Paseo Re-opens, Neighborhood Rejoices

For the past week, the TALK of our cozy little neighborhood in upper Fremont has been that Paseo, home of the best grilled pork sandwich ever, would re-open Friday after its annual month-long vacation.

We love Paseo, their cheap ($7 for piece of paradise) and tidy menu of Cuban sandwiches, platters and appropriately-themed soft drinks never fails to satisfy. We also admire their no-frills business strategy which seems to be: our food is amazing, play by our rules. No cards, very long lines, closed Sunday and Monday and sometimes they run out of bread. And don’t even think about calling in your order, the “hold button” at Paseo consists of setting the receiver down on the counter and leaving it there until the line disappears, which is never. But none of this matters.

When we arrived on Saturday afternoon eager for our grilled pork sandwich, we were shocked to find that after years, Paseo has revamped and expanded its menu, adding more sandwiches and entrees, and greatly expanding their a la carte options such that you can customize your meal. While all of the old standbys were still there, we were worried. Was this new menu a stab at something approaching customer service? What’s next? Moments later, we were relieved to find that some things never change: as of 3 o’clock on Saturday, they were...that’s right, out of bread. No sandwich today.

But that’s just how it goes at Paseo, sometimes you’ll be disappointed, but never by the food. Later today we’ll be back at Paseo, cash in hand, for a grilled pork sandwich, and maybe sometime in the future we’ll try the scallops.