Saint John, New Brunswick has been experiencing an excellent summer season. The sunny weather has incited many to heat up their barbeques, crack a cold beer (or non-alcoholic drink) and socialize.

At Urban Deli we have customers that come in specifically to enjoy our applewood smoked ribs (available as a half or full rack). What is really intriguing about our ribs (and many customers do not know this) is that they are available to be purchased and taken home to be re-heated.

Ribs after a five hour smoking process

This means you can throw it on the barbie and really impress your guests when they arrive.

These ribs are given special attention from the very beginning (starting first with their five hour smoking process which is done on-site) and so has our BBQ sauce.

Great care is taken to ensure the right flavours come through and since our BBQ sauce is made from scratch, we have been able to certify that it is gluten-free.

Half rack of applewood smoked ribs served with your choice of side

Each set of ribs purchased are pre-marinated in our BBQ sauce and we even give you enough on the side for basting or dipping purposes when you pick them up to take home.

So when you are thinking about heating up that barbeque or grabbing a case of cold beer, remember that even with a busy schedule you can always stop by or pre-order our ribs.

Add any of our appetizers (like our roasted garlic and artichoke dip), side salads, hand-cut deli frites to your order or get one of our fabulous desserts.

Take all the credit, we really don’t mind.

There’s no time like summer for barbecues and there’s nothing like ribs for putting the scent of summer in the air and floating through the neighbourhood.

It seems as if we opened our doors yesterday and today woke up to find ourselves one year old. Does time really move that quickly? Apparently — especially when you’re trying to serve food!

The Urban Deli opened on July 13, 2009. One year later, we’re still here.

It’s fascinating what happens while you’re busy. We’ve had lots of customers come into the Deli and in what seems the blink of an eye some have become regulars, many have become friends, and our staff have become family.

But what has most amazed us has been the way Saint John has welcomed and taken us in, and how Uptown Saint John has made us a part of one of the most exciting and growing communities anywhere in the country.

“Thank you Saint John,” doesn’t come close to saying how grateful we are to the Port City but, thank you Saint John!

And a huge thank you to our staff — not just for the work you do, but the way you do it.

Year one is behind us; the future is ahead and wide open. We’re loving it!

To our friends in Fredericton, who we understand are experiencing some rather toasty weather, and to our friends a bit more inland in Saint John … Cool off in our Uptown! Pay us a visit – the weatherman tells us it won’t be quite so hot here.

And if you make the trip, you could pay us a visit at the Deli. (This is where we insert a shameless plug.) And maybe try a glass of our scratch lemonade (made with real lemons):

Unless you would prefer our ice-tea (made with a blend of teas and cranberry juice):

Our the root beer on tap that we get from our friends at Pump House:

If you can’t make it down, be sure to get out, wherever you are, and enjoy our wonderful Maritime weather – be it hot and humid, or a little cooler – but still humid. Enjoy your day!

(By the way … we also have root beer floats!)

… And it all started with a incredible Canada Day in Uptown Saint John. Even the dogs were caught up in the feeling we call Canada.

The Deli had a little setup in front of the UD (the restaurant was closed) where we sold breakfast and pulled pork sandwiches outside the doors. We also had cold drinks like our scratch lemonade and ice-tea. It was a fun way to be working and being out meeting people enjoying the day. We have photos on our Facebook page here.

The photo above of Lianne and Liz and our extraordinary helpful helper was just one of loads of photos Beaver Smith took (many thanks!). If you want to really see what Saint John’s Uptown looked like on this Canada day, have a look at his photos.

We’ll be doing something a little different for Canada Day. The Urban Deli will be closed, but kind of open too. Here’s what we’re doing:

The restaurant will be closed. However, we’ll have a stand directly outside our front doors selling food and cold drinks (alongside the other vendors).

We’re taking it to the streets, so to speak.

We’ll start off with breakfast sandwiches at 9:00am (served on an english muffin) and also have our own scratch lemonade, home-made ice tea and other cold drinks available. If you like samosas, we’ll have those too (not made by the Deli) — five different kinds of samosas that include beef, chicken, lamb, vegetarian and sweet potato.

Once the breakfast sandwiches are either sold out or 11:00am hits, we’ll be switching it up and selling our pulled pork & slaw on an english muffin.

We’re normally closed on Sundays and holidays so all of us (our staff) can enjoy the days, but this time we wanted to be there in Uptown Saint John. It’s Canada Day and we expect the Uptown to be hopping.

And who in their right mind would want to miss a Canada Day in the Port City?

Yippie kay ay! The Uptown Saint John’s 2010 Live Life Awards shortlist has been announced and the Urban Deli finds itself nominated in three categories. Thank you Saint John! (Apologies to Bruce Willis for the “Yippie kay ay!” but it’s from the old cowboys and basically means, whoo hoo!)

We find the Deli in these categories:

• New Business of the Year
• Best Restaurant of the Year
• Commercial Space of the Year

This is thrilling for us. Now the countdown is on to June 24th (Thursday) to see if we can bring home the big prizes.

A big thank you to everyone who recommended us and a “hats off” salute to the other nominees (who are probably as thrilled as we are).

Once again, thank you Saint John! We’re looking forward to a fabulous evening. We love it here and it’s wonderful to be back home!

The 2010 Live Life Awards are on and there is a restaurant category where oodles of nominations are flowing in. You can add your voice by dropping in and having your say on the “Best Restaurant of the Year” in the Uptown area.

Of course, we’ve a particular bias.

But there are so many fabulous places to eat in Saint John’s Uptown, we’re thrilled to be one of them. This isn’t a competition so much as it’s a celebration of what we have and what we’re building on in the Uptown.

By the way, there will be a ceremony June 24 at the Saint John Theatre Company. You can get information on it, as well as information on getting a ticket to the event, by visiting the 2010 Live Life Awards web site. In their words, “… we’re having a party.”

In the meantime, if you want to nominate a restuarant, the place to go is here (simply add it as a comment).

One last note … Urban Deli also qualifies in a couple of other categories. Such as New Business of the Year (we opened last July) and Commercial Space of the Year. If you want to toss a nomination our way, we’d love to get it!

(Photo of the Urban Deli is by Beaver Smith, bigdayfoto, Saint John.)

This is just a quick note to let you know we’re open on Good Friday from 9am to 3pm. We will be serving a light breakfast from 9am to 11:30am. This is because it’s a holiday Friday.

Looking ahead to Saturday, and every Saturday onward, we’ll open at 9am and serve a light breakfast until 11:30am and then move on to our lunch menu.

This is a change to Saturdays. Previously, we were not open for breakfasts. But we will be now! So if you’re in the Uptown area on Saturday, drop by for a light breakfast. We would love to see you!

And we’d love to hear what you think of the breakfast menu and any suggestions you may have. We think of this as a starting point – a kind of “beta” breakfast menu – and we’d love for you to help us tweak it to make it better!

We’re almost through that long haul of winter without a holiday (New Year’s until Easter weekend), and you probably have some cabin fever kicking in. So, if that is correct and you’re looking to get out this weekend, let this be a guide to get you started.

The Boardwalk is always bound to have something going on and here is a sampling of what to expect:

SJAH (Saint John Ale House) is having their weekly Friday Night Social Club that’ll feature a cocktail competition. This week’s cocktail is Long Island Iced Tea. Come down before 10 PM and you may be lucky enough to be a guest judge. Last week’s cocktail showdown featured Singapore Slings, and co-owner Pete Stoddard won 4 votes over 2 against Shawn Horgan. (See Pete and Shawn in the accompanying picture.) @SJAH_NB

Lemongrass / Peppers Pub have their Friday After Work Special, from 3-7 PM. $5 Guinness & $4.75 Picaroons draught.

Grannans has its weekly Jazz Night featuring Kindred Brothers from 6-8 PM.

Boilerworks will have 90s drink throwback prices.

Elsewhere Uptown, don’t miss out on:

Saint John’s only brewpub, Big Tide Brewing Company, on Princess St, has an ever-changing selection of their own beer, brewed by Wendy Papadopoulos. This weekend they have Whistlepig Stout, Irish Red Ale, Hemp Pale Ale, and for the first time, Honey Brown Ale, all on tap.

Happinez Wine Bar, across the street from Big Tide, will have a wide selection, as always, of wine by the glass or bottle. Beer, by the bottle, is also available along with some spirits. Be sure to sign up early for some upcoming events. Check the website for full details.

Be sure to also hit up Thandi on Canterbury St. for Asian fusion, Saigon Noodle on Union for some Pho, Sense of Tokyo for deliciously fresh Sushi, and of course there is Opera Bistro and the Urban Deli. Be sure to plug your favourite place in the comments if I’ve missed something you think other readers will be interested in. Cheers!

***

Bio: Dan Jones is a food, drink, and travel writer from Saint John. Follow him on Twitter: @danjjj

What is your favourite beer? I’m sure that you immediately thought of an answer but probably then got to several other candidates. I can’t really pinpoint an exact answer for this question myself but I have a few beers I’d like to write about and then, after reading, you can comment about some of your favourites to share with me and other readers.

I really love British-style ales and the best place to get them around the Maritimes, even cask-conditioned (unpasteurized so it is still alive in the keg), is from Granite in Halifax (check out Henry House on Barrington St). I love their Best Bitter, Ringwood, and Peculiar. British ales will normally be blonde to brown in colour due to the medium to rich dark malts, with a great hop appeal in the nose, and a moderate to heavy bitterness that invites another drink. Alcohol content normally ranges from as low as 3% on session brews up to 8% and sometimes higher in old ales and Winter warmers.

Locally, Picaroons has a couple of products that come to mind – Blonde Ale and Best Bitter although they have several ales available in bottles and on tap. I’ll often order the Blonde Ale at Urban Deli by the bottle, as it’s quite palatable for most food due to it being so middle of the road with toasted honey nut oat malt and hops and a creamy mouth feel.

The Best Bitter is much deeper in dark malts and noticeably bitter. You can pick up both by the 500 ml bottle at ANBL and at SJAH you can grab the Blonde Ale by bottle and Best Bitter on tap. Shadow Lawn Inn, Barnwood, and Pomodori in Rothesay, Happinez and Callahan’s in Uptown SJ, and Vintage Bistro & Lounge in Hampton all sell Picaroons products.

Fullers London Pride, available on ANBL shelves in a 500 ml bottle, is also a great example of British ale and it could be my favourite import because it is the closest to what I love about real ale that is available in a bottle – and is a truly balanced ale with a tad of thirst inducing astringency. Pumphouse, from Moncton, also specializes in ales but are often in the North American styles – all very excellent though and is sold at UD and other fine establishments.

Nothing beats a crisp cold lager on a hot summer’s day. Lagers are brewed differently than ales as they are brewed at colder temperatures for longer periods of time. This creates higher costs for a brewer, especially craft breweries, who have limited equipment that is tied up longer, among other things, if making a lager. Due to these reasons, you don’t see many craft brewed lagers.

However, things may be changing in this regard and soon to be brand new to ANBL shelves is Feels Good Imperial Pilsner made by Picaroons. It has been on tap in Fredericton for some time and now it is ready to be shared and enjoyed with the rest of New Brunswick. feelsgood.ca is an arts, music, and community movement and Picaroons has been kind enough to brand the beer after this organization.

At 7% alcohol this beer can be dangerous as the alcohol is well-masked due to how smooth this beer drinks starts and then the hoppy aftertaste keeps you going back for more. I know this pilsner, a type of lager, will be a regular in my fridge.

Big Tide Brewery, on Princess Street, has had a pilsner on tap and most likely will again. It was quite delicious the few times I had it. It was very clean, with fruity malts, and decently hopped but not overly so. Moosehead Breweries’ Alpine Lager is a clean drinking beer whether by the bottle or draught. Alpine has actual flavour, especially compared to the other mass-market North American lagers it competes with but could use more hops.

Urban Deli will be picking up the Feels Good Imperial Pilsner as soon as it hits the shelves and Alpine is always available at UD along with several other beers by the bottle, always from New Brunswick only.

Follow the businesses listed on twitter: @urbandeli, @SJAH_NB, @picaroons, @loveoffood (Pomodori), and @FeelsGoodMusic.

(Note: The Feels Good Imperial Lager should be on Saint John shelves very shortly. The www.nbliquor.com site shows it is already in several stores. The price will be $3.75 for 500 ml bottle, which is the same price as their other products yet it is 7% alcohol.)

***

Bio: Dan Jones is a food, drink, and travel writer from Saint John. Follow him on twitter: @danjjj