Defonte’s, the sandwich shop institution of Red Hook (since 1922), just opened a second outpost in Gramercy. If you notice from the photo here, the original Defonte’s is all waterfront industrial charm: bricked over windows, a touch of barbed wire accent; everything painted over a shade of green that otherwise belongs slathered across a municipal bridge railing. Defonte’s Red Hook interior is adorned with autographed 8x10s of actors in wiseguy roles and far flung beauty queens, like Miss Delaware 2008. The corner building is a stone’s throw from the Battery Tunnel, so a lot of Defonte’s customers drive a truck, carry a badge, or do both. They work quickly, open early, and close early—the ten person steam table sandwich brigade is usually all but cleaned up around 3 p.m. more ›