The Italian Combo sandwich is the signature sandwich at Freddie's Sandwiches in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

Freddie’s Sandwiches, located in San Francisco’s North Beach district, has a storied history as long its 31 item menu. 

“You know who the most famous people were that came to Freddie's?” asked Eddy Sweileh, owner of Freddie’s Sandwiches. “Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe, they were regulars back in the ’50s.” 

The off-white building that houses the deli sits quietly at 300 Francisco Street at the corner of Francisco and Stockton. Its doors are open bright and early at 7:30 a.m. Monday through Friday and 8:30 a.m. on Saturdays (Freddie's is closed on Sundays). As lunch time rolls around and the fog rolls away (or doesn’t), the chatter outside Freddie’s begins to pick up. Friends, whether its kids from the middle school across the street, transplants that live in the increasingly young neighborhood, or even the old-timers who ate at Freddie’s back in their youth — all come back to order the same thing, and talk amongst each other about what they’re going to order. 

The colors of the Italian flag cover the base of Freddie’s next to a big red door. The windows are covered in old Yelp review stickers and current pandemic safety precaution flyers. When you walk in, a green menu board above the cash register toward the back of the store dominates the line of sight. To the left, almost tucked in the corner, stands Sweileh, 59, owner of Freddie’s since 1991.

Owner Eddy Sweileh take an order from customers at Freddie's Sandwiches in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

But the history of this deli goes back way further than ’91 or even Joltin’ Joe and the Blond Bombshell.

In 1926, original owner Freddie Braja opened a little shop to feed the working class neighborhood of North Beach. At the time, North Beach, especially the area that borders what is now known as Ghirardelli Square and down to Pier 39, was full of warehouses and textile mills, according to Sweileh. 

In fact, Freddie’s didn’t actually start as a sandwich shop — it started more as a convenience store, selling beans, rice and bread. In the 1930s, Braja decided to add sandwiches to feed the construction workers who were busy building the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a convenient lunch for them to take up to the bones of San Francisco’s iconic bridge, Sweileh said. Braja’s sandwiches became an instant hit and he focused solely on those moving forward.

A photograph of Freddie Braja, the original owner of Freddie's Sandwiches, on display at the deli in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

But his first sandwich menu used to be quite simple.

“[Braja] had only like two or three sandwiches back in the day,” Sweileh said. “Either salami, or salami and ham, or salami, ham and cheese. He didn’t even have mayo on the menu because he didn’t like mayo. Only mustard.”

After about 65 years, Braja sold the business and the building to another man, who is still the landlord of the building, and operated the spot for about seven years. During that period, Sweileh’s now wife, Rosalia, was an employee of the business. While they didn’t meet at the shop, she did inform Sweileh that it was up for sale knowing that he was tired of cooking and operating his taqueria, Burrito King, “near the Kaiser on Geary.”

“I got tired of cooking and doing all of it,” he said. “But this operation … I can manage this one. It’s easier than a restaurant.”

Sweileh has grown the menu slowly but surely over the years, even though he wanted to keep it as classic as it was since the beginning. 

“People told me ‘thank god you took over the business, but we are in the ’90s, you have to add lettuce, tomatoes, veggies’” he recounted. “I hate to admit it, but eventually, I caved in to the people.”

He added mayo, (which, if Braja knew, he would likely turn over in his grave) pickles, onions, tomatoes, lettuce and different kinds of bread. In fact, it’s the bread options that might be the secret “sauce” to Freddie’s operations. Many delis use the same meats that are distributed nationwide such as Boar’s Head, for example. A great deli rises above the rest, though, when its bread is noticeably better. While the bakery that used to make Freddie’s bread for decades is no longer in operation, Sweileh said they handed over their recipes. Now, Sweileh entrusts a different bakery to make loaves special, just for them. But he offers no more explanation than that. If he did, it would be like revealing the location of the treasure on a secret map.

The deli now has over 30 sandwich options, which are measured in size by the length of the nine bread options. A small sandwich is 6 inches, a large is 8 inches, a half-loaf is 12 inches and a whole loaf sandwich is 25 inches. Meat varieties include bologna, turkey, mortadella, Genoa salami, tuna salad, black forest ham and pastrami, just to name a few. When you place an order “with everything” at Freddie’s, it includes mustard, tomatoes, pickles, sliced red onions, shredded iceberg lettuce, and yes, mayonnaise.

“The whole loaf sandwich is mostly used for catering,” Sweileh said. “Or one very, very hungry person.”

However, there is one sandwich that remains the same all these years later — the No. 1 Italian Combo, on a soft sourdough roll. 

The Italian Combo sandwich is the signature sandwich at Freddie's Sandwiches in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

“It’s been the number one selling sandwich for 96 years,”  Sweileh said. The sandwich comes with Genoa salami, ham, mortadella, pressed ham and the customer’s choice of cheese. To have it made the way it was enjoyed over 80 years ago, order it with just mustard, on Sweileh’s recommendation.

He is quick to point out, though, that none of the business would be successful without his small team of hardworking employees. Of the five, two of them have been with Sweileh since basically the beginning. Maria, Sweileh says, worked the sandwich line for 29 years and happily retired this summer on July 1. Maura Mancia, the current manager, has been at Sweileh’s side for 24 years. 

(Left to right) Owner Eddy Sweileh and manager Maura Mancia behind the counter of the North Beach deli in San Francisco.

Sweileh, who hails from Amman, Jordan but is half Jordanian and half Lebanese, is all in on Freddie’s. He rarely misses a day of work.

He said he’s never worn out from the deli’s work, either. It’s his life and he doesn’t have plans to give it up anytime soon. Part of the appeal is the customer base, for which he is very thankful for, because Freddie’s did not suffer nearly as much as other businesses during the thick of the pandemic.

“I didn’t have to fire anybody,” he said. “Maybe I took home $2 instead of $3, but I’m OK with that. Everyone remained on staff, which is more important.”

Freddie's Sandwiches manager Maura Mancia writes down the name of a sandwich behind the counter of the North Beach deli in San Francisco.

The other reason Sweileh loves coming to work everyday? The stories.

“We have had many famous people come into Freddie’s,” Sweleih said. He went on to point out that it was a favorite of Sen. Barbara Boxer, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, countless 49ers football players and other San Francisco celebrities. “Oh and there’s one more, but I don’t know if we want to be associated with him — O.J. Simpson.”

If there’s one story that sticks out more than the others, it’s about an arrest that happened inside the deli.

The interior space of Freddie's Sandwiches deli in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

“One time, I think it was the mid-Nineties, a customer was in line waiting to order. There was a group of guys right behind him in line, but nothing seemed off,” he explained. “All of a sudden, the group of guys bring the one guy to the ground and put handcuffs on him. The whole store was in shock, including myself.”

It turns out, he was a wanted man by the FBI, according to Sweileh.

“But I’m glad it didn’t make it to the headlines because that would have been bad for business,” he said.

Customers enjoy the outdoor seating at Freddie's Sandwiches in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

Freddie’s Sandwiches has fed thousands of people over the years. So much so, that there should be a bookkeeper taking notes. The question is: Are you up to make the trek and write your own Freddie’s story?

Freddie's Sandwiches, 300 Francisco St., San Francisco. Open Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturday, 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Closed Sundays.

Nico Madrigal-Yankowski is a food reporter for SFGATE. He is a born and bred San Franciscan. Email him tips at nico.madrigal-yankowski@sfgate.com