Delicatessen

I’ve been to delicatessen for brunch and lunch and been satisfied both times.
for lunch, sandwiches and the maztoh ball soup are great (though its heavy on the dill, so if thats not your style consider yourself warned). I had a phenomenal grilled cheese with like 12 types of cheese, tomato, avocado, on a crunchy brown bread. it was satisfying and the rye or pumpernickle or whatever added a nice bite to the creamyness of other fillings. obviously their classics (reuben, corned beef, etc) are also great.
however, if you’re in for brunch, don’t expect to find run of the mill omelets or eggs benedict. The item i ended up getting had turkey on top of french toast and egg and cheese and was basically a pile of deliciousness. my friend had something similar (in that it was a pile of deliciousness) that i believe featured poached eggs, brisket, and roasted tomatos.
definitely a great choice… especially when you can look at the folks waiting in line at jones out the window while you enjoy your heaping pile of deliciousness.

a lot of people have commented on the portion sizes here … maybe i am the only lardass who thinks they’re manageable? i’ve found that other similar delis (schlesinger’s, famous 4^th) pile on the food in a much more absurdly liberal manner. delicatessen’s plates, i can handle.
solid comfort food and friendly service. love the bagel chips they bring out (with veggie cream cheese!) instead of a bread basket. awesome coleslaw with a surprising touch of dill. you really can’t go wrong with anything here, and for the vegetarians they feature a flawless version of grilled cheese with muenster, avocado and tomato on some very well-​buttered rye.
and they have jars of hard candy on all the tables — useful for covering up your post-​pickle garlic breath.

For better or worse, America has a proud tradition of taking things of normal size, and making them big. Big cars, big t.v.s, big fake boobies, what have you. Delicatessen carries on the tradition of making large stuff.
You wouldn’t want to meet one of these sandwhiches alone in an alley.
You half expect to see one of these sandwhiches in your gym, wearing a weight belt and squatting 600lbs. Groaning and sweating, getting ready for the big day when somebody orders it, beefing up, just for you.
All the servers at Delicatessen have huge, gnarly forearms and fingers like breadsticks from handling such heavy objects all day. Kudos.
I think you get the point.
But apart from the size, the quality is good, especially the pastrami. The sides are good also, even though I prefered their wafflle fries, which I called «Waffies» in my head. They have since moved onto more traditional fries.
Sometimes the service is slow-​ish, but it’s not a deal breaker. But occasionalIy I want to kick it up into full pig mode and order a kugel. For some reason, they take FOREVER to come out. They have the traditional savory kugel (gross anywhre) and other creative kinds such as blueberry, and the urban yuppie friendly pumpkin flavored.
Listen. My wife is jewish, and I’m jew-«ish». Unfortunately, she’s a vegetarian, and she’ll never know what she’s missing. Sometimes, I’ll look at her, and get sad. Because I know we can never share something so wonderful as a huge plate of Delicatessen pastrami.
Oy such a cruel world.

OH MY GOD, why has it taken me so long to check this place out? Obviously, word has spread about how good it is, since it was packed when I arrived with a party of four. The short wait was entirely worth it. I had the turkey reuben, which had just the right amount of everything — not too much sauerkraut or dressing — and was grilled perfectly. The sandwich came with two different kinds of pickles, crispy latkes made from shredded potatoes (not lumpy dense latkes like others I’ve had), and homemade apple sauce that was not too sweet and slightly warm, and super delicious. We shared the Pastrami Mac and Cheese (I think this is something you have to share, no one could eat the whole thing) and it was perfect amounts of salty, crispy and gooey. The complimentary bagel chips with veggie cream cheese are a nice touch. I live around the corner from another Jewish deli in Center City that charges three times as much and is half as good. I can safely say that won’t be going there again.

The service here was very good, the server was extremely friendly. The is a small amount of seating, but it is comfortable for lunch.
I had the Philly Bagel Roll which was very good, although perhaps a bit too much cream cheese. The tobicho topping set this apart from other lox and bagel dishes.

I go here whenever I’m in Philly, and I’ve never been disappointed. There’s classic deli food and food with a bit of a modern twist. Also, the microbrew soda’s are especially delicious.
The waitstaff are extremely friendly – last time I went, our waitress lent me her Tide-​to-​To Pen after I spilled on myself.
Next time I’m in Philly, I’ll be sure to go again.

You don’t have to be Jewish to love this amazing deli. I stopped here on a whim and it might have been the best decision I’ve made all weekend. The portions were generous and the sidekicks (sides) are delicious. You also get 2 pickles with your sandwich, and for a pickle-​lover such as myself, this pretty much sealed the deal. The waitstaff was super friendly too. I’ll be back for sure.

The food is good, and the staff friendly, but on the day we ate there, they were very slow. There were only three couples in the place, yet the food took half an hour. We overheard the waiter telling someone they were short on kitchen staff, but nothing was ever said to us.
Mushroom barley and chicken noodle soups were very good. Nice potato knish.

The sandwiches are pretty good but there are so many places in Philly where you can get a good sandwich at a cheaper price. That’s why it’s only okay with me.

Went there for a quick brunch the other day, I was craving a lox sandwich so I got their «The Classic» which consisted of nova, white fish salad, cream cheese, cucumber, red onion, capers, and tomato on a pumpernickel bread.
The sandwich itself was massive and its pretty messy after a while with the bread falling apart and the white fish salad falling everywhere and I thought it wasnt enough lox. It was tasty but I think I would have just prefered a bagel with cream cheese and lox.

I am entirely saddened by what I am about to write.
I went to get my lunch (brunch whatever) today, and was so excited for it.
I walked it back to the office, took a bite, and immeadiately spit it out.
I actually felt like I was eating a salt lick. And then I discovered why:
CAPERS — SO MANY CAPERS — LIKE AN ENTIRE BOTTLES WORTH OF CAPERS.
And they were mixed into the whitefish. I like capers, but I didn’t order a caper sandwich.
And I asked on the phone when I called in my order for cream cheese on both sides of the bagel and he said Absolutely. (A. They put it on pumpernickel, which is fine, but not what I asked for, B. THERE WAS ONLY CREAM CHEESE ON ONE SIDE OF THE BREAD)
Not to mention that there were about 2 measly pieces of nova that looked like they were trader joes brand, not delicately sliced and delicious.
The one redeeming quality were the two baby latkes. They weren’t really latkes, they were really frozen potatoe pancakes. Buuuut they taste good when you are a little hungover.
So, delicatessen, if you are listening: GET IT TOGETHER. Where else am I going to get my smoked fish in around these parts?
love
Lyndsey
PS. WHEN SOMEONE ORDERS DIET DR. BROWNS, THEY WANT DIET BLACK CHERRY. IT’S LIKE ORDERING A LAGER. I DON’T WANT SAM ADAMS, I WANT YUENGLING. OBVIOUSLY. I DIDN’T WANT DIET CREAM SODA, I WANTED DIET BLACK CHERRY!!!

I guess we came on an off day, because even our Groupon (or was it BuyWithMe) didn’t take away from the disappointment of our meal. We were starving when we arrived, but left more than half of our food behind and had no interest in packing the rest to take home. Also it took about thirty minutes to get our order, even though there were maybe two other occupied tables in the whole restaurant.
I ordered a bagel with lox, no capers. I saw the server write down that I didn’t want capers, but they ended up on my plate anyhow. I know it’s just a small thing, but I’m not a picky eater, just really hate capers, and they’re tiny and a moderate effort to pick out. Anyway. The meal arrived with a huge tub of cream cheese, tons of lox, and a puny little bagel. I suppose I could have asked for a second bagel, but it turned out to be a non-​issue because the lox was so salty as to be inedible. I had a couple of slices with my bagel, loaded with salad, but had to stop when I felt my puckered lips getting sucked into my face. The coffee I ordered to go with it was burnt to shit and undrinkable.
Based on Unilocal reviews, I convinced the boyfriend to order one of their famed pastrami sandwiches. I don’t know how they managed to make it boring, but they totally did.
I’d give this restaurant one star, but maybe it really was just an off day. Also the kugel was pretty good.

Delicatessen has easily the best pastrami I’ve had in Philadelphia since the Koch Brothers died, and maybe the best ever. But I made a mistake, and ordered a Reuben. This pastrami is too good for a Reuben. The other Reuben ingredients detract from the pastrami.
I also got noodle kugel, which was fine. And they serve La Colombe coffee, so what’s not to like? Well, I did not care for their pickles. I thought they lacked flavor. But I will return for the pastrami.
2011-​09-​20: I returned and got a plain pastrami sandwich with mustard. It was excellent.

A lot of positives, but lacking in some deli basics that knock it down bit.
The pastrami is smoked in-​house and is great. They don’t pile it on like at some of the other delis in town, for better or worse. Sides are good — the blueberry kugel is the best but isn’t included as a «side-​kick» to the entrees (unless your server is in a good mood that day).
Breakfast basics are good, but the bagels just aren’t good. Not sure where they’re from they need a better source for those and the other bakery goods. And the black and white cookies in individual plastic wrap just aren’t appetizing.
The pictures of the soup look great though, and I’m going to give it a try. So, while not at the top of my list for city delis, Delicatessen usually satisfies.
They’re starting to do BYO dinner now, and advertise a prix fixe brunch coming soon on the weekend.

Oh, Delicatessen… after so many months and so many visits you still never seem to disappoint. I love this place. Never change… except please put back my table out front! I missed it on today’s visit.
Love,
½ of the Outdoor Dining Duo

Mmm so good. If you hussle you can get a deal for $ 20 worth of food for $ 10! — and you’ll see my previous review of the place is the first review in the deal! :)
Click:

I had been wanting to try this place, since my only experience was when I went with co-​workers when it first opened and I actually brought my own lunch (which I got a talking to about from one of the waiters). So I really had a hankering to TRY the food.
Went with a friend for an early lunch and the food was decent. A lot of things looked good, but I had my eye on the Monty Cristoberg. I am a huge Monte Crisco fan, so I had to give this a try. Instead of using ham, they replaced it with corned beef; a lot of it! It was decent, but way too much for my liking, as I only ate half the sandwich. I got the coleslaw as the side, which was just «eh.»
I plan on going back to give it another try and since it is in my neighborhood, it won’t take much effort.

Delicatessen is yummy. As my girlfriend put it, finally a place that’s going to give Jones, Continental, etc. a run for their money! I need to go back to try a few more things and give it a more detailed review, but had brunch yesterday, which was reasonably priced and very good. I enjoyed the choice of side-​dishes (waffle fries, cole slaw, potato salad, kugel, etc). I saw RE-​DONK foot-​long hot dogs come out for other tables that looked great (hopefully all-​beef, didn’t ask). I had a frittata with corned beef, swiss cheese, grilled tomatos, sauteed onions. UM… hi…dreamboat breakfast. The red bliss potato salad was very well-​seasoned and delish (with just enough mayo)! I am excited to go back and try more.
Only bad thing was the waiter clearly wanted to turn our table over and pushed the check on us while we were still chewing. TURN OFF.

Yeah, baby! They now are open for dinner!!!
Those blintzes rock. Took my 5 year old here for Shavuos. Wow!!!
Try the sidekick sampler!!!
Oh — and the kugel is better now than when I went before.
LOVE IT HERE!

Good luck on the new opening — you guys are here to stay.
You know when you get the feeling that a place is just going to make it and their stuff is plane great… well these guys are it.
They don’t don’t stuff you full of cheap meat and send you on your way… they give you top quality authentic Deli Food that you should take home with you as well as eat there.
I live a couple blocks away and have now been in several times and gotten a couple deliveries too… All Excellent !!!
If you are visiting or just a local jewish Philadelphian you need to become aware of these guys near the corner of 7^th and Chestnut –on Chestnut.
Parking is an issue for those of us who love to pull over and get a quick take out order so I might advise them to create a system to run the food out or get it ready via cell call order ins or text messages to let you know its ready… but if you are meeting someone for brunch on the weekend or lunch during the day… this place is a true winner.
My compliments to the Pastrami and Corned Beef and Turkey –all made there and with care… and I love pea soup… theirs is great.
I just keep going and they have not disappointed me yet…
Take it from a nice jewish boy who’s dad’s little grocery store /​food business put him through school… and feed him nova and kippered every Sunday growing up… this place is a modern take on the Deli.
Peace…Out.
Matty