Koch’s Deli

My 1^st visit here. Tiny place that was crowded with patrons. I had the Special K. Is there a word that surpasses excellent? Meat was tender and potato salad was tasty. I like mustard in my potato salad but this was good without it. My son had the Drexel and my daughter in law had the PCOM. They were very pleased with their sandwiches! I will definitely be coming back! There is so much to choose from.

Not coming back. When I went in today, I was not even acknowledged with a hello. I think one of the other sandwich makers was on break, because he was sitting on a seat next to me while I patiently waited for another customer who was having their sandwich made. Another customer enters and this guy asks them what they wanted to order. No thanks, not coming back. Paying $ 10 for a sandwich and having poor customer service is not good at all.

Ordered my restaurant school special on laying on the couch.
PROS: The rep was very pleasant over the phone. Delivery was very quick. I’m assuming time was on my side due to the hour in which I was ordering. For 19bones, I would have to give this tasty succulent sandwich all of its glorious 4stars! Half the sandwich, a spear pickle and a bag of kettle chips will make you go to the second hole on your belt buckle! I’ll have to save the other half for later.
CONS: I assumed the sandwich would be warm. My fault for not asking. $ 19will keep me from ordering delivery.
Kudos to the very first sandwich I’ve tried in philly, let’s just hope the next one tops this ! NOMNOMNOMNOM

Ordered food from them with an estimate of 45 minutes. 1 hour 15 minutes in, they said they were sorry and running behind, they’d be here in 5 minutes. 2 hours later, they said they gave my order to another customer. Incredible lack of professionalism. Quality of food doesn’t make a difference if it’s never delivered.

Im a sucker for good deli sandwiches. Koch’s represents a dying breed of traditional delis that doesnt fail to deliver. The guy running the shop is also super cool! Very friendly and inviting which makes the place that much better.
We had the italian and restaurant special, and i still have dreams of coming back here to grab another one. (Im from boston but frequently come back to Philly).

This, my foodie friends, is my comfort food and my happy place. I’ve been coming here for ten years and I love that this place never changes. Ezra and his brother help keep Bob Koch’s dream and magical sandwiches alive. First off a fair warning when you enter this friendly neighborhood deli, be prepared to wait but not in a bad way. Time will fly as you watch the men behind the counter make meaty dreams of corned beef and pastrami come true and you can talk about local happenings all while Ezra cuts you samples of EVERYTHING HE’S MAKING! Those guys have a super generous heart and are always glad and thankful that you chose Koch’s to eat at. My go to is ALWAYS the Penn special and has been since the day I started going there. I’ve dabbled in other people’s sandwiches and hoagies when they order with me, but I always come back to the Penn… I’m drooling onto my keyboard just thinking about this. This could easily be what I order for my last meal on earth.

Having worked In West Philadelphia for many years I gave Koch’s a couple of chances.
To boot Koch’s poses as a Jewish Deli.
To say the least they are overpriced.
I’ve tried many of their sandwiches all which are prepared sloppily and have a meager amount of meat/​fish/​salad. Russian Dressing and Cole Slaw are sloshed on the sandwiches causing quite the mess. I am not a messy eater and I don’t like to wear my food.
Now don’t get me wrong everything has tasted A-​OK here, and I’ve never had bad service, however having been to many Jewish Delis, Koch’s is not spectacular.
If Koch’s charged more appropriate prices, or filled their sandwiches with the proper amount of meat that would easily change the game. A good dusting, and a thorough wipe down would also make Koch’s more appealing. I don’t see myself running here again unless Unilocalers indicate an improvement.

Really enjoy the food here, but the service can best be described as catastrophic failure.
The sandwiches are creative with good meats and cheeses and hefty portions. A nice selection of classic Jewish deli extras such as black and white cookies, potato chips, cole slaw, potato salad, and Dr. Browns sodas are also more than welcome.
The service, or lack thereof, is actually shocking. With 2 men behind the deli counter and almost nobody in the deli it takes about 30 – 40 minutes to receive your sandwich. Additionally the two men behind the counter took 3 – 4 phone calls for orders before addressing me in person, probably adding significantly to my wait time as well.
In sum, I’d love to have this catered to me, but I wouldn’t want to wait to eat here again.

Koch’s is the real deal! Ezra is awesome and hooked us up with some tasty treats while we waited for our delicious Philly Cheese Steaks!
Seriously awesome old school deli. Looking forward to my next visit to Phili and hitting this joint again

This is an amazing, personal experience in a shop with history and great food. The sandwich maker makes his sandwiches one at a time, and there appears to be only one maker at a time. He is gruff but incredibly personal. No problem at all. He gives little tasters of what he’s cutting up, so you have an understanding of the whole operation. I even learned about some cheeses I was previously unfamiliar with like the Sweet Munchee.
It’s an outstanding little Kosher-​style deli. I would recommend this to anyone who is unfamiliar with a Kosher-​style deli. You can get great deli at Herschels too, but this is a true experience on its own.
Anyone who rates this under 5 stars has no soul. You cannot find a better place to put your money or your mouth. I would come out here even if I misheard you, I’d be out the door before you could correct me.

I got a corned beef special from koch’s for lunch. The sandwich was amazing. I got it with Swiss cheese on marble rye. Perfect ration of meat/​slaw/​Russian. We will be making Koch’s a bi weekly order for the office.

Haven’t been to many delis so I don’t really have anything as a comparison, but I really liked the food I had here.
My favorite part of the place is its obvious history — postcards and letters from regular patrons line the entire back wall, with some dating back to 1989 or before, and some written on a typewriter. It gives the place a special layer of meaning just reading letters all these people wrote to the family owners, while you wait for your sandwich to be toasted and made.
On the note of making sandwiches — it does take a while for the sandwiches to be made. A friend called in to order at 7:20, and we didn’t get our food until 8:05, so definitely call ahead or be prepared to wait for a bit. Even though it was around 8 when we arrived, which is when Koch’s closes, there were a bunch of people waiting inside the tiny deli for their food. The person making the sandwiches offered everyone waiting inside slices of pickles and even included a few with our order on the house, which was really really nice (I’ve also been craving pickles that day).
As for the sandwich itself (I ordered the hot pastrami), it was delightfully warm and had a simple but delicious filling of meat and cheese. The meat was cooked nicely, with the right amount of saltiness, and heated before sandwiched between the two soft slices of bread. I think the only thing about Koch’s is that it’s rather pricey and the portions aren’t huge — I got the sandwich ($ 11.95) for dinner, finished the whole thing but was still kinda hungry after. It would make a really good lunch though, and the pickle makes for a great accompaniment for the sandwich.

Came back less than a week later to try the hot pastrami sandwich. INCREDIBLE. While I waited, I got to try some turkey, roast beef (the BEST I’ve ever tasted in my life), pastrami, swiss cheese, and pickles. LOVE this place!

This is God’s sandwich.
The pastrami is to die for. With cheese. On rye. With mustard.
I go there once a week

30 years ago, I lived in Indianapolis with my brother, we loved the Jewish deli in our neighborhood… Koch’s reminds me of Shapiro’s Deli. It is also old fashioned deli with cute signs «Patience is a virtue». This is a take out establishment, many orders phoned in or placed online. I was a walk– in and waited 10 or so minutes for my sandwich. I tried the Vegetarian Cheese steak and he sauteed onions and green peppers. I also had the Diet Dr Brown’s soda, just like Shapiro’s and deli salad (potato salad and macaroni salad.). All sandwiches come with two kosher pickle spears to my delight. I thought my food was delicious and worth the 10 minute wait. I cannot wait to return to try another sandwich or hoagie.

It’s 11/​23/​2015. Approx. 7 days since I had this sandwhich… and I am still thinking about it. Go… Go and try it before it’s tooo late!

My dad and cousin were in town helping me with some maintenance projects and I was stressed about what to get them for lunch. My cousin, coming from a small farming town, it s not one to experiment with new or «fancy» food. (At one point I was asking him what he thought about strombolis and he said, «Is Italian the regular kind? The way it SHOULD be made? When they start putting chicken in a stromboli I get worried. Why would you put chicken in a stromboli??») They said they wanted sandwiches so I decided to give Koch’s a try. They did not disappoint! We got a cheesesteak, a reuben, and an Italian hoagie with a side of pasta salad. Everything was very tasty and even my cousin seemed to approve. I would definitely eat there again.
The only annoying thing was that I ordered online through Grub Hub and despite coming at the estimated time I had to wait in the store for probably a half an hour to get the food. To their credit they seemed very busy – probably because they make good sandwiches. I also wish they had more space because I had to stand for a half an hour waiting for the food because there was nowhere to sit.

Worth a return? Yes, after 20+ years away, they still are the wizards of the sandwich
Worth a 30 minute drive? Yes
Worth a flight? I live in San Francisco – this is still a place I will dream of
Had the PCOM, as I used to many years ago as a student at Penn. It’s sort of an everything sandwich, for someone who can’t decide between a traditional meat (corned beef) or salad (chicken) – because it has both! It was still great in all the ways I love it to be.
Due to the many reviews expounding on the pastrami – yup it is now my new favorite. It is indeed fragrant, moist, and not too salty. Far better than Katz’s or any place on the west coast.
On a Wednesday at 2 pm, there was no line and service was as friendly as ever.

The best sandwich I’ve had at Koch’s Deli was the Hot Pastrami.
Other sandwiches I’ve tried which are not bad: Corned beef special, Reuben, Chicken salad.
I would not recommend the Chopped liver here — it was not as good, fresh, flavourful as I’d like. Whitefish salad was okay, but it was extremely salty.
The potato salad & macaroni salad are pretty standard, nothing special. Cole slaw was fine.
Service could use improvement. Delivery was quite late (half an hour) although I’d put in a large order about a week in advance.

I recently moved to the University City/​Spruce Hill area, and Koch’s was one of the top places I needed to try in the neighborhood. I grew up with great NY-​style deli, and Koch’s is a contender for best deli in my heart. I ordered a Honey Turkey hoagie with LTO and cheddar cheese. The meat and cheese is quality and sliced to order. Everything is fresh, and the pickles are fantastic. The only downside is it can get a little pricey (I paid $ 10.50 for the hoagie only, but I usually eat it in two sittings) when adding extras, but you get what you pay for.
I have only ordered in person, and I usually bring it home to eat. Overall, I’ve had a good experience. The staff is nice and accommodating. Koch’s is delicious and worth every penny.

In my opinion, the price is alittle too high for my liking (about 12 bucks for one of their many specialty sandwiches). They do give you generous portions of freshly cut deli meats though, with half of one of their sandwiches potentially filling you up (although I usually finish my whole sandwich).
My main caution for those trying out this place is that they usually add too much coleslaw or Russian or original mayo making the sandwiches too creamy and overpowering for the taste buds. I believe you can simply ask for less sauce or coleslaw to correct this issue.
I don’t recommend storing the sandwich for more than one day as it gets soggy pretty quickly with the amount of sauce they pack into each sandwich.
Ordering out will take about 30 min while going in person will depend on how many ppl are there waiting. Otherwise a quality deli with quality meats!