OCEANSIDE, N.Y. (WPIX) – An Italian deli in New York is becoming a big "dill" on TikTok for one of its culinary creations.
Seven Brothers Gourmet, on Long Island, started serving sandwiches on pickle "buns" (each "bun" being a hollowed-out half of a huge pickle) back in January. "But it didn’t catch on until May when our employee's sister posted [a] viral TikTok," said Stephanie, another employee of the deli, in a statement provided to Nexstar.
That video, which currently has over 6 million views, has since prompted hordes of foodies to flock to Seven Brothers for a taste of the salty sammie.
"We’ve met people from Upstate New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts," said Stephanie. She added that a few people have called from as far as California, asking whether Seven Brothers Gourmet would ship a sandwich.
They will not, for anyone wondering.
"Unfortunately we do not ship," Stephanie said.
Those folks, instead, will have to live out their pickle-based fantasies through TikTok, where plenty of content creators are happy to review the sandwich for their followers.
"That is pretty fire," one reviewer said in a video that currently has hundreds of thousands of views. Another, whose video got more than 3 million views, rated the sandwich a "10 out of 10" before eventually taking back the score, saying she'd rather have the bread (and less mess).
In any case, the deli's pickle sandwich has become one of the most popular things on the menu: The deli serves around 250 each day, the owner told Gothamist earlier this week. Seven Brothers even created a dedicated pickle sandwich line so as not to inconvenience the other customers who frequent the shop, according to its Instagram account.
"Thank you for your patience during this new and exciting time for us," the shop wrote.
Those that don't want to wait in the line, however, have other options. Yaphank Deli on Long Island also serves a pickle sub, which too went viral in a TikTok video — back in December. And in New Jersey, a sub shop called Elsie's has been serving sandwiches on pickles for years, having been featured on Today.com and Insider in 2019 and 2021, respectively.
At the time, however, not everyone seemed enthused.
"I’m telling you right now, if you get me a sandwich and it’s made out of pickles … I’m turning into John Wick," one Twitter (now X) user joked upon seeing Insider's coverage. "I’ll be the LAST thing you ever see."
