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    The Pastrami Project

    4.6 (109 reviews)
    Closed 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

    The Pastrami Project Photos

    Business Info

    THE PASTRAMI PROJECT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Hipster
    Dogs allowed
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - The Pastrami Project

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    Taste & smells amazing!
    A R.

    I just tried Pastrami Project for the first time. Will not be the last. It's hidden behind a cafe on magnolia. I love pastrami. This is hands down the best pastrami sandwich I have had. Just perfection. Looks, smells and taste amazing! Service is friendly as well. Highly recommend! 5 stars without a doubt!

    Reuben
    Caroline D.

    Fun friendly and an amazing food truck. My Reuben was tasty hearty and delicious. The slaw was homemade and had the right snout of mustard seeds in it a unique recipe and fresh, not drenched in mayonnaise . The potato latkes were good, two secret ingredients were revealed while eating with the owner. I will not tell... go and try them out:)) yum. Made me feel like I was back in NYC:))

    Ariel W.

    This review is another entry in my tour of the places in Florida Guy Fieri has eaten at with his show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. I have a Yelp collection if you want to follow along with my adventures. The show first aired in 2006 and it is on its 47th season of Guy's road trips across America where he highlights some of America's most underrated and delicious local eats. Guy Fieri visited The Pastrami Project for the episode Multicultural Cooking which aired on episode 11 during season 26. The Pastrami Project is a traditional New York style deli located in a food truck behind Cafe Travastere on Magnolia Avenue near downtown Orlando Mondays through Fridays, from 10 AM until 2 PM. It is the creation of former IT tech turned chef, George Markward. It was such a pleasure to meet and chat with George who could not have been nicer. He was more than happy to entertain all of my questions about what it is like to be featured on DDD. George bakes his own loaves of rye bread which are the sturdy canvas for his sandwich masterpieces. For the pastrami he cuts down brisket and cures it for a week. He then puts on his spice rub, smokes the meat, refrigerates it to make it easier to hand-slice, and finally steams the thick slices before building the sandwiches. The Pastrami Project's menu features $12 meals with coleslaw and half sour pickles. Add $2 to make it a Reuben or Rachel and $11 for double meat. Menu choices include Pastrami with Mustard, Braised Beef Brisket, Deli Cuban, Smoked Turkey, Tuna on Rye, Tuna Melt, and a BLT. Other entrees and sides are tacos, rolls, and fries. Dessert is a Black and White cookie from Daisy's bakery. He also serves breakfast with omelets and bagels. After careful consultation of the menu I decided on the Pastrami Reuben. My sandwich was delivered loaded with a heaping portion of lovingly prepared, tender and flavorful pastrami. Even the slaw was amazing. Of course I had to wash it all down with the perfect accompanying beverage, a Dr. Brown's cream soda. Eating at the Pastrami Project was a long time wish come true. If you are in the downtown Orlando area, this a must visit destination for anyone who appreciates an outstanding sandwich.

    No wonder his bread is so good! He makes it himself!!!
    Anita G.

    I had first tried the Pastrami Project at the big Yelp event at the Science Center earlier this month and was so blown away that I had to find the food truck to get again. It turned out that I was in the downtown area on a weekday morning so made it my mission. Found him in a pleasant, shaded area off Magnolia and had a fascinating talk with him while he prepared the call-in order that he had gotten before I drove up. He showed me the freshly baked bread that he made himself, gorgeous! Then the beautiful pastrami he had smoked! No wonder it is so incredible!! This is the real deal, so worth finding him!!!!! Do yourself a favor and give him a visit!

    Jamie G.

    This place has the best hot pastrami on rye in town. The service is fast, fun, and friendly.

    Wow! Great Pastrami! Like the best bbq brisket you've had, but it's pastrami!
    Joe S.

    Best Pastrami and Plentiful FREE Parking! This has pretty much ruined any other pastrami for me. I think the stuff at Katz in NYC looks similar, but everything else is like bologna compared to this stuff. George (the owner and Pastronomer) is super friendly and is proud of his craft. He prepared my sandwich for my meal and the pastrami was cut think and was so melty delicious! Wow, I just got pastrami and bread as I wanted to just eat it without any other distractions. It sits behind an Italian restaurant off Magnolia so drive slow in the right lane and turn right into the large lot. It's only open 10a-2p on weekdays so if you work, you may have to take a day off to get down here. I was off work for the holidays so I made this a stop! I may plan half days in the future to stuff myself with delicious meat. There are other items like Reubens, Reuben Egg Rolls, Reuben Tacos, beef brisket, and other stuff (Check the website for a menu). He also sells pastrami by the ounce like a drug dealer! I'm addicted!

    Fantastic Fries!!
    Gene H.

    #120 TripleD Stop. The Pastrami Project... George is a mad scientist with the food! The Brisket, The Smoked Turkey, Pastrami Egg Rolls...even the fries... AMAZING!! Everything is soooo good, be careful...your mouth may water looking at then pictures! Get by this awesome foodtruck as soon as you can you will not regretit!

    The owner
    Ron O.

    The pastrami sandwich was Simply amazing, really enjoyed meeting the man behind sandwich

    Menu

    This place is legit. A must try when in Orlando. Everything made in house and top notch food.

    Melissa T.

    Getting a speeding ticket would've been worth it after driving down 95 for the two hour ride to make it to the 2 PM closing of The Pastrami Project. George the chef and owner does all his magic from inside a food truck as he was quite engaging. We discussed our differences in our latke ( potato pancake) recipes. Our party of 4 ordered potato latkes, pastrami Rubens, smoked turkey sandwich, and french fries. All the sandwiches came with a side of coleslaw and a pickle. The sandwiches were absolutely delicious and ample in size. The coleslaw was a different take, and we all enjoyed it very much. The latkes came with a choice of apple sauce or sour cream ( we chose apple sauce) were excellent but not as good as mine of course lol. Next to the food truck, there is a table and chairs under an umbrella where we sat and ate our lunch.George prides himself on his take on Russian dressing which he makes with red caviar. While I prefer traditional Russian this was interesting. My friend was so full from her sandwich she couldn't even eat dinner. We will return another time for another 2 hr road trip as it was well worth it. Things to know- Get your pastrami fix Monday- Friday until 2 pm. Closed weekends. The Pastrami Project has been featured not once but twice on Diners, Drives, and Dives.

    My husband absolutely loved the pastrami

    The food was out of this world. Service was fantastic and the Owner was absolutely amazing Highly recommend

    Pastrami on Rye combo

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    Hard to find but worth the effort. The pastrami was wonderful but the bread made the whole experience that much better.

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    9 months ago

    Best Reuben in Orlando! Don't skip the latkes. This is a tried and true staple of Orlando. Hidden behind Cafe Trastevere, don't miss it!

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    Thanks Ron, I hope to see you soon

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    8 months ago

    This isn't "New York" style pastrami. It's got the smoked flavor Southerns love so much that you won't find in NYC..

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    3 years ago

    The best rueben I've had in Orlando. It's a must-visit if you enjoy authentic NY deli quinine.

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    Page 1 of 3

    Ask the Community - The Pastrami Project

    Did you guys move? Came to the location as per my GPS and no one there....

    Nope, we are open from 10am to 2pm Tuesday through Saturday at 175 east part street. Always check my calendar on my website or Facebook in case we do an external event or take a holiday.

    View All 2 Questions

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    Stopped for lunch, based on my son's recommendation. All the seating, indoors and outside, was…read morejam-packed, so I changed our plan to take our order home. Everything was delicious. The gentleman who took our order was helpful with his suggestions and descriptions of menu items. While awaiting our order, I picked up a few unique items from the market, too. Everything was excellent. Next time, I'll try to plan a visit during a less busy time (if there is such a thing) so I can dine-in.

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    My girlfriend described this location as the closest Orlando will get to a bodega and they couldn't…read morebe more right. We both the steak, egg and cheese on a roll and they were made fresh. The service was quick, we waited about 8-10 minutes for our order. The egg was cooked perfectly, just the way I like it. We both loved the cheese and the way it still dripped into the sandwich. The steak sorta tasted synthetic but regardless, my girlfriend and I commented that we would come again for their lunch items.

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    Excellent Italian deli in downtown Clermont. For my first meal here I ended up sharing a turkey…read moresandwich with my brother who does not eat pork where because of this the sandwich was tad on the basic side for my taste. Having said that, the sandwich was still well-made and quite tasty where all the ingredients were fresh and the bread was still warm and appeared to be fresh baked in house. Nice! If I was eating this sandwich by myself, I would've asked for bacon on the sandwich, which definitely would have made it a top shelf turkey sandwich in my opinion. Being an Italian deli, the majority of the sandwiches do use pork of one kind or another where they looked and sounded quite tasty with a number of house specialties on the menu. The next time I am here, I will definitely make sure to order one of their specialty sandwiches to give this business a much fairer assessment and probably the fifth star that I so wanted to give.

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    The Pastrami Project - foodtrucks - Updated July 2026

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