La Sandwicherie: Proving That Jewish, Catholic And Muslim Entrepreneurs Can Work Together

The three owners of La Sandwicherie hail from different religions and backgrounds: left to right: … [+] Laurent Dantonio (and his son Pablo), Massire Diaware, Daron Yemini.

Courtesy of La Sandwicherie

Three men of different faiths—one Jewish, one Muslim, and one Catholic—joined forces to open La Sandwicherie, a sandwich shop in Brooklyn. It sounds like some kind of comedy sketch, but in New York City, it’s real life.

The three men are: Daron Yemini, who is Jewish, Laurent Dantonio, a Catholic and Massire Diaware, who is Muslim. Their goal was to bring high quality French baguette sandwiches to New York in September 2022.

Dantonio is a chef who owned Pates et Traditions in Williamsburg until it closed in 2021 and attended culinary school in France, Diaware, who is also French, worked for Dantonio at his eatery and the duo started the food truck after the restaurant shuttered during the pandemic, and Yemini is an attorney and real-estate investor who brought the three together and provided the capital to open. Dantonio will be reopening his former eatery in July 2024 as Maison Provence, with a new South of French cuisine.

One Shop Led To Another

Their Greenpoint sandwich shop was so successful that they opened a second location on the Upper East Side in summer 2023 and then a third on a side street, West 15th Street in Chelsea in fall 2023. It’s known for its hot paninis, tasty French onion soup and its inexpensive $3 cappuccino.

It started when Yemini brought his daughter to buy a sandwich from a food truck in McCarren Park in Williamsburg in June 2022 and loved its Le Parisien baguettes. Yemini asked Diaware if he would be interested in opening a brick-and-mortar location in Brooklyn who advised him to also meet with Dantonio.

The three decided to unite and rent a 700-square-foot space that seated 10 people indoors and 6 outside in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, not too far from the original food truck.

In this perilous world we live in, with Jewish and Palestinian people and others battling, there is something comforting about three entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds finding success in developing a New York City sandwich shop.

To keep the rent manageable, they sought smaller spaces. For example, the Upper East store seats 4 inside and Chelsea 8 inside, while two people can seat outside at each venue.

People Of Diverse Backgrounds Can Work Together For A Common Goal

Yemini sees the relationship of the three of them as a symbolic gesture of what happens when people of diverse backgrounds get along, consult and negotiate issues. “We listen to each other and are open to learning from each other. But we each want to be successful, run a good business and provide for our families,” he says.

Dantonio has similar observations. “When you live in New York or if you’re from New York, you understand and accept dealing with different cultures or religions. You understand how powerful it is to share a project with people from different religions who are different and can help make you creative,” he explains.

And Diawara chimes in with, “While we each follow different religions, a common thread unites us in the belief of unity and principle of loving for our brother as we love for ourselves.” And their goal is clear, he suggests, aiming for “our customers to genuinely love our sandwiches and come back,” he notes. Celebrating our differences is what makes La Sandwicherie work best, Diawara concludes.

Since Dantonio had the chef’s training, his goal was to develop “the best baguette I could find in New York and then add ingredients that nobody else was using such as smoked duck and lamb sausage. It’s like having a fancy meal from a French chef.”

Diawara, who was raised in Paris, also contends that La Sandwicherie is bringing a “taste of France” to New York City based on its authentic baguette, unique flavors and selling French goods and condiments in the store, similar to what Eataly does with Italian products, on a much smaller scale.

Dantonio also has a way of turning the negative into a positive. Asked how La Sandwicherie could build an audience at its latest venture in Chelsea, hidden away on a side street, Dantonio replied that “people will love to get away from the busy, noisy street of Eighth Avenue and escape it.”

Consumer feedback on Yelp on the original Greenpoint outpost was extremely positive. Stella from Brooklyn raved about its hot chocolate, which she found, “rich, creamy, not too sweet, and perfect for a chilly day” and also gravitates toward their French onion soup.

And Faye also of Brooklyn found all the “Parisian sandwiches excellent including the tuna and ham” and said the baguettes are her favorite in the Williamsburg and Greenpoint area.

When this reporter ordered a goat cheese and fig baguette for lunch on one crisp early winter’s day, it was so filling that he took half home for lunch the next day. And Dantonio seemed to know the majority of customers who came by, a very welcoming host.

Asked the secrets to its continued success, Dantonio says: 1) Stay together in harmony, 2) Support each other, 3) Consistency.