"In downtown Cary, The Food Factory (211 E. Chatham St.; 468-1139; www.thefoodfactory.com) has been, um, manufacturing a diverse deli product line for nearly a decade. Liverwurst on rye, eggplant Parmesan sub, triple decker corned beef and pastrami, egg salad, tuna salad, bratwurst, even knishes and black and white cookies -- pretty much anything a transplanted New Yorker might crave -- chances are, you'll find it here.

Owners Jimmy and Lisa Schmid ought to know what a New Yorker craves. They moved from Queens to Cary 12 years ago. Their restaurant's menu represent the foods they longed for when they got here, foods from that city's Jewish, Italian and German delis. And then some: You'll find a selection of wraps, salads, homemade soups and focaccia sandwiches among the scores of listings.
The Schmids know how to satisfy those cravings, too, judging by the packed house that greeted us when a friend and I met at The Food Factory for lunch recently. Fortunately, the cooks are as efficient as a factory, and it wasn't long before I was enjoying the best Reuben sandwich I've had in a long time.

The rye bread was grilled to a crunchy turn and corned beef (they use Boar's Head meats here), Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing so juicy that I used up a small forest's worth of napkins to keep the juices from dribbling onto my wrist.

Actually, I only got half of that sandwich. I traded the other half for half of my friend's grilled Greek chicken wrap. As big as a forearm and loaded with moist breast meat, roasted eggplant, feta and a garden full of vegetables, this one was a winner, too. But next time, I'm keeping the whole Reuben. "