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w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, M ay 5, 20 22 | 8 Among Nostra Cuci- na's 15 or so sandwiches, both hot and cold, is the muffuletta. In the Roman pantheon of sandwiches at the Kitchener takeaway res- taurant, it's a lesser Nep- tune to their ruling Jupi- ter, the veal parm. But selecting the veal parm over the muffuletta? I'm quite happy with ei- ther; comparison, after all, is the thief of joy. The Sicilian-American muffuletta is an impres- sive sandwich; it's been on the menu for 15 of the 17 years that Nostra Cucina has been operating. Co-owners Dina Mar- sillo and Sian Burns opened Nostra Cucina and, just the two of them, guided it through the CO- VID-19 pandemic with on- ly a slightly modified busi- ness model. "We were never a big spot for dining in, so we didn't have to close down for five minutes," Marsillo says. "Today, people just order online and come pick up." As for the muffuletta, it isn't a family recipe, but it turns out it was a family discovery of sorts, says Marsillo. "So, my mom takes a trip to New Orleans, and when she comes home, she's talking about a pop- ular sandwich there," says Marsillo. "She said she had brought one home for me to try, but she ate it on the plane." In 2007, not many peo- ple visiting Nostra Cucina had even heard of a muffu- letta, according to Burns. They did some research, sampled some ingredients - such as the defining olive salad that goes between the Italian meats - and cre- ated their own version. They prepared their muffuletta vegetable mix, a large container of the pickled, mildly vinegary giardiniera, home-made dressing, black olives, ar- tichoke hearts, roasted red peppers and then add- ed more green olives. "It's a sandwich for peo- ple who like green olives," Burns says, adding that they originally heated it as an open-faced sandwich. The original New Or- leans muffuletta, which was first the name of just the bread, likely appeared as a cold sandwich in the early 1900s at Central Gro- cery and Deli, in the French Quarter. While the large round loaf with sesame seeds - a truly Sicilian ingredient - was made into one sand- wich and you ordered by the slice, Nostra Cucina makes individual sand- wiches, and hefty ones at that. "A customer asked for the meat and cheese to be heated separately. That's how we do it now and then put the sandwich togeth- er," Marsillo explains. Importantly, the bun has a crust soft enough to yield to bite compression and stay together when you eat it. "We put the mortadella on top, so the edges get just a little bit brown and crispy in the oven," Burns says. "The mozzarella and provolone melt slightly. It's beautiful." Other than the morta- della, cold-cut duty is car- ried out by capocollo and salami. It is indeed a thing of beauty, and a filling one - and one that's very olive forward. Pickly, tangy veg, cheeses, meats, the olive salad, olive oil, bread and cheeses: it's like the ele- ments of a charcuterie board combined and cor- ralled by the bun for ta- keaway. I don't see a muffuletta as a late-night nosh like the veal parm might be; it's an outdoor sandwich for this time of the year. "I call it a picnic sand- wich," says Burns. "It's a summer-weather sand- wich with all that great stuff stacked up. I'm not a fan of olives, but I think this mix, the giardiniera, is pretty fantastic." The muffuletta is a Nostra Cucina top seller even as a lesser-known sandwich, compared to their award-winning veal sandwich, but gaining in popularity, according to Burns. "It's no contender against the veal," she says. "But, oh, those crispy edg- es of the mortadella!" Nostra Cucina is open for takeaway only. Online pre-orders are strongly recommended: text 226- 338-3842 at anytime. Andrew Coppolino is a Kitchener-based food writ- er and broadcaster. Visit him at www.andrew- coppolino.com. OPINION LET A MUFFULETTA FROM LOCAL RESTAURANT HIT THE SPOT THE SICILIAN-AMERICAN MUFFULETTA IS AN IMPRESSIVE SANDWICH, AND A FILLING ONE, WRITES ANDREW COPPOLINO ANDREW COPPOLINO Column Top: Muffuletta from Nostra Cucina. Above: Sian Burns, left, and Dina Marsillo of Nostra Cucina. Andrew Coppolino photos NOSTRA CUCINA Address: 31 Manitou Dr., Kitchener Website: www.nostracucina.com Phone: 519-748-0504