Mangia Mangia Deli

I admit I don't eat Italian food too often, due to the rich creamy sauces and cheese that accompany it BUT Mangia Mangia is worth it! This business was originally just a food truck, but a very darn good one at that! My favorite item was their Mangia Burger! They still have the food truck traveling around town all week but I'm oh so happy that they have a permanent deli location off Clairemont Mesa Blvd. The downside is that it's only open for weekday lunch! Luckily for me, I work nearby!

This deli is actually a bit hard to find on your first try. Since my coworkers got lost as well, here are some extra directions. From Clairemont Mesa Blvd, you turn onto Industrial Park Driveway, which has a stoplight, and drive north past a few business buildings until you see Societe Brewery on the left and a big blueish purple flag as above on the right. Take a right turn into the lot immediately after that flag (not before) and at the very back of that lot, you'll see the second flag! The deli is in this corner with the door on the left!

Besides their regular menu, they also have daily specials posted on their sideboard. The deli itself has no seating inside. People pretty much take everything to-go, very similar to their food trucks.

I wanted to come here with the lunch crew and the owner Marko offered to set up a table for us outside (thanks to coworker Bob for organizing this). There was even a large shady tent above the table to keep us out of the sun! I also thought the centerpieces were cute. It happened to be a beautiful day out too and the breezy peaceful shade was the perfect ambiance for a weekday lunch. You can see the tent and table out back if you look at the first picture of this review.

To start, we ordered some appetizers family style. This is their famous Italian Lollipop, which is a meatball fried in dough on a stick! It's absolutely delicious and served with their fantastic house marinara sauce.

The Panzanella(?) meat was good too, with minimal saltiness and very fresh feel. I liked the mini spicy rub on the edges.

The Bruschetta bread had a little crunch without being too hard but I would have liked the tomatoes a little more firm. This was a typical implementation to me so I rate it average.

The Fried Mozzarella was lightly breaded and fried with an excellent crust. More of the delicious house marinara sauce was drizzled on top with parmesan cheese and basil. I'd love to order it again.

The Beef Short Rib Lasagna had meat that was already shredded into the layers and the sweeter glaze on top made this a really unique lasagna taste that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The Spaghetti and Meatballs were wonderful with the same marinara sauce as before and the addition of well seasoned meatball chunks. The noodles were cooked just right too. It tells a lot about the chef if they do well with the basics AND the complex recipes.

I didn't really care for the Mahi Mahi Pasta special of the day because I couldn't taste much of the fish. They were tiny pieces and buried in the noodles. I've never been a fan of seafood pastas though. My coworkers thought it was relatively good.

We cut our burgers into fourths for sharing. This one was the Pizza Burger. The beef was juicy moist and the cheesy marinara sauce combo on top gave it a distinct taste for a burger. The thick buns were toasted nicely and held up really well.

By the time I got around to the Mangia Burger, I was pretty full and it wasn't hot anymore. From previous experience though, this one packs lots of flavor into one bundle and I'd definitely recommend this!

These are the Pesto Fries. They were thin and crispy with a good flavor.

I think these are the Sundried Tomato Fries. You'd get a good chunk of tomato flavor with the red bits but I preferred the pesto ones a little more.

One of my coworkers had a birthday that week and Marko generously brought out some desserts to celebrate, even though the coworker had *just* left to get back to work. The Tiramisu had a cold, almost icy cream layer inside which I enjoyed with the rest of the fluffy creamy cake! The guys ate the Cannoli and reported them as yummy.

Everyone was pleased with the food and service and they claimed that it was THE BEST LUNCH in two years! The lunch crew goes out about once a week so that's quite a bold statement! I give a big thumbs up to Marko and his staff, who make it a priority to please the customers! They also do catering which I bet is fantastic! Looks like we'll be back for more another day!

NOTE: Food is typically served in a styrofoam to-go box so the presentation of these dishes may differ from your food.