The Food Network pays us a visit for a new show

The Food Network is paying Saint John a visit for their new show, You Gotta Eat Here! And we’re way excited because we’re one of the restaurants they’ll be visiting for the show.

On Friday and Saturday they’re going to be taping at our friends, Saint John Ale House. On Sunday and Monday, they’re taping here at Urban Deli.

We’d love for you to join us for Monday’s taping (the 17th), during lunch 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. But please call us and make a reservation at 652-3354.

And what’s this Food Network show all about? Two words: comfort food. Here’s how they describe it:

You Gotta Eat Here! sends our charming, funny and food-obsessed host, comedian John Catucci, on a quest to find Canada’s most delicious, mouthwatering, over-the-top comfort food.  He’s visiting great joints, greasy spoons, and legendary restaurants to taste the food that made them famous, and to meet the colourful characters that make each one of them institutions.

It should be fun. John Catucci is a pretty funny guy and it sounds as if he knows his comfort food. We’re fired up with the idea of them coming to see us and we hope you’ll join us so we can give them a real Uptown Saint John welcome. Hope to see you Monday!

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The Eagles, the Deli and fine things

Were it not for the fact that Don Henley wrote “Desperado” while Urban Deli was still a dream in Liz’s head, we’d say he must have been thinking of the Deli when he wrote, “It seems to me some fine things have been laid upon your table …

That’s our cutesy way of reminding you that Hotel California: The Eagles Tribute is at the Imperial Theatre tonight. And if you are headed there, you might want to stop by the Deli for a bite before the show. We promise, there will be no heartbreak tonight. (Major groan!)

Liz loves everything by the Eagles, especially Hotel California. Bill, the web guy, is partial to Desperado, though he also has a great fondness for Lyin’ Eyes and dozens of other Eagles songs.

And if you plan to join us at the Deli before the show, please call us to reserve to ensure you have a seat. We don’t want to break that “no heartbreak” promise! You can reach us at 652-3354.

Have a great time at the show!

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Time of the season: events and catering

A small example of what Urban Deli can bring to your catered event.

We’re not eager to spoil the party but the fact is August is winding down and September will be rolling in shortly and that means … well, that means just about everything moves into a higher gear.

Kids get back to school. People return from holidays. Business gets busier.

That last one, business getting back to the business of business, is why we’re bringing up the subject of catering.

You’re likely to find yourself either scheduled into or scheduling more meetings than in the last few months.

A lot of those meetings will be scheduled over lunch. Or maybe they aren’t meetings at all but day long seminars. Whatever the case, a key element of making your event a success will be food. Your attendees will need something to eat.

That’s where Urban Deli can lend a helping hand. A key part of our business is catering and we often cater business events like meetings. We have experience in this (we’ve been catering since the day we opened). We’ve even put together some catering tips to help you plan your meeting or seminar.

We can help you make the most of your budget and time by simply getting a few details from you and taking care of the arrangements so you can concentrate on the important stuff – like the meeting itself.

We don’t want to be summer party-pooper’s but autumn looms ahead and it isn’t just an increase in business meetings that are in the offing. There are the social and family events like Thanksgiving, Halloween and, yes, Christmas with its parties.

We cater those too and now is the time to start planning so you can avoid the anxiety of last minute arrangements.

It has been a terrific summer for us and we hope it has been the same for you. With a wistful sigh, we’re now turning our eyes to the days ahead so we’ll be ready for them. If you’re doing the same and you see events on your horizon, let us help you with our catering.

You can simply give us a call to discuss it at 652-3354, or send an email from our  contact page.

As we say on our catering page, what we offer is based on our menu but we also go “off menu,” depending on what you are looking for. If you’re not certain what you might like, tell us what kind of an event or occasion you have in mind and we can make suggestions.

We’d love to lend a hand!

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The terrific two’s – our anniversary!

The Urban Deli Original Montreal Style Smoked Meat. (Photo - Urban Deli)

Up until the first week or so of July 2009, Urban Deli only existed in the head of our owner Liz. Then, on July 13, 2009, it was real.

Yes, today is our birthday! It’s Urban Deli’s second anniversary!

We’ve had another wonderful year with the restaurant and our catering. It’s been a year filled with intriguing people and superb events.

We absolutely love being a part of Uptown Saint John. As with last year, we have oodles of people to thank: our fabulous staff, the tremendous vendors and suppliers we get to work with and, of course, the people of Saint John. Our customers are fabulous.

As small thank you, today we have free samples of our desserts with your meal. So we hope you drop by and give us a chance to say, “Thanks!”

And just in case your interested, below is a list of what visitors to the Deli appear to liked best from our menu in our last year.

Our top stuff in our second year!

Top sandwiches:

  • Club Sandwich
  • Montreal style Smoked Meat
  • Rueben
  • Deli Meatloaf Sandwich
  • Ham & Swiss

Top burger:

  • UD Veggie Burger

Top soups:

  • UD Seafood Chowder

Top salads:

  • Spinach Salad
  • Romaine Chiffonade (seared tuna steak salad)

Top appetizer:

  • Roasted Garlic & Artichoke Dip

Tops from the smoked side of house:

  • Deli Ribs

Urban Deli Iced Tea.

Top Drinks:

  • Urban Deli Iced Tea
  • Coke products (in old fashioned Coke bottles)

Top Desserts:

  • Carrot Cake
  • Lemon Sour Cream Pie (came a close 2nd)

Top Breakfast:

  • The Deli Breakfast
  • Pulled Pork Eggs Benny

And that’s a wrap … Now we’re diving into year three.

Also see:

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Have a stroll down King Street this Canada Day

From last year: Canada Day 2010, Saint John, New Brunswick. (Urban Deli photo)

We’ve opened for Canada Day and will be open till 4:00 this afternoon. So when you’re in the Uptown, pay us a visit and say, “Happy Canada Day!”

Come take a stroll down King Street and support all the vendors along both sides of street!

Inside at Urban Deli, we have our regular menu plus a breakfast sandwich feature. And outside? …

We’re also set up outside today on King Street and we have grilled English Muffin breakfast sandwich plus health bars, ice tea & lemonade…all made in-house.

As for lunch … We’re featuring deliciously fresh Lobster Rolls — selling them inside the Deli and outside on King. And outside only: pulled pork English Muffin!

It promises to be a great day in the Uptown and everyone on King Street would love to see you and celebrate the country we love. Have a safe and fun Canada Day!

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Father’s Day is a family and friends day

Today is Father’s Day and it’s a bit of a puzzler for many people. As is Mother’s Day when it comes around and Family Day when it arrives.

It’s easy to understand what Father’s Day is – it’s the day we thank and honour fathers. What makes many wonder is how it relates to them because in our contemporary world, families aren’t always constituted the way they were in the past.

Some of us have two dads, some none at all. Some have a family, some have several and some have no family. So how does this Father’s Day business work?

The nice thing about today is we have options; we can define something like Father’s Day anyway we want. It’s really just a day to acknowledge and honour someone who is important to us. And that can be a Dad, someone else in the family, a relative or friend.

Who stands by you and helps out when your life goes in the crapper? That’s who this day is for. Despite the name, it is gender neutral. You live in single parent home? Then maybe your single parent is both mom and dad. The day is for them.

Do you have a mentor? This is their day.

Mainly, it is about spending time together and enjoying the company of people we care about. So do it!

And if you want a comfy place to get together, we’re open at Urban Deli today for breakfast/brunch from 10:00am to 3:00pm. We’d love to see you and meet the important people in your life.

So come on in and make the introductions. 🙂

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Best of Uptown Saint John

The night was wonderful; everyone was gracious. Winners of the Live Life Awards were announced and as far as we could tell, every body attending had a sensational time. We sure did.

Congratulations to our friends at Thandi’s! They walked away with the award for Best Restaurant of the Year. There were three of us in the category — Thandi’s, Saint John Ale House and Urban Deli.

We’d be disappointed except we were thrilled. Thandi’s is a great representative of the Uptown’s best. As is SJ Ale House.

It was our second year being nominated in that category so we’re hoping third time’s the charm. 🙂

Apart from our congratulations to all the people and businesses that won (and all the nominees), we’d like to let everyone at Uptown Saint John know we truly appreciate all the time, effort and commitment they put into the Live Life Awards and everything they’re doing for the Uptown. Now, here are all the winners!

(Photo via Manchester Shoes Salon)

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