Dibella's Old Fashioned Submarines

Dibellas started out as a corner grocery store in Rochester NY. They have since expanded to almost 30 shops in New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Dibella's specializes in hoagies/grinders/subs/po-boys/ or whatever the hell you want to call them.
 A new Dibellas just opened up a few miles from me and I was looking forward to trying out their wares. Would it be utter garbage like Subway, or a quality sub like at Jersey Mikes? So over the last two months I have sampled a few different types of hoagies at Dibellas and let me tell you I was more than pleased with how good the subs are at Dibellas.

Where you place your order

 The decor inside Dibellas is of an early 20th century style with tin ceilings and tiffany style lamps providing the lighting. There are plenty of booths to sit at or you can just get your sub to go. When you place your order you say whether you want your sub classic (cold) or grilled. You then choose from a long list of toppings and condiments to go on your sandwich. If you order a grilled sub be prepared to wait an additional 10 minutes as they cook the meats for the sub on a grill.

Large Meatball $8.99

 The thing that really puts Dibellas ahead of other sub shops is the bread. It is baked fresh at Dibellas daily. Unlike Subways bread which has a crappy crust and is more like an over-sized hot dog bun, Dibellas bread has a beautiful shiny crust, and tastes like bread that you would get from a local bakery. You can get your bread in either plain, sesame, multigrain, or everything.
 The meatball sub came with big ass meatballs smothered in marinara sauce and provolone cheese. A lot of other places you can tell the meatballs are frozen pre-made balls of crap. Dibellas meatballs taste as close to homemade as you will ever have.

Big Ass Meatball

   The meatballs are tender and have a nice mild Italian spice to them. If you want to kick up the spice level, order the sub with bannana peppers or grilled peppers and onions.

The Godfather $8.99

 The Godfather is Dibellas take on a traditional Italian Hoagie. It comes with Genoa Salami, Capicolla, and hot ham. I ordered mine grilled as all Italian meats should be heated as to bring out their flavor. Also I got mine with provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, and "Dibellas famous oil dresssing"  which has olive oil, vinegar and oregano.

Action side view

   Hate to say it but this had to have been one of the best Italian hoagies I have ever had. Even better than any of the local pizza shop Italian hoagies I have eaten. The portions are generous , the meat fresh, the combination of flavors is just off the charts. That combined with Dibellas awesome bread makes for a killer sandwich.

Dibellas Cheesesteak $8.99

  Previously the best cheesesteak I  have had in Pittsburgh was at Southside Steaks in which you can find my review here. Well move over Southside steaks, Dibellas has replaced you. I ordered my cheesesteak with white american cheese, and grilled onions.

Cheesesteak in action

   As you can see Dibellas does not shy away from a generous portion of steak. Once again the thing that puts this sub over the top is the bread. While I found Southside Steaks to have an excellent cheesesteak, their bread I thought was lacking. Dibellas cheesesteak is as close to chessesteak perfection as you can get. Also dont forget that you can customize your sandwich to your liking. Want swiss instead of american cheese, go ahead. Want bannana peppers or grilled sweet peppers on your sandwich, go ahead.

The Dagwood $8.99

 The final sub I tried was the Dagwood which comes with turkey, ham, and corned beef. A traditional cold cut sandwich. This is great if your not in the mood for something hot.

Dagwood side view

  The meats all tasted extremely fresh. I ordered mine with onion, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. My only complaint was they slathered on a little to much mayo for my liking. Besides that, it was an excellent sandwich.

  Dibellas is a great value when you take into account price,quality, and quantity. One large sub from Dibellas is enough to feed 2 normal people or 3 skinny chicks. While I still love an Italian sub from Jersey Mikes, their prices are getting out of hand.  Check out my review of Jersey Mikes HERE. Since I did my review of  Jersey Mikes, their prices have gone up considerably, and you now pay over $11.00 for a large sub.
 Well, I never thought that a small sandwich chain out of NY would wind up making the best hoagies in Pittsburgh. If you haven't been to Dibellas yet, get there. You will not be disappointed.
 On a side note I have had a bunch of people tell me that I need to try an Italian hoagie from Dannys Pizza in the South Hills. Well hopefully I will get there sometime in the near future and we can find out who truly has the best hoagie in Pittsburgh.

Review
Dibella's Old Fashioned Submarines: 9/10

There are 4 Dibellas in the Pittsburgh area

Pittsburgh, PA - Cranberry Township
1694 Rt. 228
Pittsburgh, PA 16066
(724)772-8088 Phone

Pittsburgh, PA - Market Square
16 Market Square
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
412-338-8634 Phone

Pittsburgh, PA - McCandless Twp.
9030 Saint Simon Way
NOW OPEN!
McCandless Township, PA 15237
412-358-8525 Phone

Pittsburgh, PA - Robinson Township
6501 Steubenville Pike
(in front of Kohl's)
Pittsburgh, PA 15277
(412)722-0443 Phone