Ponderosa Market

Great sandwich option if you’re in the East Village or Gaslamp area over in Bario Logan. Had the Turkey, good oven toasted sandwich. A mom and pop style deli sandwich. Seemed like everyone ordered the rib sandwich, that’s next on my list.

I finally made it to this landmark deli. With that being said I ordered the #8 italian on a 10″ roll and a small italian wedding soup!
It was good, not amazing! The perfectly toasted bread was the highlight of the sandwich. The soup, hot and tasty was definitley out of a can, and thats ok because it wasn’t advertised as ‘homemade”!! The service was cordial with a young man ringing up my order and young woman making my sandwich. I had such high hopes for this place. I will have to give it another try for the famous pastrami!

The best hot pastrami sandwich ever and great service Ellie always make sure your order is carefully made
Love this place

I can’t even believe how delish their sandwiches are! We got the Italian meatball, Philly cheesesteak and the pastrami. All amazing. This little, non descript stop is well worth it.

The pastrami sandwich is my favorite here. Good, Friendly place to get lunch

Don’t let the outside prevent you from going inside. Really incredible sandwiches will keep you coming back. So far I have had the hot pastrami, gyro and turkey bacon. All were large, hot and delicious. Very friendly owner makes the sandwiches herself and she does not skimp on anything. Great value.

There are so few gems left in SD with the Rocket Sauce… that one authentic vibe you can’t live without. Ponderosa has the RocketSauce. Its like they turned the bottle of rocket sauce upside down and it just kept coming out for years.
Misspellings aside… It doesn’t matter how say or spell pastrami, you got my attention. Brad B got the BBQ Rib sammy. Me: ‘strami. Owner Ellie recommended it with everything, and I have to say it wasted no time turning my belly into a tingly erogenous zone. Damn her! Toasted sesame bun gives it that nice warm crunch cradling all that meaty goodness inside. Is it DZ Akins deli good? No. But it’s a damn fine working class pastrami worthy of working class salute. Plus, lets not forget, dude… lets NOT FORGET you’re eating in a liquor store quick stop! Embrace.
The off-​sandwich-​menu is a buzzing circus rivaling only Jack in the Box in it’s colorful eccentricity: Corn Dogs, Gyros, Pizza, French Bread Pizza, Clam Chowder, BBQ Ribs, Chili, Chicken Pot Pie, Angus Beef Burger, Beef n Bean Burritos… U want me to keep going? I know what you’re thinking, how can a corner deli execute all of these eats to a high degree of radness? Well, who knows for sure… but I would chomp my way thru the menu with complete disregard for any intestinal discomfort to find out.
Soda machine has that rad crushed ice you can’t live without. Parking is rough.
Rocket Sauce.

Ponderosa Market can’t: spell famous (they spell it «famus» on the side of the building).
Ponderosa Market can: make a killer sandwich.
I’ve been driving past this place for years and the hand painted sign that reads, «Ponderosa Deli, Hot Subs Since 1984, Home Of The Famus Hot Pastrami» has always caught my eye. Well, I finally made it in last week to give that hot pastrami a whirl.
The bread. Oh my, the bread. I think this is the key to the entire sandwich. Lightly toasted with a soft interior with sesame seeds sprinkled on top, it was the perfect vessel for the hot pastrami and melted cheese. With every bite you get a nice crunch and a slight pull of cheese like a scene out of a perfectly choreographed segment on the Food Network. It will run you $ 8.50 but with the price of the sandwich you get a hefty side of complementary conversation from the spicy little owner. She’ll tell you exactly how you should order and damn you if you don’t. My advice? Take her advice.

My goodness this place is good! The sandwiches melt on your mouth! The service is great, they are so personable, loud, cool. You just walked into someone’s home as a guest, that’s the feel.
«What would you like? You can change the channel, sit wherever, help yourself»
We got the BBQ ribs and Philly steak sandwiches and Oh my! We’re they good. The sauce on the bbq ribs sandwich is scrumptious. Both sandwiches were at the perfect temperature and were moist.
Cute little corner store!

The last time I was here was back in 2012… Im trying to think of why its taken me so long to go back. Their sandwiches have maintained their quality and they’re exactly how I remember. Really one of the best sandwich places around. The bread to toppings to meat ratio was perfect, the bread is toasted (tell them not to if you dont want, but it’s the way to get it right), and is great quality. Seriously, try their pastrami or cheesesteak first and then come back to try everything else. My only fear is that this place will get more popular and I’ll have to wait in some giant line. If you’re anywhere in the San Diego area, give this place a shot.

Family owned and operated… And the best sandwiches in town and lunch specials daily!

Small deli located in a liquor store off Ceasars Chavez Parkway, its been here for years and always wanted to try it but never did. Ordered the pastrami sandwich and a turkey bacon sandwich and I must say both were really good. The meat on the pastrami was juicy, the right amount of seasoning and it comes with tomatoes and lettuce (I know not the norm but perfect). The Turkey was juicy but of course just like every other place they are stingy with the bacon. Definitely will be coming back again, so glad I finally tried this place.

I been driving by this place on my way to work for three years, never stopped in. What a mistake! Employes are super cool and make a fine sandwich. Will be seeing me a couple times a week …

The best pastrami you will find in San Diego. These guys do a great job and they are always very friendly.

I stumbled upon this small humble deli/​market/​eatery on my way to the trolley. Fantastic people, great food, and a large selection of great items. This is the spot for great food at very decent prices.

The sandwiches are by far some the best I’ve had in San Diego…

Tried this place for lunch on a whim (since it’s near downtown where I push pixels), and I have to say I was quite impressed. Ordered the «famus» hot pastrami sandwich, since it was advertised as such in big print on one side of the building, and it was the best I’ve ever had! Not overly stacked w/​pastrami like some places do, which is fine by me since I probably eat too much meat as it is, but otherwise jammed full of flavorful toppings on a perfectly toasted roll. I could really get addicted to these sandwiches. Very fast friendly service when I called it in 5 minutes in advance too. And after seeing the other enticing sandwiches on their menu, I’m really looking forward to trying the bonelss pork rib sandwich or their Philly steak sandwich next. Be sure to check out this charming little neighborhood corner shop/​deli/​liquor store!

Lately I’ve been on a strict sandwich diet. I visit the popular franchise sandwich shop that start’s with an S and ends with a Y often but I do get bored of their selection and when that happens I go to this place… Ponderosa Market. They have a decent selection of deli sandwiches here. They claim the have a world famous pastrami sandwich and I’ve tried and it was delicious! Loaded with your choice of cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles mayo, salt, and pepper, on a sesame seed roll that you can get toasted or untoasted (not charged extra). Pastrami was well seasoned and chewy. They have the 6 inch for $ 5.49 or 10 for $ 6.99. They have daily specials on different sandwiches each day that will make next week fun as I go back and try them all.
I spoke to the manager Ellie who is a nice lady. I asked her what’s her favorite sandwich and she gave me her choices in order. Here they are.
1. Hot Pastrami
2. BBQ Roastbeef
3. Philly Cheese Steak
4. Italian
5. Tuna Cheese
We went on to talk about how they’ve been at that location for 29 years and have made numerous pastrami sandwiches for customers and they love it so they kept it on the menu.
Definitely a deli to get a good sandwich if you are in this part of town. Thumbs up.
Thanks Ellie! See you soon…

Call them up, order a large pastrami sandwich.
Show up 5 minutes later and it’ll be ready.
You’ll be in and out faster than the birds and the bees.
Before you know it, you’ll be calling them back for more.
If Subway is the king of subs, the Ponderosa would be the queen.
In this life game of chess, I would say forget about the king and protect your queen.
In other words. if you’re in the hood, you should stop by the Ponderosa Market for the goods!

Yum, I tried this place for the first time today. Stopped in and ordered the #8 Italian sandwich… it was so good! Ham, mortadella, salami, and cheese. Comes with lettuce, tomato, onions, mayo, salt, and pepper, on a sesame seed roll that you can get toasted or untoasted.
They offer a sizable menu of different deli sandwiches and you can watch them make your sandwich right in front of you. It’s $ 5.25 for a 6-​inch sub sandwich.
The service is excellent. Great, friendly staff taking your order and making sure you are happy with everything.
There are tables and chairs inside where you can sit and eat your food, and there’s a TV so you can watch something interesting while you’re eating. Today I was avidly watching a Tom Cruise action movie since they had the FX channel playing.