Queen Anne Specialty Market

This place is the worst.
I only know from living right above it for a year.
I won’t get into details, but I will tell you that you pay to put your health at risk.
Don’t go there!

I’m astonished, and actually laughing, at the incredibly poor service here.
The guy at the counter literally refused to let me have my sandwich on a roll.
Me: «Can I just have turkey with cheddar on that roll please?»
Him: «No.»
Me: «Wait, what?»
Him: «It would be too hard, trust me you don’t want it.»
Me: «I seriously can’t have my turkey sandwich on that roll.»
Him: «Nope.»
This went on for about another minute before I finally gave up. He continued being a jerk while he was making my sandwich.
Me: «Could I get lettuce on that too please»
Him: ‘…YEAH, YOU TOLD ME.“
It was comically bad. The sandwich wasn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t great.
Unless you want to laugh at a guy who clearly hates everyone who comes into his store, skip the Specialty Market and just go to Safeway.

So this place is fairly decent. They have a small, but diverse, selection of drinks including wine and beer along with some good food essentials if you need to whip something up for dinner.
The part that I like the best is their sandwiches. They make a pretty good panini. I like the «Sam’s Special» which comes with Boars Head Chicken breast, some savory sauce (which seems to be mustard based), bacon, cheese, and sun dried tomatoes. I thought that it was a pretty solid sandwich and decent for the ~&7 price tag.
Like some others have said they can be kind of slow but I think it is worth it for a good quality sandwich plus that have places to sit and wait/​eat as well.
Overall I think if live or work in the area it is definitely a place worth checking out.

Seriously, second time I’ve been here and the second time I found moldy blueberry muffins! Right out for everyone to see (and purchase if you dare) to the left of the register! Really? I told them the first time and they quickly got rid of them, but I decided to let some food inspector to discover them this time. The service here also needs a serious overhaul… painfully slow, and I consider myself a patient person. Their sandwiches are pretty good, although this second trip has made me want to just bring my own lunch to work from now on.

I work near this place, so have been maybe ½ dozen times, and always been pleased. Nothing special on the flavor, just a decent sandwich shop with good bread and good meat. They do have great portions for the price though, so that’s why I went back with some frequency. After today though, I will NEVER go there again.
First, I walked in the place, and there was a line. Not long, but I had to ask a customer to figure out who was actually waiting to place an order and who was waiting for food. First bad sign.
When the line was determined, immediately, the woman in front of me left, frustrated from wating. Bad sign #2.
When I got to the point of placing my order, I asked for something I’d gotten there a number of times before, salami, lettuce, tomato, mayo, onions, on kaiser. I wanted it cold, but the guy refused to give me a kaiser roll without toasting it. Bad sign #3.
So I said, «fine, toast it, but only toast the roll, not the meat.» Having said that, I then waited in line for him to get it made and pay at the head of the line, like everyone else.
It took him at least 10 – 15 minutes to make the 2 or 3 sandwiches in front of me (bad sign #4), but I finally got to the front of the line. At which point, he stared at me silently, akwardly, until, assuming he had forgotten what I had ordered, I said, «I’m the salami.»
Next out of his mouth, «oh, you told me ‘forget it.’» Now as mentioned above, I said nothing of the sort. And stood in line in front of him for 10 minutes, all the time with him neither making me food nor asking me what I wanted, given he thought I asked for nothing.
At this point, I really did not want to wait another 10 minutes for a sandwich, so I said, «forget it, I’m going to go somewhere else,» and left. Then, as I was walking out, I actually heard him, loud enough that all the customers could hear, call me an idiot.
RECAP: The service was slow, rude, inconsiderate, innacurate, and in the end downright insulting. Needless to say, they have lost a repeat customer.

Being a born and raised an east coaster, I know what quality boars head meats are all about. So ever new city I venture to I scope out the nearest boars head. Did so with this place as well. I thought I would grab a sandwich while I was at it.
Service was terrible!!! The guy behind the counter had a terrible attitude, didn’t even ask what I wanted on my sandwich and just started microwaving it up! I was craving a cold cut, cold sandwich. I also hate melted cheese so this brothered me a bit. Basically this is NOT a sandwich place, this is a strictly PANINI place! And you don’t get to choose what you want on your sandwich unless your welling to put up a fight for it.
The two stars are for the fact that the sandwiches are pretty good, but then again its boars head and its kinda hard to make a bad boars head anything. Service is terribly however!

There’s a party in my mouth right now and you’re not invited!
Sandwiches the size of your face for about 7 bucks. Thick slabs of bread filled with delicious Boar’s Meat products, topped with quality veggies, and then grilled to melt-​y perfection. My favorite is the Classic Chicken, which boasts a pesto spread, provolone cheese, and your choice of veggies.
Just one minor itty bitty detail… they are s-​l-​o-​w. The owner is super nice though, you can’t help but enjoy watching him put together your sandwich with such care. I find that they’re a little quicker if you hit them up during lunch hour (when there are more people on hand) but hey, if they take longer it means a longer faux lunch break for me :)

No Joke… this guy makes your meal like its going to be your last…
FIRST time I was there… I did the potty dance right there in front of him… thinking COME ON HURRY!
I looked over the counter and that’s when I saw it… MAGIC was happening. He was adjusting the tomatoes JUST right, no kidding! WHEN is the last time you saw someone do that? THEN the care he took putting the cheese on. This was no ordinary sandwich anymore — OH NO. This is almost better than what Grandma makes…
Biting into the thing was the best part. I go back ONCE a week… love it.
Yes I made it to the bathroom in time… but it would not have mattered if I didn’t the food was worth it.

I ran over to Queen Anne Specialty Market from Homewood Suites to grab a quick dinner. They make a pretty good Boar’s Head sandwich. A good escape when you have little time.

Yep, I still like this place. Although I haven’t worked nearby for nearly 2 years, so I don’t get to frequent it as often as I’d like. 5-​stars for using Boar’s Head meats, 3-​stars for slow (but friendly) staff and infinite amount of stars for acting as my gateway to Unilocal

This is a neat little grocery that also slings together some boar head brand sandwich makings. If you’re in the area, this could be a decent place to pick up a $ 6 sandwich.
I opted for a snack of some kind of indian fried-​pouch-​o-​lentils-​thing. I asked what it was, didn’t understand what they told me, and ordered one. It was as good as non-​meaty things can be with the limitation of no meat.
If I lived in the neighborhood, I might make this a recurring visit for grocery, a coffee, or occasional snack/​lunch.
With the closing of QFC nearby, I imagine they will be more popular.

I swear they’ve kidnapped the Soup Nazi and are forcing him to work in their kitchen. How do they do it time and time again? From bisques to chowders, Queen Anne Specialty Market has dominated the Seattle soup world. Get a cup (don’t forget to snag a slice of amazing focaccia for dipping) and a half sandwich. I recommend the «Roger’s special». It’s chicken and bacon and cheese and other goodness on a ciabatta roll. But steer clear of the fruit salad; it’s exorbitantly expensive.
If you’re listening Queen Anne Specialty Market, 5-​stars could be awarded for faster service and a more precise ordering system.

This place is half deli, half gourmet market, plus a small Nyquil section.
The lunchtime sandwich line can be a little long (I wish they had some prepared grab-​and-​go items), but the wait is generally worth it: they have Boar’s Head deli meats, real cheeses, and they’ll do whole or half sandwiches.
The gourmet market angle is why I *really* like this place. If you’re staying at the next-​door Homewood Suites, it’s a lifesaver. Get some nice bread, some fruit (Blackberries! In January!), some cheese, maybe a bottle of wine (they have a good selection), and you’re all set.
Note: They might be a touch pricey for day-​to-​day groceries, but the prices are fair for the quality and convenience.

Queen Anne Specialty Market is actually the first establishment I discovered on Unilocal which is crazy since this place is right in my backyard. Lower Queen Anne has a myriad of sandwich selections but few of the «deli» variety. Queen Anne Specialty Market isn’t exactly a deli, but it does offer some traditional deli sandwiches done up in panini style.
Boar’s Head provides the fixings (and possibly the sandwich «templates») so the quality is mid-​high. Portions are huge and I often find the half sandwich to be a sufficient lunch sized meal. You can pick from a variety of breads but due to the panini process (grilling in a press from the outside in), it’s best to stick with rolls or ciabatta. Regular sliced bread quickly becomes soggy and physically unstable.
Favorites so far are the rueben and the rueben-​esque New Yorker. The New Yorker is corned beef with coleslaw and swiss. Interesting mix but again, watch the bread selection as the coleslaw really soaks in during grilling.
In addition to the deli area, there is a high end pre-​packaged grocery store. It’s basically an upscale convenience mart somewhere between Ralph’s and Trader Joe’s although smaller than either. There’s also a refrigerated desert rack from which I’ve only tried a pre-​packaged tiramisu. It wasn’t bad.
4 stars although I’d probably give it 3 if there were a more traditional deli within walking distance of my apartment.