 I have ever had.
Mama's Special!…what else is there to say? It's just the most delicious sandwich in all of New York City! The hot peppers are HOT so go with the sweet peppers if you don't like spicy. And you have to get the mushrooms on top. The fresh mozz doesn't get any better than what you'll find here. My father worked in the neighborhood when I was growing up & it was always a treat when he'd come home with Mama's for lunch!
Leo's Latticini aka Mama's was a place recommended by a friend who used to work around the area and I remember he used to tell me how his company always order this 6 foot long giant chicken cutlet hero sandwich during holiday parties. With that said, I know it's time for me to make a trip.
Parking: The place is not very easy to find so definitely bring your GPS and on top of that, once you get there, good luck finding a spot but don't let that discourage you because it's well worth it!
There are many parts to this place, but you want to head to the first shop which is the sandwich shop/cheese shop. The people in the shop are very nice there so don't be nervous if you don't know what to get- just ask them!
I had the Eggplant Parm my first time around and I literally was shocked after my first bite because it was so freaking good!! The fresh mozzarella was so good and melted so well on top of the well seasoned eggplant, the eggplants were very thinly sliced, fried to perfection and was super flavorful, it didn't tasted greasy and every bite was blasting with flavor and texture. The marinara sauce was fresh tasting and you can taste that it is not from a can because there is certain sweetness to it!! OH man, I don't think I ever had a better eggplant parm in my life.
This time around I was going to get the same thing but unfortunately they didn't have it so I decided to go for what was recommended on Yelp- Roasted turkey with fresh mozz and sweet hot pepper and mushroom.
I'm usually not a big fan of turkey because they can taste very dry and hard to digest but it's different at Mama's!
Here the turkey is very juicy, they put fresh mozz on top of it and also sweet pepper and mushroom. The whole thing is then drizzle with gravy… the sandwich is far from dry… OMG I thought I wouldn't have any other favorite other than the eggplant parm but looks like I just found another go-to at Mama's. btw did I mention they don't skip on their meat and mozz? amazing!!
Price: Awesome! Mama's is super famous in the area but what's great about them is they didn't raise their because of that and I love them for it!! Your average sandwich will come to around $7- $9, consider it's quality and size, this is a GREAT DEAL!
Overall: What can I say about Mama's, wonderful people, awesome food, great price. The pictures behind the cashier counter said it all (pictures of mayors, celebrities). It's not easy to find but once you have eaten it's food, you'll for sure remember how to get back here!
SANDWICH SHOP CLOSED SUNDAYS (Bakery open).
Checked Yelp which said open Sunday…should have called! Only the bakery was open and the woman told me the sandwich part is always closed Sunday. They did however have the Mama's Special sandwiches in boxes for sale (not sure how many they make though, they had like 8 when we walked in in the early noon but people were buying them pretty fast, not sure if they had more in the fridge). I don't eat meat but my boyfriend had one. I stole some of his bread, mozz, and roasted red peppers and marinated mushrooms. Everything tasted cold and fresh and tasty. The mozz was salty and delicious! He thought it was really good too and loved the prosciutinni. Kinda surprising for a sandwich in a box! The super fresh version must be even better.
The neighborhood didn't seem too scary but I am not sure how it is at night.
Mama Knows Best
This neighborhood gem had an old school vibe. Mama's Sandwiches are wrapped in special red picnic patterned paper.The sandwich artistes behind the counter were cunningly crafty and quick like Italian ninja chefs.
I had the Mama's special which consists of prosciutinni, salami, fresh mozzarella, mushrooms and red peppers. The bread was soft and fresh. The fresh mozz was refreshing and acted well to counter balance the saltiness of the Italian meat. The earthy mushrooms were your standard Italian style mushrooms in a jar. The roasted red peppers really gave life to the sandwich by bringing a sweet component to the flavor profile.
I loved the sandwich but what makes the experience awesome is the outdoor seating area hidden in the back of the connected bakery next door. The miniature oasis is an escape from the surrounding urban neighborhood. The best thing about the space is the old school fountain which brings a zen like calming feeling while I chomped on my sandwich. The sandwich is about 8 bucks and its big enough to eat in two sittings.
I really liked the bakery too. The smell of fresh coffee permeates the whole air space. They offer an array of Italian baked goods including some non traditional items like chocolate covered pretzels with m&ms on them.
I'd definitely come back for a fresh Italian sandwich and the refreshing atmosphere. Mama knows what she's doing.