Johnny and Kosta Diamantopoulos are the amazing Greek duo who own, run, work and breathe All Star Sandwiches.   Johnny is the head chef and Kosta handles everything else.   The wonderful staff are knowledgeable, friendly, and make you feel right at home in the fun atmosphere.

All Star Sandwich Bar

The prices range from $7-13 for generous servings of mind-blowing sandwiches and burgers that come with a pickle and coleslaw or fries, and $2-6 for the mouth-watering sides.   They also serve great draught beers ($4.25) on tap or pitcher ($13), wines and sangria by the glass ($7) or pitcher ($21).

All Star has multiple menus and it can be overwhelming your first time, but for regular patrons, it’s exciting to have new choices each visit.   There is always the revolving “Sandwich of the Day” and a “Specials” menu featuring a collection of soups, sandwiches, sides and burgers.   For the months of September and October they are featuring a “Global Street Food” special menu.   These international sandwiches range from the Vietnamese Banh-Mi to the Greek Gyro.   This idea evolved from wanting to create a home-away-from-home for the international students of Cambridge.   Their motto is, after all, “A sandwich is like an old friend.”

The Philly Cheese Steak is the Saturday Sandwich of the Day.   The tender steak, bacon, sweet & tangy BBQ sauce, grilled veggies and melted cheddar is a perfectly orchestrated sandwich that is not to be missed.   After having one all I can say is “Wow! These guys are not kidding around.” Try it with a side of the German potato salad or the buttermilk battered Onion Rings.

The Chicken Pizzaiola Sandwich

Some sandwiches from the Street Food special menu that I sampled were Chicken Pizzaiola, which was akin to chicken parmesan: tender chicken with fresh mozzarella, basil and tomato sauce on a toasted baguette. The Lamb Gyro, which is, according to Kosta, not a wrap but a fold.   The homemade tender lamb sausage was delicious and is accompanied by yogurt sauce, fresh herbs, crunchy lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes on grilled pita bread.

Some of my favorite items from the regular All Star menu include the Chili (cup $4 or bowl $5.50), which is a savory beef stew topped with a dollop of sour cream.   It’s served with a generous amount of cornbread that counteracts the chili pepper from overwhelming your taste buds. All Star’s Ruben is served with your choice of corned beef, pastrami or turkey meat, with delicious sauerkraut and creamy Russian dressing.

The Front Counter

Another word about the sides: the Fries are always perfectly crisp and the Hell Fries are spicy enough to wake up the most sleep-deprived student.   All Star has been awarded “Boston’s most authentic Poutine,” which is a Montreal classic consisting of fries topped with turkey gravy and mozzarella curd.

On the Street food specials menu, the Veggie Side with Acorn Squash is a gourmet treat, perfectly roasted squash with a nutty flavor topped with a silky maple goat cheese butter and sprinkled with roasted pumpkin seeds.   I could go on and on about this side, but suffice it to say that these gourmet treats are the mainstay at All Star, that sandwich bar that continues to serve up the highest quality food in a comfortable disarming setting.

If you still have some space reserved for dessert, be sure to try Johnny’s Famous Cheesecake of the Day: mine was Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Cheesecake and was fabulous.   If you get there on a Saturday or Sunday for lunch, you will most likely have to wait in line for a few minutes.   But while you are waiting, partake in the simple pleasure of having a free Oreo cookie from the cookie jar that says, “Eat Me!”