When Is A Deli Not A Deli?

While some purists may claim that to be named a ‘deli’ a shop must be simply home to quality food and drink not found in supermarkets, a number of Speciality Food readers have expanded their offering to include a takeaway sandwich service, coffee bar or even sit-down meal offering. At what stage in this progression does the purpose of a ‘deli’ become blurred; is the title ripe for flexibility or should it be subject to a hard and fast definition? We speak to three differing delis to obtain their point of view.

Mark Kacary, The Norfolk Deli
I’m not sure when it happened or who it was who started the current trend for restaurants, coffee shops and cafés to redefine themselves as delis. Of course I am not saying that a deli cannot, or should not, offer facilities or space to sit down and eat, but how often have you walked into a ‘deli’ only to realise that the choice of cheeses, cold meats etc (things you may expect to find in a deli), have been replaced by a fully functioning professional kitchen, front of house and waiting staff?

Don’t get me wrong, I am not against serving food. For example, we at The Norfolk Deli offer takeaway food in the form of sandwiches which are made to order using the wide range of produce on our deli counter. It makes perfect sense for a deli to do so, as it keeps the food we stock fresh and current and keeps wastage to a minimum. But what comes first for many businesses – the café or the deli?

There does seem to be a proliferation of cafés who all of a sudden are no longer cafés, but delis. How is this possible? Does selling a couple of different cheeses, a few chutneys and possibly a bottle or two of olive oil make you a deli? It makes my heart sink every time I see the opening of another deli which focuses on its menu and table bookings rather than the quality and range of the produce it’s selling.

The word ‘deli’ clearly retains high retail value on the high street. For example, even Walkers crisps have been getting in on the act lately with their ‘deli-style’ crisps, whatever they are! There is a distinct chance, however, that the caché that comes with being a delicatessen is in danger of being watered down by the overextended use of the word deli. Or is the distinction just that those who would like to be associated with the qualities of a delicatessen (knowledgeable staff, quality and range of produce), feel that by tagging the abbreviation deli to what they do will give them more credibility? Isn’t it time that people had more faith in their own product and stopped watering down the essence of what a delicatessen/deli is all about?

Tom Hunt, Ludlow Food Centre
A quintessential deli is made by the people who run it. Their product selection and often the fact that they make food for their deli is what makes it unique and special. A deli should be an experience where you have to spend time, listen to advice, taste things and enjoy the experience of being surrounded by food. At our deli, Ludlow Pantry, we champion our own food and almost everything we sell is made at Ludlow Food Centre, so it helps to tell the story of the Food Centre from another location.

Ludlow Pantry was always designed to combine café and deli elements. We do not refer to it as a delicatessen, we see it as a café that sells food you can take home. The purpose of Ludlow Pantry is described by its strapline ‘A taste of Ludlow Food Centre’. We wanted people visiting Ludlow town centre to have the opportunity to enjoy our food and we also wanted to tell them all about the Food Centre and encourage them to visit.

In a small space and with a small local population it is important to appeal to as many people as possible. People on their way to work will stop in for a coffee, and students at the college will pop in for a sausage roll or pasty. This market would not necessarily shop at a delicatessen, but when they come in to Ludlow Pantry they often see things they fancy. It might be a gift bag of jams for a relative or a pack of charcuterie and some cheese for supper. We have a café and a deli, and somehow we are doing it in 400 square feet!

The must-have components of a deli depend on what style you want to go for. If, like us, it is a traditional, locally-inspired deli then it’s pork pies, quiches, salads, terrines and pâté. We combine these with the normal staples like coleslaw, olives and sausage rolls. We have always treated cheese as a separate part of our deli and at the Pantry we have most of it packed and ready to grab and go. We obviously put a greater emphasis on our own cheeses. We now have eleven of our own handmade cheeses so we want to draw as much attention to them as possible. The Pantry is predominately a fresh food area but we do have some jams, pickles and marmalades. We also have coffee which we roast ourselves so you can drink in the Pantry, take it away to drink or take it away in a packet to use at home. There aren’t many delis that specialise in coffee!

Most words to do with food have been twisted and overused in the last ten years. ‘Deli’ now just means slightly upmarket food outlet. Interestingly, the larger brands such as Walkers have chosen to shorten the word and by doing so have given it a new meaning. When I think of delicatessen I still think of a quaint little shop that is packed full of interesting food. When I think of deli I think of manufactured foods such as the ‘deli sandwich range’ or Walkers ‘deli’ crisps. It is amazing how the big brands can change the meaning of words but keep the connotation that makes consumers think something is better quality or better value. However, it is still desperately frustrating for independent retailers and very misleading for consumers.

Candice Fonseca, Deli Fonseca
I had a romantic vision of deli open six days a week 9am-6pm and me standing behind my cheese counter chatting with regular customers. However, once I started doing my research it became evident that wastage is an issue that is hard to control without the outlet of at least a café so that products can be used rather than wasted.

I decided to combine the two, because the research supported it in terms of minimising wastage. But it also made sense, as by opening a new deli in a city centre with no similar food retail provision, we were having to convince people to change their shopping habits. Sitting down and eating with us was an easier proposition than shopping in what could be perceived as a daunting environment by some. It worked well as when we first opened the restaurant scene in Liverpool wasn’t as vibrant as it is today and our restaurant quickly began to gain a reputation. Diners quite often browsed and then purchased.

For me, a full service cheese, charcuterie and antipasti counter is the heart of a deli. With items cut and sliced on request. A good range of quality store cupboard ingredients for the decent home chef. Also a decent take-away section of good sandwiches based around deli counter ingredients.

The word ‘deli’ is absolutely overused. I named Delifonseca such because when I researched business names it advised that the name should the reveal what the business does. Hence the ‘deli’. However, over time, I realised that in this city most people think a deli is just a sandwich shop. With that assumption, many people didn’t bother visiting and certainly assumed that our restaurant was simply a daytime café rather than an award-winning restaurant listed in the Good Food Guide and open in the evenings!

Image courtesy of Partridges