When you first see Cheeky Sandwiches, you know you’re going someplace borne from a true labor of love. Deep in south Orchard St, in the lower Lower East Side, the small white building sits on the brink of Chinatown, among industrial shops with Chinese-lettered awnings and the more recent modern art galleries.
It’s the white picket fence that will first strike you, or perhaps the provincial teal shutters haphazardly fitted over the enormous front windows. It is, in all its trappings, a little house, smack in the middle of a concrete sidewalk lined with tall buildings. Pushing through white-washed dutch doors, you’re immediately greeted by the impeccably dressed proprietor himself—Mr. Din Yates.
Thus the sensory experience begins—through the threshold and into Din’s world of huge wall murals, bluesy music, and awesome sandwiches.
“We’re just sandwiches. I wanted it to be just a sandwich shop,” Din humbly shrugs.
Peering over a concrete countertop proudly displaying Big Shot soda cans and Zapp’s Chips, you can peruse a well-edited menu of seven carefully thought-out sandwiches, including some breakfast options. There’s definitely something for everyone—even two vegetarian choices. But the love is evident in neighborhood faves like the chicken biscuit or the pulled pork on challah bread—Din’s personal pick. His po’boy (fried oyster/ shrimp) keeps it real with bread shipped directly from the John Gendusa Bakery in New Orleans—the very same bakery from which the original po’boy is made. Still, his house-made biscuits are delectable—a gravy laden mountain of chicken-fried joy.
Though there is an apparent New Orleans inflection inherent in all that is Cheeky’s, Din insists that was never his intention. “Once the write ups came out, it changed. This became a New Orleans shop. It didn’t start off as a New Orleans shop. It was just a regular ol’ sandwich shop.”
You could say that Cheeky’s is more a reflection of Yates himself, than that of the vibrant Louisiana city. Which is why there are so many subtle as well as obvious references to his beloved hometown.
Yates agrees: “Yes, there’s a strong new Orleans influence. I’m from New Orleans. The chips are from New Orleans. I could get any kind of chips, but I prefer these. The sodas, I could get any, but I prefer to get ones I like.”
Growing up, Yates realized his love of food at an early age. The youngest of three children, he would self-appoint himself as sous chef to his tireless mother who cooked faithfully for her family everyday. He’d always keep the TV on after his Saturday morning cartoons to watch cooking shows.
When contemplating college, he entertained the idea of going to the esteemed culinary institute, Johnson and Wales College in Rhode Island, where Emeril Lagasse once attended. He was accepted with a scholarship, but instead chose to stay in New Orleans. He went to Xavier College and pursued a degree in chemistry. Upon graduation, he had two choices: grad school or modeling in NY. He chose the latter, doing shows and ads for brands like Nautica and Tommy Hilfiger, while also taking the odd construction work job, and has made New York his home ever since.
It wasn’t until after some years spent modeling and working as a line chef at the now-gone Café Lebowitz in Soho, that Yates finally came upon the chance of having his own culinary establishment.
Since his mid-20’s, Yates dreamed of owning his own place. He started working in kitchens just to see how they operated. Then, he happened upon an actual space one day when he was visiting a friend on Orchard St. He was the owner of Alle and Ange, a clothing shop, and also owned the bike shop a few doors down. The ex-bike store was being renovated and Yates, sensing an opportunity, asked him if he could have the place. Soon, Cheeky’s was on its way.
Sandwiches was his choice of trade as he thought it was the easiest venture he could manage:
“I did think that NY was missing a good sandwich shop, but my decision was largely due to the fact that it was easier to execute. If you open a restaurant–oh my god, all that work!”
Though he claims to be adverse to arduous tasks, Yates has certainly put his own sweat and blood into his creation. Using wood and materials he salvaged from construction sites he worked on, Yates built Cheeky’s with his own hands—from the floorboards to the metal ceiling to the “outhouse” bathroom in the back. He also had a small crew help him with the handiwork. Even though there was no set vision for the way the shop would look, Yates started with wood planks he had, then just looked for older things to match them. Even the bathroom is made from the face of that wood. He started building in July 2009. He opened that same year on December 14th.
Yates was able to recruit his pal, British fashion illustrator Blue Logan, to paint his walls and to help create the mischievous logo. They became friends while Yates modeled in London; he often visited the bar in which Blue Logan bartended. The word ”cheeky” itself is used as a double entendre between New Orleans slang and British vernacular- a coy tribute to the time he spent living in the UK. Down south, people use it when referring to someone egregiously cheap; across the pond, it’s used to describe rascally types.
These kinds of winks and nods are also seen through nuances like the unexpected ‘outhouse’ or the proverb painted in whimsical red letters next to the entrance: “A toast to the ducks that live in the swamp; never lose a feather and that’s the weather.” A cheery maxim from his uncle, and yet almost cryptic in its rhythmic cadence. In the back is a wall of portraits of Din’s and Blue Logan’s friends and lovers, jumbled in a mysterious web with Din front and center. Funnily enough, the ‘lovers’ panel has since been painted over.
Certainly, Yates himself is as much a part of the Cheeky’s décor as are the red benches and yellow cans of Chiceroy coffee. Perhaps it’s due to his time of being at the mercy of stylists and designers, but Yates now wears the same outfit everyday: white shirt, black tie, black pants, black shoes, black frame glasses. It’s not his work uniform but the uniform of his life. Even his latex cooking gloves are black. His home closet is stocked with 47 identical white shirts and black pants.
Such a stark look doesn’t exactly sound like it belongs in a homey, New Orleans-style sandwich shop, painted in weathered shades of red, white and blue. But somehow, you can’t imagine it any other way once you’ve seen them together—and either would be amiss without the other. His high energy and engaging persona are reflected in every cracked beam and metal sheet that hold this place together.
Yates’ engaging demeanor and warm greeting are what truly make this slice of storefront a sanctuary from the outside hustle and bustle. Affable and obliging, Yates will strike up a conversation with anyone who’ll listen. And he will be there for you, too, as evidenced by the number of devotees that pop in to visit throughout the day.
Whether it’s an aged Chinese woman who comes to sit by the window and read the paper, or an assistant from one of the several art galleries, people just want to hang out with Din. He describes one frequent visitor:
“There’s an older Chinese lady, Jinny, who comes in all the time and cracks me up. She’ll come in, have her coffee or tea, leave it for like 30 mins. And then she’ll come back and sip it some more, then read her paper. She comes a lot. Not to eat all the time. But sometimes, she’ll take a bite of a sandwich and just leave it. She has a routine.”
He would love it if even more Chinese people from the neighborhood would come around. Then he’d truly feel like a part of the neighborhood, and not a ‘”sore thumb” in the midst of Chinese wholesalers.
And that’s what Din really loves—a sense of coterie and camaraderie, brought together to commune over good food. He has other projects in the works, but for now, Cheeky’s is where his heart is, and everybody is welcome. 
