Polka Sausage & Deli

Coming from the world of sandwich franchising, I fully understand what it takes to open and run a successful restaurant or business. First and foremost you have to put out a fresh and delicious product and with a name like Polka Sausage i was expecting more from their sausages. The Kabanos was over peppered, under seasoned and over dried to the point were you could only taste meat with a cardboard consistency and fat deposits. Kabanos was not fresh. The flat flavor of the spicy polish sausage needed seasoning and lacked spice. The only reason for 2 stars was due to the sauerkraut. It was of decent quality.
With the high traffic counts at the crossroads of this location, median house hold income and day time population within 1 mile this location could easily be doing $ 700K plus per year. Work on the sausage menu, pay attention to the detail and you should be back on track. I have faith in this location

You have NO idea how excited this Polish girl was to see a Polish deli/​restaurant when driving in this area. I did a baking class with my kids and a friend at Sweet Mandy B’s a few blocks down and on the way back home I just HAD to stop by when I saw this place. I literally did a quick turn onto the side street off Fullerton when I saw this place. Not going to lie, my friend was a little scared because she did not know why I turned so fast off our course. But hey, she understood once she saw the sign, ha. Us Polish girls love Polish food!
The food was not exactly like my grandma used to make, but it was tasty. I had the Polish sausage that was topped with sauerkraut and mustard. Thumbs up, tastebuds were very happy. My friend had the Polka Sub… she said it was nothing special but it was pretty good. I think she was just a little disappointed because we were both expecting some home cooked Polish food, its more of a like hotdog/​burgers/​sandwiches kind of place with a few Polish items here and there.
However, now that I think about it… the menu has a bit of an identity crisis. The only Polish things I believe are Polish sausage and pierogi. They have a Greek burger, Italian burger, a burger with jalapenos on it… why not at least load up some saurkraut, mustard and grilled onions on a burger and call it a Polish burger? The burgers are all served on a German roll, just found it a little weird that the menu has so many different ethnicities on it because I was expecting POLISH food.
Although hotdogs are not exactly Polish, I was happy when I saw them on the menu for my kids. They offer a Chicago style hotdog but were nice and made it plain for the kiddos. Kids also had fries. When their tummies are full, mama is happy. So again, very happy they have some kid friendly food on the menu.
So the verdict is… good deli/​hotdog stand food… but not all that Polish. Wish they would add some more Polish food to the menu. I will be back though next time we are in the area to try the pierogi.

Growing up on the Southeast Side of the city, Polka Sausage was the go to place for your Polish sausages and pierogis. Each major holiday found one of my folks heading to Polka for the requisite links of fresh sausage… not to mention it was very tasty.
A few years ago, though, it closed and it wasn’t until I saw a blurb on Facebook a few weeks ago that I saw it was up on the North Side. So I decided that I needed to take a trek up there to see if it was as good as I remembered it.
I get to the place, and was greeted by the person working behind the counter who handed me a menu and said it was easier to read on the menus than the board. I thanked him for this and paroused it.
After a bit, I decided on a smoked sausage sandwich… with sauerkraut and mustard on it… along with pierogis and a drink (you could also get it with fresh cut fries too) and a few minutes later, it was served… on a Kaiser hot dog bun…
And the taste? Wow just like I remembered it… very flavorful…
Despite the distance to the new place, I will be going back there… in addition, I was asked to go up there at Christmas to pick up some fresh sausage.
Oh yea… the person working still lives around where the original deli was… so it was nice to visit with him.
Also to let everyone know the deli on the corner of a busy intersection. You might have to walk a little to get to the deli itself… but its worth it in the end.

Oh my yumz. I had actually been looking for a nearby (near Lakeview or LIncoln Park) for several years, and I gave up. I recently moved nearby, and we tried Polka today, and it was AMAZING.
Pierogies were perfect, and the sausage was delectable. I need to start working out more so I can eat here as often as I’d like and not put myself into an early grave.
I’m excited to get some lunch meat and cheese here, as well. They also carry wine, beer, liquor, and some packaged goods.

«Staff is super nice. Food is great and cheap! What else could you ask for? Oh, and they have pierogi!!»

Heard about this place from a guy outside of Devil Dawgs and he told me about a deli that just opened up. I asked him where it was and he said «just follow the pig». It just so happens that I found it on my first attempt. I went in, sat down and was greeted friendly «hello, how are you?». He kindly gave me a menu saying that it was easier to read then the one on the blackboard above the counter. I saw the pork chop sandwich and decided to get it with their (dumplings) perogies. I also ordered a polka sub to go for lunch the next day. The food came out fairly quickly as I was distracted by the tv in the middle of the deli. When I took my first bite, I had the crunch of the toasted bread with the juicy pork chop meat that was pure tenderness. The sweeteness of the onion I thought brought it all together. Each bite became more and more delicious. It was also seasoned very well. Not too salty not too bland. Overall great experience. Very Casual. My kind of place.

Ay Dios Mio!!! (Oh My God!!) I have been wondering what happened to this place… I just stumbled upon their website while I was searching for a polish sausage joint. I used to go to Polka Sausage & Sausage many years ago, whenever I was close to their Southeast side neighborhood.
I was back in the area a few months ago and it was gone! I tried Unilocaling it, asked a few friends from the area and nobody was able to give me any clues as to what happened… I will have to head up North and check out the new digs.
The Original location was a bit divey, but they had the best german & polish sausages, which they would cook on a grill off to the side of the deli area. The sausage sandwiches were HUGE and came with a good amount of fries and a can of pop for about $ 6.
I cannot stress enough how HUGE the sausages are. It has become somewhat of a legend amongst my circle of friends lucky enough to have tried these sausages. Whenever we talk about polish sausages, we tell the lore of the Polka Deli. I mean how could we not be amazed by a polish so big that it hangs out of the ends by about an inch on each side. Mind you, that they serve their sausages on an italian bread roll normally used for italian beef, not a hot dog bun like a Maxwell style Polish. Top the polish with mustard and sauerkraut and you are in sausage heaven!
Based on their history for excellent products, i would rate them 4 stars. I will have to reserve an updated review for the new location.
Polka Sausage. I hope you decide to re-​open a Southside location. You are sorely missed.

Worst Rueben sandwich ever it was disgusting smelled rancid and tasted worse!!! I’ve had corned beef everywhere from New York to LA and this was hands down the worst. Hopefully I don’t get food poisoning from the two bites that I took before throwing it away.

Great place, close to the house. No dedicated parking but no big deal. Sweet older couple running the place. Super clean, awesome little shopping section, and the food was great! Will be going again soon, with friends.

Unexpected, but they have an AWESOME collection of good beer! I stopped in here to get some «Pump-​King» beer before going to a friend’s house. It was quite the hit. It is nice and small, and very straightforward. They craft sandwiches that are simple and delicious. Great for grabbing a bite, very casual atmosphere. You order at the counter and they bring it to you. The beer is all in bottles, so I’ve only ever gotten it to go, but I imagine you could sit down there and drink it.

Excellent burgers! Excellent perogies! Excellent sandwiches
This place is awesome. Every time I’ve been there I’ve been impressed.
My first two times I got the Greek burger. A juicy burger cooked to perfection with feta cheese, onions, and tzatziki sauce. Tasty.
This last time I split a Ruben, fries, and perogies. Everything was awesome, and you can tell that everything is homemade and fresh. I loved the spinach and meat perogies.
This place is a little high priced, but it’s nothing too horrible. And you’re paying for quality.
I hope this place stays open, I never see it busy :(

The best part of living in a new neighborhood is exploring it! Polka Sausage & Deli is literally steps away from my bachelorette pad.
The first thing I tried was the Italian Beef. Yeah, yeah, I know… I probably should have tried the pierogies or the Polish Sausage. The Italian beef sandwich with sweet peppers dipped in the au jus was pretty tasty. My favorite part was the sweet peppers. I usually pick them off my sandwich from other places, but this tasted like they were homemade and NOT from a jar!
I’m willing to try out the rest of the menu at Polka Sausage. Not to mention, the other side of this place have bottles of wine calling my name.
Anyone want to join me? :)

«This is the best corned beef I’ve ever had. So tender.» Words spoken by my father as he chomped on his Reuben served on marble rye.
Ten minutes earlier we were combatting heavy traffic on Fullerton when I looked over and spotted Polka, a statuesque pig perched above their door. It just so happened we were looking for a lunch spot before an afternoon movie so Polka became our mission despite the dismal parking situation.
I ordered the Polka salad with chicken and it was so fresh and tasty — artichokes, raisins, walnuts, and a perfect portion of chicken breast grilled to perfection. Dad opted for the Reuben and well, you know how that ended (revisit opening quote).
They have a combo where you can add three pierogis and a soda. I went with three sauerkraut pierogis and they did not disappoint. I later learned the sauerkraut is made in house.
The staff was very friendly and checked in twice to ensure we were enjoying our experience.
For anyone seeing a movie at Webster Regal Theater, I would definitely suggest this as a food option pre or post movie, especially in an area with limited quality restaurant options to begin with.
We will definitely be back.

Completely disappointed! First, they gave us the wrong order and realized it as we were walking home. Went back and the people that got our order returned it. Then, they gave us our correct order (already handled by other customers) and left it at that. Clear violation of health code by re-​serving customer handled food who left the establishment and brought it back. I was really hoping this would be a gem.

This place has a wonderful surprise! No it’s not the great sausages or the homemade sauerkraut. They were all fantastic. It was the” to die for” french fries. Haven’t had fries this good since the 60’s! I could make a meal on these alone.
I had to return a couple of days after my first visit just to get some more.
So far I’ve had a bratwurst and the sedelova sausage. Both were huge and cooked to perfection. The pierogies were fresh and tasty.
Can’t wait to go back and try the ruben.

Went to Polka Sausage & Deli over the weekend. Cute place– combination of deli, grill, and specialty food and wine/​spirits store. My brother in law Mr. Greg had the Polka Burger with a side of pirogues– because a burger with pork sausage, bacon, fried egg, and jalapeño peppers is not enough by itself. Very tasty. And I had the porkchop bone-​in sandwich, topped with a pile of grilled onions. Delish.
I’ll be back to sample more of their menu.
The wine/​spirits selection looks interesting– and they have a variety of craft beers. Not sure if you can drink them in the store though.