Phantom Gourmet: The Kitchen Artisan Deli In Portsmouth, NH

PORTSMOUTH, NH - The grill is always blazing and the sauté pans are simmering, while creative sandwiches are stacked, stuffed and rolled. It seems there's always something special cooking in The Kitchen.

Chef/Owner Matt Greco has worked in some of the best kitchens in all of Boston, but when he relocated to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, he found that the city lacked the sort of sandwich shop he loves. So he opened The Kitchen Artisan Deli.

"When we came up with the concept of The Kitchen, it was something that Portsmouth didn't have, and was in desperate need of. And to this day, Portsmouth still doesn't have something like us. We're a take on a New York style deli that kind of morphed into what you see here, which is a bar, TVs, bus your own tables. We just really wanted to keep it homey; a little bit funky but not too funky."

The menu at the Kitchen features a lineup of foods made with one common theme - simplicity.

"I like to cook with as little ingredients as possible," Matt said. "We like to use the best ingredients that are available to us. We use local bread companies; we use local purveyors. Everything is made in house."

Sandwiches are the Kitchen's specialty. There's the slow roasted porchetta served on a bulky roll and topped with fried pork belly and arugula pesto; or the Southern inspired Cajun Po Boy, loaded up with local cod, pickled red onion and roasted red pepper aioli on a crunchy baguette.

The real sandwich star is The Kitchen's Bahn Mi. This Vietnamese staple explodes with flavor by combining pulled pork, pickled vegetables, cilantro lime mayo and crunchy pork rinds for the ultimate in taste and texture.

"You get the texture from the pork rinds, from the pickled veg, the richness from the pate, the pulled pork and then you get the nice cooling down from the cilantro lime mayo," Matt described.

While all the sandwiches are sensational, they're made even better paired with some of The Kitchen's addictive Spudsters. The snackable spuds are made by deep frying creamy mashed potatoes and tossing them in different spices from Creole or BBQ to Garlic and Parmesan.

"They are the best tater tots you've ever had, but they're mashed potatoes. They're crunchy on the outside and smooth and creamy on the inside."

From there, you choose one of The Kitchen's housemade dips.

"My dips are truffle ketchup, smoked paprika aioli, roasted red pepper aioli, apple chutney and house barbecue sauce," Matt listed. "It's much different from what they've had as far as a potato. Most people are so used to French fries or waffle fries or sweet potato fries. These are a whole different realm of potato."

The Spudsters can even be enjoyed in poutine form, topped with truffle sausage gravy and a poached egg; it's a whole new way to enjoy Canada's favorite comfort food.

The Kitchen's creativity really shines when it comes to burgers. There's the Matty Melt, a housemade veggie burger that even meat lovers will enjoy, topped with paprika aioli and fresh salsa. There's the Frankie Boom Batz Burger, a beef patty loaded up with a mushroom-olive duxelle, bleu cheese and a fried egg. But the true must-order burger is a mouthful to order and to eat. The Apu Nahasapeemapetilon burger pays homage to a classic character from The Simpsons.

"Anybody that's watched the Simpsons would know who Apu is," said Matt. "It's our lamb burger with mango chutney, feta cheese, fresh cilantro and a lime aioli. We crush up pistachios and sprinkle a little bit on top just to give it a little crunch to it. It's a really, really funky burger that has multiple flavors going on.

"It's sort of how we do all of our food here, which is we try to grab all of your senses. I think it's as unique as a burger as you're going to find. I don't think you're going to find too many burgers like that."

Beyond burgers, The Kitchen offers an array of comfort foods, like pizzas loaded up with Bolognese sauce and big gobs of ricotta, Southern style wings you won't want to share, and Chicago style hot dogs loaded up with bright green relish, pickles, pepperoncini, and diced tomatoes on a soft potato roll.

"It's a hot dog that grabs all of your senses. So first bite, you'll get the richness of the hot dog, and then you'll get the sweetness of the relish and the pickles and then you'll get the heat of the pepperoncini," explained Matt.

With most of the menu topping off around 12 bucks, this Kitchen makes for one Phan-tastic Meal Deal.

You can find The Kitchen at 171 Islington Street in Portsmouth or online at thekitchennh.com.

Watch Phantom Gourmet on Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 and 11 a.m. on myTV38.