28-05-2025
Edith's Sandwich Counter-Run Of The Mill It Isn't
Elyssa Heller's Edith's Sandwich Counter has been drawing lines on weekends in the West Village for ... More its uncommon sandwiches.
At Edith's Sandwich Counter, which has a tiny take-out shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn that opened in 2020 and then opened its second store in December 2024 in the West Village off of Sheridan Square, run-of-the-mill and quotidian sandwiches don't make its menu. Almost every sandwich has a certain twist or ingredient that makes it stand apart.
In New York City, where the sandwich competition is intense and varied, standing out from the crowd is necessary, explains Edith's Sandwich Counter's owner and founder Elyssa Heller who is 35-years-old. 'You can buy a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on every corner of the city,' she explains. Hence, it was critical that 'our sandwiches were just a little different,' she notes.
Sandwiches With a Twist
For example, bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches are a NYC staple, but Edith's offers its bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich with a latke. She says the latkes are Jewish-style, made from a batter and different than hash browns. It's prepared in a Japanese tamagoyaki pan, with Cooper's sharp American cheese, tastier than Kraft's cheese, with a tangy special sauce.
The Edith sandwich is a variation of a classic Reuben, prepared with house-made pastrami and its fermented sauerkraut, layered on top of griddled bread. Its chicken schnitzel sandwich is made on buttery challah and topped with its signature zaatar ranch sauce. And the turkey on its hero takes 6 days to brine and rub in a big pit smoker.
'We're bringing in flavors, sauces, herbs and spices from the globe that add brightness and acidity to the sandwiches,' she says.
Financing Started With a Credit Card
And its name derives from her great aunt Edith who owned a deli in Brooklyn in the late 1940s. Heller launched the first Edith's using her credit card, but then got financial investments from friends and family. She now owns 68% of the business with about one-third owned by investors.
Its beverages too have a following including its iced café slushie, which consists of frozen cold brew with oatmilk and tahini, and it recently-introduced liquid sunshines, which combine orange, tangerine, lemon and grapefruit juices together.
Many People Share the Sandwiches
Heller strives to keep her prices moderate, with most sandwiches in the $13 to $18 range. Moreover, there's a sign that says 'Eat half here; take half home' because, to many people, the sandwiches are huge or stuffed and can be shareable. Heller comments that too many sandwich shops scrimp on size, 'and we make a conscious effort not to do that.'
Its revenue stems 50% from breakfast and 50% lunch, which Heller says separates it from most bagel places, which often don't carry sandwiches, and sandwich shops, which often don't offer breakfast. In the West Village, its business derives 70% from in-store and 30% online, and Williamsburg is take-out only.
It's open until 6 p.m. in the West Village (in Brooklyn it closes at 3p.m. weekends day and 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday) but has done negligible dinner business, but Heller says it's testing some things to increase dinner business this summer and fall.
Its West Village site sits 19 people, 10 inside and 9 outside, and there's no seating at all in its Williamsburg outpost.
Heller grew up in Highland Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, graduated from Queen's College in London, and was a supply chain director at Nourish Chain and Milk Bar in the 2014-19 period. In August 2020, Heller started selling bagels and sandwiches, pop-up style at Paulie Gee's pizzeria in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, where its popularity offered proof of concept.
It's proven so popular in the West Village that on Saturday and Sundays at brunch the lines stretch around the block on Charles St, and some pesky New Yorkers move on, rather than wait. Heller says it can fill over 100 orders an hour during weekend brunch time.
A Very Diverse Audience
Asked about its target audience, Heller replies, 'A lot of different people including West Village gals and guys, Brooklyn cool kids that live in Williamsburg, people hung over, young families with kids, and people on their lunch breaks.' Sounds diverse indeed.
By 2026, she envisions opening a third sandwich shop, 'with more on the horizon,' she says. 'We'd like to open a third, and then a fourth and a fifth but we have no time tables.' She has some neighborhoods in mind but is keeping them to herself.
Asked the keys to its sustained success, Heller replies: 1) Continue to innovate its sandwiches and drinks, 2) Staying adaptable by learning what works and what people want, 3) Appreciating our customers.
'In this business,' Heller concludes, 'you're only as good as the last sandwich you made.'
