Sam’s Italian Deli & Market

Best deli in Fresno hands down! I’ve been coming here for about 20 years and the it’s just as good now as it was back then! If you haven’t tried it you’re missing out

Love this place! The best sandwiches in town and great take out too! So easy to call in your order and pick it up at the counter. Finally found a Great Pastrami!

Great subs and great service.. Too many choices to just pick one! I like to mix it up and try different sandwiches.. The staff here is great too!

This place is great. I love coming here on a relaxing Saturday and browsing the market. They have a great, unique soda selection, great salads, and sides. The food is great, specifically I like the New Yorker, it’s fantastic every time. Sam’s is a place I’ll come back to, as long as I live in Fresno. The service is great too!

Not sure why I didn’t like the Sam’s special the first time. Now I love it. Reminds me of my childhood.

Been coming here for several year. Staff is always friendly. Eat the Sam’s sandwich, it’s awesome. Love the pasta sause (spicy daviola) good selection of desserts too. You can also take home fresh pasta, made on site. While you are at it order salami, and fresh cheese. Lots of wine to choose from.

Had the Chicken Parm and Broccoli Salad. Broccoli Salad was amazing. Phoning ahead might be a good option during lunch hours as I saw it get pretty busy.

I have been coming to Sams deli ever since I went to high school at Memorial. They have been delicious and over the years the service and the food is exactly the same. Amazing! They have always been on time when I order for pick up, they have never mixed up my order or given me the wrong items. The bread and sandwiches are soo good and fresh and just a great treat for your money. Love this place, I’ve introduced this to my husband and him so forth and nothing but great reviews and loyal customers.

Came here years ago and I haven’t had a chance to come back because I end up going to subways, shame because when I came here always got the to go lasagna and SAMs special.
DELICIOUS! Party in my mouth, exploding with delicious flavors.
Sam really set the par for lasagna! Diccicos doesn’t compare one bit, watered down and slopped together.
You can really see the layers of sauce meats cheese and noodle! Perfection. Sauce is so hearty and thick. Ugh drools just thinking about it. Remember arriving here around lunch time. FORGET going back to work or not eating; your choice. Lol — wait time WORTH IT.
So many Italian goodies to choose from some times you can’t decipher on just one you have to get a few! Pancetta here made me cry it was just that good.

Delicious food. I almost always get the cheesesteak. The meat is tender and the bread is fresh. Whenever I’m in the area I like to stop by. Great market, great food. Good service.

Kind of weird that my husband works down the street at the V.A., and this was our first trip to Sam’s — reason being is that all the other Veterans insist we try them out, and we are just now getting to them!
My husband was born and raised in Europe (his father is a Veteran as well after serving 23 years in the Army), and has been on the lookout for a great European-​type deli. Well, he found it.
At any rate, the food was delicious, the service was exceptional — this is another regular spot for us =)

Always a line, always great!!! When I’m in the Fresno area I always try to stop in and grab a sandwich.

I have been coming here for more than 25 years and never been disappointed. Sam used to always give my son a meatball when we would go by, and his son carried on the tradition afterwards. Now that my son is 12 this is still one of his favorite places to go.
Are you hungry? Try the New Yorker, pure heaven.

I tried the steak sandwich and it was hot and delicious! It was well proportioned and the service was good. I’m a first time visitor and it won’t be my last! It’s time to go down the menu and explore the rest of the great looking subs!

I give them the 2 stars because the customer service was great.
I should have known better than to come 15 mins before close. I guess that’s my fault as to why I am not satisfied with my meal. Regardless, the overly wet pastrami sandwich that I ordered was just gross. Not only did it taste old, but it lacked flavor.
As for everything being scratch made, I at least expected them to cure their meats in house. Turns out they don’t. The person who rang me up fessed up that a lot of the meats are just ordered from other places. Eh. I had high hope for this place. Still looking for that authentic deli that makes their own meats. Oh well.

I don’t know how I’ve managed to never write a review for Sam’s in the many years I’ve been coming here, I feel like I must have back in the day and it «disappeared» somehow as reviews sometimes seem to do around here… Anyway– this is the best pure delicatessen in Fresno, and we’re very lucky to have something like this here.
What makes Sam’s stand out above everyone else is the ridiculously good quality meats and cheeses that make the sandwich. It’s the reason they don’t like to put all that fancy crap on their sandwiches– the flavors from just the meat and cheese alone are damn good. Very simple, basic subs here– no bells and whistles to compensate for lower quality ingredients or crazy monstrosities here (which can be damn good in their own right) and you really can’t go wrong no matter what you order.
That said, my two favorite sandwiches are The New Yorker, which is a hot pastrami sandwich, and Sam’s Special, which is a cold sandwich with a variety of different meats.
Employees here are very sweet and personable. Last time I came, I was looking around at everything, waiting for some friends to show up and one of the girls at the counter called me over and asked if I wanted to try some of their meats. «Hell yes, I do!» as she sliced some fresh mortadella up for me.
Outside of the sandwiches, they have such a great selection of cheeses, meats, homemade salads, pastas, sauces, etc. Practically a must to pick up some kalamata olives, sun dried tomatoes, pickle spears, or some cheese to eat with your sub. They also have a ridiculous assortment of sodas you didn’t even know existed. Dozens of brands of root bear, cream sodas, seltzers, Italian sodas, etc. I make it a point to try at least one new thing each time I come.
There’s nowhere to «dine-​in,» so either be prepared to take your meal to go or eat in their cool little patio, which is what I opt to do. It’s in an interesting neighborhood, especially if you go later on near closing time. You’re bound to get some free entertainment. In the hour or so we hung around, we witnessed a minor car accident, a drug deal, hilarious phone conversations from passers-​by (a guy talking about how he got stuck in an attic) outdoorsmen being outdoorsmen with their incomprehensible gibberish gobbledegook, and several people displaying questionable fashion statements.
If Sam’s Deli was in a spot like River Park– it would absolutely murder any and all competition hands-​down. They have an exceptional product comprised of the best quality, with great service and a long-​time reputation. A well-​deserved 5 stars.

Amazing little deli in the heart of Fresno. One might not think of this area as having any eateries, but this place comes up out of the blue and is definitely worth the stop.
The inside features a full service deli where you can order hot or cold sandwiches, sliced meats and cheeses and even a wide variety of pasta salads and the like. The staff is super friendly and willing to explain anything. The perimeter features a store where you can find cold drinks, dry pastas, fresh cheeses, tomato sauces, wines and freshly baked breads just to name a few.
If your ever in the area, or craving food from an Italian style deli, you gotta hit up Sam’s. You will not be disappointed.

If you’re an Angeleno and you’re a fan of Bay Cities Italian Deli in Santa Monica, I have three near-​blasphemous words for you: SAM’S IS BETTER.
(Waits for collective gasp to clear the room)
I’m serious, and I would not say words like that without careful consideration. The bread that this deli uses alone makes them superior. I have never had such amazing, fresh bread on a sub an am pretty sure I’m in love. I got a large smoked turkey breast sandwich with provolone, lettuce and avocado thinking that, like usual, I’d eat half now and save the other half for later. Rookie mistake. The sandwich never had a chance. I even got through more of the cheese tortellini side than planned, and at that point I was just showing off.
The friendly service and wide selection of fresh pastas & wine in the market topped off the Sam’s experience for me. I was happy we got there at an off-​hour; we took a number and waited just a few minutes to be served. But I could see this place getting stupid busy at the height of the lunch rush. I’ll be happy to be a part of that rush the next time I’m in Fresno for lunch.

Sandwich so good and addicting there’s armed guards protecting it!
The Roman gods would be pleased to hear that classic and authentic meats and cheeses are being prepared here. Came here because sometimes you have to switch it up and move away from the burgers and beans that we valley people enjoy and love and try something simple, sorta back to basics.
I was very impressed inside of the deli which was very clean, organize and great customer service from the employees. The bottle sodas caught my eye, they seemed like crafted soda done by locals or maybe imports from Italy… I believe, If I am wrong them hit me in the head with one.
I got the Focaccia Special Sandwich which seemed unique and different from the other sandwiches, bread looked killer. Of course also I got the free 32oz of any fountain drink of any choice by clicking on the, «check-​in» tab. Next time I will buy one of them bottle carbonate drinks in the future.
The sandwich was amazing, kinda played games with my taste buds and I like that. It tasted like if I was eating a pizza and a sandwich together at the same TIME. At the moment I knew I was love, I suggest everyone to try it once. The next meal on my list will be the meatball of course, looks killer.
Now to some other things I seen on the business was an armed guard, who was patrolling the building who seemed too tense, and kinda annoying with the staring since I was eating outside in the patio. Maybe it was the tattoos and my bald head but didn’t seem to do that to other people. Other than that was my only personal problem, I don’t blame them since it is FRESNO but other than that I will return.
I rate this place 4.0

Stop reading and go now! Their sandwiches are amazing because they only use high quality meats, cheeses and breads.
I had the smoked turkey. I’ve also had the Sam’s special and the Muffuletta too. Today I also tried the cheese tortellini and it was excellent too.