"Ayo, lemme get a chopped cheese, and do it the Ocky way." I don't care how long you've lived in the city; if you've never heard or uttered the previous sentence, you're not a real New Yorker. I'm serious; David Dinkins signed it into law decades ago.
I'm kidding, of course, but only about the law. If you don't know what a chopped cheese is, you've only witnessed the gilded exterior of New York City. There's a whole other city beneath the notable landmarks that lure tourists to traipse through the town, and a chopped cheese is the greasy key. That's why the scene where Peter Parker drops into a bodega to order a sandwich is so appealing to New Yorkers. A scene of that nature was long overdue for a character as quintessentially New York as Spider-Man is supposed to be. He may not have ordered a chopped cheese, but I can attest that throngs of New Yorkers appreciated the sentiment.
Oh, right, you're probably asking what a chopped cheese is. It's basically a ground beef sandwich slathered in American cheese and a handful of deli veggies. However, it's so much more than that. The video linked above from Great Big Story's YouTube channel walks you through the ingredients and cultural importance of the fabled chopped cheese. Next time you're in NYC, order one up, procure a nutcracker, if you can, and get lit, b.
