STAMFORD, CT — Another new episode of “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” will air on Food Network Friday night, and another beloved local business will be highlighted.
Guy Fieri visited Corbo’s Southside Deli, located at 90 Washington Blvd., in May of this year as part of a trip through Fairfield County.
Episodes in recent weeks have featured Stamford Diner on the West Side, Il Pastaficio in Cos Cob, and Grigg Street Pizza in downtown Greenwich.
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The latest episode is titled “Sandwich-Fest,” and will premiere at 9 p.m., on Oct. 27 on Food Network. Be sure to check your local listings.
The deli offers various breakfast items and sandwiches; hot and cold specialty sandwiches and wraps from an Italian combo to chicken cutlet offerings; grilled and char-grilled sandwiches; salads; and sides, to go along with a full catering menu.
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Corbo’s Southside Deli started to offer pizza earlier this year through Harbor Point Pizza, according to the Hey Stamford! blog.
The original Corbo’s (Corbo’s Deli West) is located in Greenwich at 470 W. Putnam Ave. Previously there were storefronts in Old Greenwich, Cos Cob and in Rye Brook, N.Y. The Stamford location opened up nine years ago.
“Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” first aired on Food Network in 2007 and quickly gained popularity.
Fieri, a longtime restaurateur, takes viewers on road trips across the country to find hidden gems, local eateries and unique restaurants that are offering up good food.
“This trip, Guy Fieri’s checking out how stellar sandwiches stack up. In Omaha, Nebraska, there’s elevated meatloaf and a creative chicken trifecta. Then, in Daphne, Alabama, Guy digs into a dynamite dip and delicious fall-off-the-bone pork, while in Stamford, Connecticut, a real deal deli is putting out the bomb belly bao and a righteous Reuben,” a description for the episode says on the Food Network website.
Co-owner David Bosco said the show reached out to friends of Fieri’s in the area several months ago to get recommendations, and Corbo’s made the list.
Bosco and co-owner David Corbo, both Greenwich residents, submitted several menu items and information about the business as part of the screening process.
“It was a long interview process, and we didn’t know what the outcome would be,” Bosco said. “About 10 days before they came and filmed they chose us. It was pretty surreal.”
Crews filmed at Corbo’s over a couple of days, and Corbo prepared two dishes for Fieri, and special guest Adam Richman of “Man vs. Food” fame: a pork belly bao bun with house-cured pork belly, pickled cabbage, red onion and roasted Serrano crema; and a Reuben sandwich that’s more akin to a “Rachel” since it has coleslaw (and melted Swiss cheese) on it instead of sauerkraut, Bosco said.
A bao bun is a soft, fluffy, steamed dough that can be stuffed with various fillings. The pork belly and pastrami are smoked and prepared in-house at Corbo’s.
“It’s a process to get the meat ready,” Bosco said, noting that the bao buns are part of the catering menu. There are plans to offer them as specials after the show airs.
Bosco said he enjoyed the entire experience.
“It was like a superstar walking into the place and hanging out and cooking with you. It was pretty cool,” Bosco noted.
Corbo started the business almost 20 years ago with another partner, and Bosco came on in 2006.
Businesses routinely get swarmed by people following the airing of “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” episodes. The deli is usually pretty busy, but the staff is getting ready for that possible post-show boom.
“We have a staff behind us that’s ready to go to work even harder than they do already,” Bosco said. “We’re prepared.”
For more on Corbo’s Southside Deli and Corbo’s Deli West, visit their website or follow them on Instagram.
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