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Vol. 01 · Issue 29 · THE NEWS DESK

Inside this issueStraight from the group.

News from the people who run NSB, newest on top. Unlike the cheese.

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    North Shore Beefs · No. 26

    BEEF
    or BUST

    The North Shore's Greatest Sandwich.
    A North Shore roast beef three-way
    2026 Champion
    Pete's Roast Beef takes the crown. Woburn wins Beef Madness.
    Andy Says
    "This sandwich is a religion. You're either in or you've never been to Lynn."
    F-Buddies with Mike Wendt and Andy Ferg
    F-Buddies Podcast
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    Always honest.
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    The Sandwich

    What is a North Shore Beef?

    A soft bun, buttered and griddled. American cheese on the bottom. Thin-sliced rare roast beef piled high. James River BBQ sauce and mayo: that's a three-way.

    It is not a deli sandwich. It is not a cheesesteak. It is its own thing, and people from Lynn to Gloucester will fight you about which spot does it best.

    A three-way North Shore beef on a griddled bun
    Schematic 001

    Anatomy of a Three-Way.

    Six parts. One sandwich. Numbered 01 to 06 in build order: bottom bun first, top bun last. Out of order, it isn't a beef.

    Exploded view of a North Shore three-way: griddled top bun with mayo, James River BBQ, rare roast beef, American cheese, griddled bottom bun

    The build: bottom to top

    06

    The Top Bun

    Buttered, griddled, crown side up. The final word.

    04

    Mayo (Top Inside)

    Applied to the top bun only. It meets the BBQ mid-bite. This matters.

    05

    James River BBQ

    Not Sweet Baby's. Not Bullseye. James River or the beef is forfeit.

    03

    Rare Roast Beef

    Sliced paper-thin. Piled high. Pink in the middle or don't bother.

    02

    American Cheese

    On the BOTTOM. Melts up into the beef. Non-negotiable.

    01

    The Bottom Bun

    Hit face-down on the flattop. The foundation of the republic.

    Total weight≈ 14 oz
    Build time≈ 38 sec
    Eat window≤ 6 min
    Napkin count3 minimum
    Handed down from Lynn

    The Ten Commandments of the Beef.

    1. I.

      Thou shalt have no other sauce before James River.

    2. II.

      Pink in the middle. Rare. If it ain't pink, send it back.

    3. III.

      The bun gets griddled. Butter, flattop, face down, gold edges. More shops are baking their own now, and some have gone to sub rolls. The shape is up for debate. The griddle is not.

    4. IV.

      Cheese on the bottom. It melts up into the beef. This is not a preference. It is architecture.

    5. V.

      Know the order before you order. Beef + cheese + BBQ + mayo = three-way. There will be a test.

    6. VI.

      Thou shalt eat it hot. Within minutes of assembly. Standing in the parking lot counts.

    7. VII.

      Kelly's invented the North Shore roast beef sandwich. Kelly's is also one of the lower-ranked spots on this list. Both are true at the same time. Handle it.

    8. VIII.

      The three-way was born at Bill & Bob's. Nondas Lagonakis built it, and had a direct hand in creating James River BBQ sauce. Know where it came from.

    9. IX.

      Thin-sliced. Paper-thin. Piled high. If it looks like a deli sub, something went wrong.

    10. X.

      This is not a trend. This is not New England's answer to anything. The North Shore didn't invent this for you. It invented it for itself.

    The Definitive List

    Top Of The Pile.

    Every champion. Every town. Judged the same way.

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    The Gauntlet

    Town by Town.

    01

    Woburn

    CROWN
    • 1.Pete's Roast Beef
    • 2.Mad Matt's
    • 3.Bill & Bob's
    2026 champion AND a deep bench. Nobody in this zip code slacks.
    02

    North Andover

    • 1.Bella's Roast Beef
    2× champion. Rt. 125. Bakes their own rolls now. That's the game.
    03

    Danvers

    • 1.The Modern Butcher
    • 2.Supreme Roast Beef
    Saturday-only sous-vide AND a legit everyday option. Danvers earns the #3 slot.
    04

    Peabody

    • 1.Londi's
    • 2.Land 'N Sea
    3,000 lbs of beef a week at Londi's alone, and they're on sub rolls now. Peabody is not messing around.
    05

    Beverly

    • 1.Nick's Famous Roast Beef
    Essex Street. Old-school. Consistently one of the best on the entire North Shore.
    06

    Salem

    • 1.Bill & Bob's
    Birthplace of the three-way. Nondas built something that still holds up.
    07

    Saugus

    • 1.Kelly's Roast Beef
    The origin. Not the summit, but you still have to pay your respects.
    08

    Lynn

    • ?.????
    Lynn used to mean something in this conversation. We're waiting for the comeback.
    -

    Pepperell

    FINALIST
    • 1.C&S Roast Beef
    Not the North Shore. Doesn't matter. C&S made the 2026 Beef Madness final against Pete's. Respect is non-negotiable.
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