Farmer's Choice Deli & Grill opens in Oceanside

I assumed chopped sandwiches were only a TikTok thing until I walked into the new Farmer's Choice Deli & Grill in Oceanside.

After all, the brand's original location, Farmer in the Deli went viral a couple years back for this same idea. TikTok videos show people lining up to the original deli in Fort Greene, Brooklyn for an hour and a half, to receive a sandwich with the ingredients chopped so finely they look like mincemeat. ("Best sandwiches in NYC," one post declares). 

But then I stepped up to the counter and the employee mentioned the chopped cheese, which if you may remember, is an iconic yet underrated bodega sandwich that's been a fixture in NYC since the '90s. The chopped cheese may be the O.G. chopped sandwich, a marriage of a Yemeni dagha yamneeya sandwich and a cheeseburger. But the folks at Farmer's Choice have taken the concept to new heights, specially tailored for a viral food moment.

Third-generation deli owner Mohamed Hassan says his grandfather started chopping sandwiches decades ago, after a customer requested it at his Fort Greene location, which has been open since the '70s. His grandfather named the original location Farmer in the Deli because after immigrating from Yemen, he spent years working as a vegetable farmer in California. Hassan wanted to carry on his grandfather's wish by expanding the concept to Long Island. And this space in the Kohl's shopping center on Long Beach Road took two years to open, due to permitting issues.

The spot, which formerly held a longtime bagel shop Stuff N' Bagels, is now decked out with a wall-length mural of a pastoral farm scene complete with cows and a red barn. Workers converse in Arabic as a television plays high-definition ocean wildlife videos. The employee behind the counter said they have six main chopped sandwiches on the menu, in addition to an infinity of customizations as well as a chopped cheese and a chopped Philly cheesesteak. 

I ordered the Farmer's Signature, which contains both tuna and Salsalito turkey with mayo, lettuce, tomato and American cheese ($17.99 on a hero). I also got a bag of chips, and the employee surprised me by asking if I wanted to put them in the sandwich. I wanted them on the side, but I did opt to add some veggies like spinach and banana peppers.

A minute later, a cook piled on the ingredients onto a chopping board directly behind the counter, and started whacking at them with a knife, while spinning the mixture on the parchment paper with his other hand. After a minute or so the mix was as fine as a paste, so he shaped it into an oblong cylinder and then put the hero bread right on top, before turning the whole thing upside down and wrapping the sandwich in paper.   

Turkey and tuna do not seem to be natural bedfellows, but I was surprised at how mellow this sandwich was. It was nearly indiscernible from a regular tuna fish salad sandwich. The turkey, if anything, made it a little bit lighter and less salty. Every bite tasted the same, but Hassan says that's kind of the point.

"You taste everything in each bite," he said. 

Farmer's Choice Deli & Grill, 3570 Long Beach Rd., Oceanside, 516-998-3392, instagram.com/farmerschoicedeli/. Open 6 a.m. to midnight daily.

By Andi Berlin

andi.berlin@newsday.com

Andi Berlin is from Arizona and does not know where she is going. But when she gets there, she’ll find something beautiful and delicious that the world needs to taste.