Ruma’s Deli

Ruma’s Deil is the original sandwich place in St. Louis. They’ve been around since I was a kid, I’d say more than 40 years. They are the home of the Gerber and I believe it originated there. The sandwiches have your basics; meat, cheese, bread. Nothing fancy but just family recipes. I particularly love the Gerber– open faced ham on garlic buttered bread topped with provel cheese and a sprinkle of paprika. The whole thing is put under the broiler so the cheese gets melty with crusty brown edges. Yum, so good! They also have a version with roast beef and gravy called the Prosperity. There are lots of other sandwich, salad and pasta choices. The baked mostacioli, a St. Louis staple, is also delicious.
This location, I believe is the last one. It’s very time worn, needs a facelift but it is clean, organized and has good parking. Ruma’s offers great Groupons from time to time! The employees are friendly and I really just recommend getting take out as the restaurant has very little seating. Plus leftovers are great eaten cold in the middle of the night.
Hope you give Ruma’s Deli a try if you’ve never been.

Came in at 5:00, ordered, people who came in after us got their food before us. I wanted water, but it isnt available –they wanted me to buy water. I said no thanks. Maybe it was the people working, but I’m less than impressed. Used to be much better.

Average. Had a Ruben today. Too much bread, too little meat. Very meh. For $ 9.50 i’d expect you to crush the Ruben, but sadly, I’d be better off with Subway. Drop your prices, or step your game up!

Don’t trust their posted hours. Wanted to grab a quick sandwich before a movie on a Saturday night. They were supposed to stay open until 9, but they had the lights out and chairs up @ 820 when we arrived. The workers inside said they were closed. Thanks for nothing Ruma’s.

I’ve been coming to this place since I was a kid. It’s nostalgic. The food is great and super reasonable. Get a Gerber. Open faced ham sandwich. Yum.

This local chain was once the best sandwich place in town. My wife, daughter and all of the in laws loved the Gerber sandwich. I got one last week and took it to my daughters loft as a surprise. Imagine my surprise when I opened the foil on her counter only to hear her say, «Dad, you should have got a «Hammer!»
It turns out that she prefers the same sandwich made at another restaurant in town. I went to «Joey Bs» today and ate a Hammer. Melissa is right.

This is a no nonsense review for a no nonsense restaurant. Without a doubt, Ruma’s Deli has sen better days. This is the only functioning business in a long dead shopping plaza. The interior of the place is dismal. The exterior of the restaurant is frightening. The telephone etiquette of the staff is sketchy at best. The demeanor of the staff inside is efficient on courtesy. But the food… The food is always good. This location consistently turns out great St. Louis style pizzas, strong cold sandwiches, reasonable pasta selections, and the best Gerber/​Prosperity sandwiches in St. Louis.
Understand, there is little to no flash at the shop, but they succeed where it counts. My family were loyal customers as I grew up. Last night, I returned for a Gerber sandwich and found the restaurant has managed to keep their reputation as a serious lunch choice intact.
This is a place to eat lunch or dinner throughout the week. Not a place to take a date on the weekend.

This isn’t a review on the actual food this time it’s more about the available items on Sunday. This is the second Sunday in a row that I forgot about the 6pm close time. Last Sunday I called around 5:15 and they stated everything was put away and all they can make is Gerbers. This Sunday I actually drove to the establishment but didn’t get there till 545 to find out they had nothing to serve because they were closing in 15 minutes. The 5:15 is more upsetting than the later, if you decide you’re going to stop serving food by a certain time put that on your website so I don’t waste my time driving there!

Yep the Rich Boy is still 1 of the top 5 sandwiches in town. Fast service during lunch. The bread is really good.

The portion of Gerber sammich I swallowed here without chewing was great, BUT I’ve got beef (no pun int) with kids running the joint. This fat chick takes her food pretty seriously and I just don’t have the time or patience to spend a large chunk of my vacation waiting in an awkwardly creepy; Sopranos decorated barn with questionable restrooms. There were five of us, we ordered one sammich to try, and about an hour later when the entire debacle was over regarding ice, and a screwed up order, I decided I’d hold my piss for a more worthy establishment.

This would have been a 2 star, but we waited in the dinning room exactly 31 minutes for our order, which was ONE Gerber sandwich.
We had done all this research on this sandwich, and with the help of some local Unilocalers, we were turned on to Ruma’s, which was at one time in a lot of the St. Louis malls. Now reduced to having only two locations, I guess their stock has gone down, but they’re one of the few places still serving this regional sandwich. So we drive all the way from Maryland Heights to this Ruma’s and order a Gerber. Imagine how frustrating it was to watch 3 people get their Gerber sandwich ahead of us, especially knowing they arrived AFTER we did. 31 minutes go by and FINALLY, we got our sandwich. It was good, but nothing spectacular. Not worth the wait in any way, shape or fashion. I think the most frustrating part was that they told us they simply «lost» our order and made no effort to credit or compensate us. They just didn’t seem to care. So my advice to anyone wanting a Gerber, call Imo’s and ask them to slap some ham on their cheesy garlic bread. Hassle-​free, and better tasting!
Next time I’m in town from Florida, I definitely won’t be eating at Ruma’s.

My husband loves this place, it was better back in the day but I hate to give my business to a restaurant that cares nothing about the dining experience and I have a HUGE issue when a restaurant closes prior to their scheduled and posted hours! For my poor husband, this has happened on his last TWO visits. Maybe they are making lots of money for whomever it is they make donuts for, so they don’t have to worry about such things as not catering to their direct customer

The gerber (ham) or prosperity (roast beef) are great options. Save some room for the baked mostaccioli.
The eating area is less to be desired, so we take it to go.
I used to eat Ruma’s as a child with my Grandma, so please stay around!

Very few restaurants in St Louis have withstood the test of time like Ruma’s Deli. located in the Covington Place shopping plaza on Lemay Ferry Road, I have been coming to this location for over 30 years. The place isn’t anything spectacular but the food has been decidedly delicious and consistently satisfying for all these years so that must say something.
I ordered my favorite sandwich on the menu, called the Gerber special, order it burnt for a better and crispier sandwich, you will be so glad you did. The restaurant is still family owned and run by Brock Ruma, who does what he can to make Ruma’s food the best it can be and the tastiest it can be.
yes I would return to Ruma’s Deli, it is a delicious place to eat that will leave you satisfied and happy.

They are good! I like their pizza and pasta, their Gerbers are good as well. The only issue it seems they are sort of high priced! Went in there one time and spent over $ 35 and we didnt even order a whole… maybe it was just mean, but it seems like they are high priced!

I used to be a fan, but the last two visits have left me wanting my money back. The Prosperity comes on soggy (not toasted) white bread. Toasting it prior to and after adding meat, cheese and gravy could help. And the quality of the beef is bad. There’s very little and a third of it is weird chewy pieces. For a nine dollar lunch (small sandwich, soda and chips) I expect better. Not sure what’s happened since they closed and reopened but I won’t be back :-(

I stopped in after a friend said they had some kind of open face sandwich that he had fond memories of. The kid behind the counter pointed out the three most popular sandwiches. The pizza bread sandwich, the prosparity, and the gerber. I chose the later… an open face ham and priceless, on garlic buttered French bread. I am currently trying to get the goey cheese off the roof of my mouth, and between my teeth. I thought the sandwich was good, but a little skimpy on the ham. Most 6″ sandwiches run in the six dollar range. One other thing, when asked for a cup for water, he explained the soda. dispenser didn’t have a water button, they had bottled water. I think bottled water is a joke, and a giant waste of money. Couldn’t he have offered to fill a cup in the kitchen sink? I’m just saying…

i also eat at this place every time i visit saint louis. I do have a friend that works here, but that really does not influence my review.
the food is awesome! i love the gerbers, mostaccholi, salads…

Ahh, Ruma’s. One of the last bastions of «old» St. Louis delis. And by «old» I mean big thick pieces of french bread, mostaccholi by the bucketload, and more provel cheese than you can choke down. So why are their sandwiches so addictive? I have no idea, but when the phrase «Gerber Sandwich» enters my brain (a hot ham and cheese open faced sandwich on french bread), I start drooling like Pavlov’s dog.
Their cheese will stick to the roof of your mouth, the place is perpetually dark and the atmosphere is dungeon-​esque, but I’ll be damned if this isn’t one of the best places to get hot sandwiches in St. Louis. It’s understandable if you don’t feel the same, it’s the type of place only a native St. Louisan would appreciate.
But when you order, get carry-​out. The interior can be a tad depressing.

My Grandma used to love this place. I could never understand it, but during my childhood I choked down more of their roast beef sandwiches than I care to remember… this may be a strong explanation for my meatless adult life style.
I have gone back to Ruma’s since my younger days, and it’s still, well, it’s alright. It’s a sandwich joint, so it’s kind of hard to mess that up, you know? The bread is, decent, the meat is fresh, the veggies are… sort of fresh most of the time, and the staff is… acceptable…nothing great. A veggie sub is fairly standard no matter where you go, so in the long run, this place is fine for a quick lunch time stop.
Good points: it’s never packed so you’ll get in and out pretty quick. They have some other options from sandwiches like pastas, but not a huge array, and the sandwiches do come both hot and cold. Also close proximity to QT so you don’t have to spend money on a pricey fountain beverage.
Negatives: mediocre sandwiches, bizarre Ruma’s smell that will linger on your clothes after you leave, and having to make a left out of the parking lot… YIKES.