Two exciting choices for taking out or eating in

There's a new gourmet delicatessen in Watertown that opened a few weeks ago called Romalato's, and a bistro-style restaurant on the SUNY Potsdam campus that opened last year called Becky's Place.

Both are exciting and innovative. We visited both for lunch last week. Here's what we discovered.

ROMALATO'S GOURMET DELICATESSEN

450 GAFFNEY DRIVE

(BEHIND NELSON'S CLEANERS)

WATERTOWN

681-6688

WWW.ROMALATOS.COM

WWW.NNYORKER.COM

One step inside the door of this bright, brand-new, locally owned eatery and you're face to face with deli cases of beautifully displayed food — prepared entrées and salads, imported cheeses and olives, assorted salamis and fresh artisan bread and pastries.

There's chicken Parm, lasagna and stuffed shells ready to go, antipasto salad and bow tie pasta salad, grilled vegetables, Utica greens, twice baked potatoes and stuffed green chili peppers, known in Watertown as "half hots."

There's a selection of in-house crusty, fresh-baked breads that change daily, along with a lighted showcase loaded with specialty sweets crying out to be taken home.

Romalato's was built from the ground up by two Watertown businessmen with little experience in the food industry. Their ace in the hole is Julia Marselis, an accomplished chef with a long list of credentials. She oversees the rather large open kitchen with its half-dozen cooks, who crank out food from a made-to-order menu offering traditional deli sandwiches, upscale specialty sandwiches, paninis, soups and salads, signature burgers and grilled pizzas.

There are four or five high-top tables available for dining in. We were lucky to get one just before the noon rush. The deli is designed primarily for takeout, but judging from the popularity of the tables, some rethinking may be warranted down the line.

We ordered one of their signature grilled pizzas, The Romalato, topped with caramelized onions, goat cheese, figs, prosciutto and mozzarella, drizzled with balsamic glaze. We got a large one ($10.99) so there would be enough to take home.

This was an excellent pizza — fresh, flavorful ingredients on a thin, crispy crust. There was more than enough to take home. It warmed up great in the oven that evening and was still good the next day in the office microwave.

There are over a dozen creative sandwich choices, all conveniently priced at $7.99. Any sandwich can be prepared as a panini.

We hit the jackpot with the Steak and Greens Torpedo — shaved steak with Utica greens (or onions and peppers), melted provolone and herb mayo on a toasted French torpedo roll.

Don't even consider onions and peppers. The Utica greens (sautéed escarole, garlic, prosciutto) were dynamite, mushed together with the delicious shaved beef.

My guest vacuumed it down so quickly I barely got to try a bite before it was gone.

A sandwich you rarely see outside southern Florida is a Cuban, traditionally made with thinly sliced roast pork and baked ham, Swiss cheese, sliced dill pickles and mustard, lettuce and tomato.

Romalato's version was very close, except they added mayonnaise (considered a no-no) and served it on a Roma roll (their torpedo roll would have been more authentic). I ordered it panini style, since a Cuban is always grilled.

But, hey, we're in Northern New York, not Miami. Except for the mayo causing the meat to squish out the sides of the roll, it was great.

Now for the take-home stuff.

The roasted vegetables — fantastic. Red and yellow peppers, asparagus, yellow squash and tomatoes. A large container cost $9.

Thumbs up on the loaf of multigrain bread ($4.25). We enjoyed a delightful lemon bar ($1.75), punched up with a touch of ginger — a great, buttery shortbread bottom layer, too. Chocolate chip cookie ($1) had loads of chips and was crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside. Boston cream cupcake ($2.50) was the cutest little thing, a miniature Boston cream pie.

Baker Kate Kedenburg is responsible for the fine baked goods. Her portion of the business is called The Black Cat Bakery at Romalato's.

Finally there's a place in Watertown where you can get upscale sandwiches, specialty pizzas and a retail bakery with exceptional artisan breads and pastries. Much credit goes to owners Gus Romeo and Todd Badalato for filling a niche in the Watertown restaurant scene.

Romalato's is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. They're closed on Sunday.

You can download their complete menu by going to www.NNYorker.com.

BECKY'S PLACE

RAYMOND HALL

SUNY POTSDAM

There's a neat bistro-style dining area on the SUNY Potsdam campus that's open to the public as well as students, faculty and staff.

It's called Becky's Place, and it's on the first floor of Raymond Hall, the prominent eight-story administration building.

By no means is this your average college dining facility. There are four stations: a grill station, a sauté station, a hearth oven and a deli counter, serving breakfast and lunch with items you'd expect to find in some big-city bistro.

Breakfast is fairly standard, and truly a la carte. You want an egg, it's 80 cents. You want a strip of bacon, it's 40 cents. A piece of toast is 80 cents. Home fries are $1.15.

Things get kicked up at lunchtime with cooked-to-order international creations from the sauté station (Greek island chicken, habas con chorizo, Kyoto chicken teriyaki), pasta bakes from the hearth oven (ziti, lasagna, mac and cheese), made-to-order sandwiches, paninis, wraps and salads from the deli counter and hot favorites like Phillys, Reubens, quesadillas and fajitas from the grill station.

There are grab-and-go items, too, if you don't have time to relax in the dining areas surrounding Becky's Place.

We tried a grilled panini with roast beef, cheese, horseradish and red onion that was quite good, along with a salad of fresh fruit.

Baked lasagna lacked any real pizzazz, but a tabbouleh salad (bulgher wheat with chopped tomatoes, onions, parsley, mint, lemon juice and olive oil) sure made up for it, packing intense flavors.

I loved the sauté station. I got spinach basil "bellisimo" — bowtie pasta, prosciutto, sun-dried tomato pesto, fresh spinach and grated Parmesan. Very tasty.

It was fun watching the cook move the ingredients around in the sauté pan with her rubber spatula. I kidded her, saying, "How come you don't flip it up in the air like those chef guys on television?" She replied, "You want to try it, come on back here ..."

I think I could have done it.

We also tried the Thai noodle salad, linguine-looking noodles with shredded carrot and green onion, sesame oil, a hint of peanut flavor and a definite chili sauce zing. Yummy.

There's a little dessert corner called Becky's Café and Coffee Shop, serving Seattle's Best Coffee, espresso drinks and an assortment of desserts. I thought the cheesecake that came from one of their restaurant suppliers was quite good.

Parking is easy — use one of the large lots facing Raymond Hall. Cash is accepted; credit cards are not.

Becky's Place is open 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday. It's closed on weekends.

You can contact restaurant reviewer Walter Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.