Central Grocery

Central Grocery at 923 Decatur Street in New Orleans' French Quarter is the birthplace of the muffuletta sandwich, one of the defining contributions of Louisiana's Italian immigrant community to American culinary history. Salvatore Lupo, a Sicilian immigrant, opened the store in 1906 and created the muffuletta to feed the Sicilian dock workers, produce traders, and fishermen who gathered at the French Market across the street. The sandwich — built on a large, round sesame-seeded loaf of Sicilian bread — is layered with Genoa salami, ham, mortadella, Swiss cheese, provolone, and, most crucially, a house-made olive salad dressing of chopped green and black olives, pickled vegetables, garlic, and olive oil. The olive salad is the ingredient that defines the muffuletta and distinguishes it from any other Italian cold-cut sandwich. Central Grocery makes its olive salad fresh in large batches and sells it separately by the jar, which visitors frequently take home. The store itself is a compressed slice of old New Orleans — narrow aisles lined with canned goods, Italian imports, olive oils, and Louisiana products; the counter at the back is where sandwiches are assembled and handed over wrapped in white paper. Muffulettas are sold whole ($16.75 approximately) or half; a whole is large enough for two moderate appetites. The store closes at 5 PM and is shut on Sundays. No seating inside; visitors eat standing at the counter, on the sidewalk, or at a nearby bench. The Tusa family has maintained the original recipe continuously since 1919.