Mid-Michigan Dining

• 6520 S. Cedar #4B
• Lansing, MI 48911
• (517) 887-6300
• Website
• Menu

I’m going to try not to confuse you, but I’m still a little bit confused myself.  Growing up, my family would always eat at Mancino’s Pizza and Grinder’s in Bradley, IL.  I loved the sandwiches.  So, is this the same Mancino’s?  I’ve been searching the net for days and can’t come up with a good answer.  There’s no corporate website that links the two together.  I found another Mancino’s website that lists the Mancino’s on Clippert and that one is linked Samuel Mancino who is from St. Clair Shores, MI and started this concept for a store.  This website doesn’t list either the store on S. Cedar or the two in Bradley that I’ve always eaten at.  To make things even more confusing, there is a chain called Bellacino’s Pizza and Grinders which had stores in Peoria, IL where I lived the last five years.  Bellacino’s had the same menu and made the exact same sandwiches that Mancino’s did, but there is no Bradley store listed on their website either.  On their franchise info page, they say that the recipes are those of Samuel Mancino.  So, are all these stores related?  I still have no freakin clue…………

However, I can tell you that the sandwich I had at Mancino’s Pizza and Grinders on South Cedar St is exactly the same as the grinder I had all those years ago in Bradley and Peoria, IL.  Hell, it could just be a coincidence, but who knows.

I’m sure by now, if you’re still reading, you’re wondering what the heck is a grinder.  It’s a toasted sub.  The sandwich has roots on the east coast.  Italian immigrants set up shop near the ship yards and served sandwiches that were filled with meat , cheese, and veggies then baked.  The men buying the sandwiches were referred to as grinders by the shop owners and eventually, the men began referring to the sandwiches by the same name.  It’s not something really common in the midwest, but if you can find one, you’re in for a treat.

Mancino’s is located in a shopping center behind Pizza Hut on South Cedar Street.  It’s a pretty small shop tucked into the corner of the building.  There are a handful of tables and a half dozen or so booths.  You order at the counter and they bring your food to you after it’s cooked.

After eating at City Limits Sports Grill (review HERE) the other night, I was really craving a Mancino’s Grinder.  I gave my girlfriend the choice of either eating at a diner down the road from where she works or at Mancino’s.  She picked the sandwich shop so I picked her up from work and we went out to eat.  I knew walking in exactly what I wanted.  She wasn’t really sure and needed to see the menu.  The only menu is posted above the counter which makes it a little hard to read.  It’s up high, on an angle, and the lighting is pretty bad.  She ended up just asking me what I wanted, got half of it and added a salad.

I got the whole pizza grinder.  The whole sandwiches are 18″ long and come with pepperoni, pizza sauce and mozzerella cheese loaded on to the bread then put in the pizza oven to bake.  Like I said earlier, this sandwich was exactly how I remembered.  Mine was served on a paper plate and my g/f half sandwich (same thing but 9″) was served on of those paper boats you get fries in at the county fair.  She loved the bread, but I thought it was too soft.  By the time I got done with half of the first half, the top piece of bread was breaking apart and melting into the sandwich which made it really messy.  The whole sandwich was just enough for my big appetite.  The half sandwich plus a dinner salad was more than enough for her.

The dinner salad was also pretty simple and again, served in one of those paper boats.  It wasn’t even mixed together when it came out.  There was a bed of iceburg lettuce then on top three toppings divided to look like napoleon ice cream.  The toppings were cheese, green peppers and tomatos.  The salad also comes with mushrooms and onions, but she elected to keep those off.  For a side salad, it was a good size.  Nothing special and the presentation was wierd. 

With two drinks, we paid $20 and got in and out in less than a half hour.  There was a lot of food and it was good…almost addicting.  The taste is what I remember, but not quite as good as City Limits’ Grinder.  My girlfriend remarked that it’s dangerous we found the place because it’s a good place to stop when we’re just in the mood for a sandwich.  Definately better than a Subway or Quiznos’ and much better sandwich options. So, whether it’s the same as all the other places that I’ve mention or not doesn’t matter.  It was what I was looking for and didn’t disappoint.