Five-month-old Fredi manages to combine the chic feel of a SoHo (or Milanese, for that matter) sandwich shop with food that you’d travel a lot farther from Union Square to find. The star attrractions, on a choice of six different breads (Italian hero, challah, baguette, etc.) are irresistible combos like the pork meatball bánh mì, almost Italian but spiced up with daikon slaw and hot chile mayo. There’s also tandoori chicken salad, an avocado BLT, and the incomparable Italian melt (with prosciutto, mozzarella, Parmesan and roasted plum tomatoes). For breakfast, forget about over easy with toast; the scrambled egg sandwiches here—on house-made buttermilk biscuits or ciabatta—have romantic names like Bohemian Rhapsody. (See “Chew on This” for a great new dinner option.) If you ask nicely, Alison Horowitz, who runs the place with her parents and siblings, will point out the picture of her dog—Fredi, himself named after Freddie Mercury—hiding in plain sight above the counter. You may also notice several menu items are named for Queen songs. What more could you ask for? Beer and wine? Hey, they’ve got that, too.

We Will Rock You (breakfast sandwich with Black Forest Ham)
Pork meatball bánh mì
Italian melt
Tandoori chicken salad with pickled onions and yogurt dressing
view full menu here

There's a counter, a few tables, and a bench outside.

Beginning Wednesday evenings in mid-June, the Fredi at Night Farm to Table special offers a seasonally inspired, locally sourced three-course dinner for $40. Or stick with the ongoing nightime deal—a sandwich, side and beer for $12.95 (after 6 PM). On weekends, brunch specials include a French toast sandwich, scrambled egg and sausage burrito, and deviled-egg BLT.

Sun.–Thurs. 8 AM–10 PM; Fri.–Sat. 8 AM–11 PM
breakfast: daily 8 AM–12 noon
brunch: Sat.–Sun. 8 AM–4 PM

$4.95 (scrambled egg sandwich) to $8.50 (tilapia sandwich)