Roll N Roaster, the 'not so fast' fast-food restaurant, celebrates 55th anniversary

Roll N Roaster has been an institution in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, since 1970.

Roll N Roaster is a wonderful throwback to the restaurants of the 1970s and 1980s. (Rolando Pujol)

A very happy 55th birthday to the Roll N Roaster in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, a delightful time capsule of family-owned, 1970s-style family restaurant.

Walking in feels like a warm hug, with soothing earth tones, wooden-beam decor and ornate amber chandeliers in the main dining room, along with side sunrooms from an expansion that capitalize on the cozy friendly vibe. The Roll N Roaster is architectural sunshine, the canary yellow laminate booths a vibe onto themselves. The place is the same as it ever was, thank goodness, and the menu is “simply delicious” as the old slogan goes, preserved in neon on the facade.

They marked their 55th anniverary on Tuesday with a bash — free anniversary pens and buy one (or two), get one (or two) free roast-beef sandwiches that had drawn a staggering 6,000 orders by late evening.

Jack Giambanco’s wonderful miniature of the Roll N Roaster sign. Marvel at the love and care in the details. The real deal is below. (Rolando Pujol)

Indeed, this icon on Emmons Avenue was jumping in a way I’d never seen it. I had the pleasure of being there for the occasion, breaking bread with Jack Giambanco, the creator of Major Miniatures, and Matthew Selsky from mattyeaats during a memorable (and muggy) summer evening reveling in the wonders of this place. It was a night celebrating nostalgia, one I’m already nostalgic for.

It was also an impromptu signing with my friends of my book “The Great American Retro Road Trip.” I also picked up a true treasure for my collection of Americana — a model of Roll N Roaster’s sign, created by Jack. Scroll through his gallery for examples of the storefront wonders he brilliantly turns into model form — and, in many cases, brings back to life, as close as we’ll ever be to seeing them again, long after they have left our streets.

But no worries about the Roll N Roaster’s fate. It is alive and well, founded by Buddy Lamonica in 1970 and a cherished part of the Brooklyn food scene. It’s good comfort food — the roast beef sliced thin on fresh baked rolls. Consider getting it with “cheez” sauce — as they say, “You can have cheez on anything you pleez” — and enjoy a side of cottage fries — aka OG Fries — which vanished to great customer chagrin for a time because of large-potato shortages.

Roll N Roaster is family, tied deeply into 55 years of memories, fueled in part by a memorable old commercial, the “Not So Fast” jingle belted out by energetic employees. See the circa 1980 ad below, which was running as late as the aughts but runs forever in our hearts, and well, on YouTube:

Delightfully old school and always charming, the Roll N Roaster, now owned by longtime employee Eric Rodriguez, is a treasure and I fully expect there will be crowds for all their future celebrations, right on up to their 100th in 2070. Hopefully that ‘70s — as in 1970s — vibe will still be around.