Eating In Translation

Joe's of Avenue U

With all due respect to the eye-catching, mouth-watering display case, I'd settled on my order before I walked in the door.

Efe Market

Here's a brand name that comes right to the point.

L&B Spumoni Gardens

Heard some fine things about L&B's Sicilian pizza, topped "grandma style" with mozzarella and then tomato sauce, but following an outing for pho, our group was looking only for the namesake dessert. Here's a creamy cupful of the rainbow spumoni: vanilla, chocolate, and pistachio ($2).

L&B Spumoni Gardens
2725 86th St., Gravesend, Brooklyn
718-449-6921

John's Deli

Gotti was playing on all three TVs, and if that movie weren't a period piece, some of the John's Deli staff and most of the patrons could step right onto the screen. (You don't wanna know.) Give them props on their sandwiches, including roast beef and fresh mozzarella (roll, $5; hero, $6.75) that's warmed in the oven, then doused with gravy. Worth the wait and the brusque, assembly-line service.

John's Deli
2033 Stillwell Ave. (Aves. T-U), Gravesend, Brooklyn
(one of two locations)
718-714-4377

La Torre

Though a notch above Hostess, an apple turnover ($1.25) was sweet, maybe too sweet. Not my favorite turnover flavor, but the only choice today.

La Torre
99 Ave. U (West 9th-West 10th Sts.), Gravesend, Brooklyn
718-372-8150

Bari Pork Store

Perhaps you can find more extensive selections of meat, cheese, and packaged Italian specialties, but you'd be happy to have these informative, friendly folks as your neighbors. For a nosh today, pizza rustica, pinwheels, and stromboli yielded to lard bread ($1.25); when an item takes pride of place atop the counter, I reckoned, there's usually good reason. My baton was light as well as lardy, and once I tore into it, it didn't last long. Grab one when you can.

Bari Pork Store
158 Ave. U (at West 7th St.)
(one of several locations)
718-372-6405