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Always looking for a cheap lunch, the Cheap Eats crew headed up to Rosedale, bumping and jerking through traffic across town and up Philadelphia Road. Pastore's is a neighborhood Italian grocer, delicatessen, and bakery, familiar to many office workers who chow down its catered lunches. We bought a half-dozen house specialty sandwiches--the Pastore, the Giacomelli, the Manzari, the Garafolo, and the Meataball on a Heel. The reviews were mixed, with praise for the mostly fresh ingredients and criticism of the lackluster sub rolls. The meatball sub ($5.89) was housed in a mammoth Italian bread heel, and every component of that sandwich was good, with perfectly balanced homemade sauce and five substantial meatballs. Its bread--fresh crusty Italian--was superior to the others. The Pastore ($4.59), a classic Italian cold cut sub, overflowed its meager roll, and the Marziale ($4.59), with domestic prosciutto, was a nice balance of meat, green olives, deli mustard, and onions. The Garafolo ($6.79), with prosciutto and fresh mozzarella, was a little too oily and featured dried basil (yuck), but was balanced by its tasty cheese and meat. The Giacomelli ($4.79), with slices of mozzarella and tomato, was oiled and peppered just right. Overall, some hits, some misses, but plenty to eat and plenty to like on a tight budget. Just don't drive too far, or those wimpy rolls will suffer.

E-mail Tim Hill