Roll-N-Roaster

Roll-N-Roaster is a Sheepshead Bay institution on Emmons Avenue, a roast beef sandwich shop that Brooklyn native Buddy Lamonica opened in July 1970 and that has been feeding the neighborhood ever since. Local press has described it as a family-operated spot that serves around 10,000 customers a week, and it bills itself as a not-so-fast fast-food restaurant, cooking to order rather than holding food under lamps. The room is big, bright and unmistakably old Brooklyn, with families, teenagers and late-night regulars sharing tables after a walk along the bay. A sign by the register sums up the house philosophy: you can have cheez on anything you pleez.

Order the roast beef sandwich, which is slow-roasted through the day, sliced thin to your choice of rare, medium or well, piled onto a freshly baked roll and finished with natural pan gravy. Add the famous cheese sauce, the restaurant's cheez, to the sandwich, the fries or both. The menu also covers other sandwiches, sides, pizza and desserts for anyone in the group who wants something different. Roll-N-Roaster was featured by the YouTuber New York Turk in 2025, who called it a place where real New Yorkers eat. It keeps late hours, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, which makes it a classic stop after an evening on the Sheepshead Bay waterfront.