Creating the perfect sandwich is all about balancing the layers of flavor between two slices of bread, and at Yorkie’s, a modern deli in Virginia Beach’s ViBe district, the sandwiches are a testament to this goal. Featuring careful compositions of lovingly sourced and housemade ingredients, Yorkie’s sandwich menu is like a bible for the sandwich devout.
Like a sandwich, Kip Poole, Yorkie’s chef and owner, is full of layers. After growing up in Virginia, Poole attended Virginia Tech for hospitality and then spent 13 years working in the industry around Philadelphia before going on to gain a masters in education and pursuing his passion for the culinary arts. Poole grew the culinary arts program at William Penn High School in Delaware from a handful of students to more than 400 while introducing them to farming and restaurant management. When he met his wife, another Virginia native, Poole took it as a sign to return to his home state and put down roots.
Poole’s twin passions—food and education—epitomize his work at Yorkie’s, which he opened in the summer of 2024, and his efforts in The Crop Foundation, which Poole founded in 2014 while working as executive chef for Virginia Beach Public Schools. Currently, Yorkie’s employs five youth staff members who work primarily on weekends. Through The Crop Foundation, they receive stipends that, along with scholarships, support their educational pursuits, including culinary school.
Yorkie’s is a ray of sunshine—a bright, airy deli and market with exceedingly friendly service. It’s the ideal spot for grabbing a deli paper-wrapped sandwich to enjoy on the beach, and if that’s your plan, the sandwich to order is the eponymous Yorkie, a hunger-obliterating combination of ham, salami, capicola, mortadella, and provolone, dressed with shredded lettuce, tomato slices, paper thin onion, and a zippy pickled pepper vinaigrette all loaded into a crispy-yet-tender sesame roll.
Modern deli king and Yorkie’s owner Kip Poole seasons pork cuts destined for epic sandwiches.
Happy customers share soft serve ice cream after filling up on sandwiches at Yorkie’s.
“A great sandwich includes every flavor that you can taste,” explains Poole. “It has sweet, it has sour, it has umami—it has all the flavors to it.” The pepper vinaigrette is Poole’s Italian sandwich differentiator. This isn’t a traditional Italian; it’s a Yorkie. They use the same vinaigrette as a salad dressing, and it works perfectly on the shop’s chopped salad, which is basically a sub without the bread.
Early risers are rewarded with Yorkie’s breakfast sandwiches, available on a choice of brioche or a kettle-boiled bagel. There you’ll find a best-in-class bacon, egg, and cheese called The Lopez (go ahead and opt for the caramelized onion add-on), as well as The Occy, which makes a strong case for starting the day with pastrami.
But back to lunch. If you’re dining in, you’ll want to check out the cheesesteak, a nod to Poole’s Philly years. His version is a borderline obscene torpedo roll (a Liscio roll, straight from the source in South Jersey) absolutely crammed with thinly sliced ribeye and melty Cooper’s sharp cheddar. It’s Yorkie’s bestseller, but it’s closely followed by the poultry selections on the menu, namely the Turtle, a daring dance of house-roasted turkey, slaw, and an almond-studded chili crisp.
As a deli, Poole says, he wanted everything on the menu to be available for folks to take home—the turkey and pastrami can be sliced to order, fresh loaves of rye and slabs of focaccia are available, and you can snag a bottle of the shop’s pickled pepper vinaigrette to pour on whatever you see fit. If you’re in a hurry, Poole has thought of your needs, too—cold sandwiches and salads are available grab-and-go style, so you don’t have to wait to sate your beach day hunger pangs.
Before you ask, there are no actual Yorkies involved at this sandwich shop. York is Kip’s real name (York Dudley Poole, IV, to be precise), but more importantly, it’s his father’s name, and the deli is an homage to York Sr., an ideas man who, for years, told his son he should open a sandwich shop—something, he said, that’s always in demand. Now, Poole is doing his father proud with a sandwich shop that hits the spot while also giving back to the community, through job opportunities and education—teaching anyone who’s interested the many merits of making everything from scratch. “There’s no shortcuts at Yorkie’s,” says Poole. “There’s just a lot of love.”
Chef de Cuisine Tylor Alexander commands the grill at Yorkie’s.
The Dawn Patrol breakfast sandwich with sausage, egg, tot-cake, pepper jack cheese, and Yorkie’s sauce on a brioche bun.
12 Stellar Sandwich Shops Across The Commonwealth
The Cheese Shop, 410 W. Duke of Gloucester St., Williamsburg, CheeseShopWilliamsburg.com
Taste Unlimited, Multiple locations, TasteUnlimited.com
Ivy Provisions, 2206 Ivy Rd., Charlottesville, IvyProvisions.com
The Wich Lab, 224 W. Main St., Charlottesville, TheWichLab.com
Feast, 416 W. Main St., Suite H, Charlottesville, FeastVirginia.com
Stanley’s, 2601 Park Ave., Richmond, StanleysRVA.com
Coppola’s Deli, 2900 W. Cary St., Richmond, CoppolasDeli.com
The Italian Store, Locations in Arlington, ItalianStore.com
Earl’s, 2605 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, EarlsInArlington.com
The Sandwich Shop, 132 Church St. NW, Vienna, TheSandwichShopVa.square.site
Eddie’s Little Shop and Deli, 1406 King St., Alexandria, EddiesLittleShop.com
Chutzpah Deli, 12214 Fairfax Towne Ctr., Fairfax, ChutzpahDeli.com
This article originally appeared in the August 2025 issue.
