Deli Works — Restaurant in Fort Collins

I came here specifically because I was told it’s family owned and serves amazing food.

Walking in, there’s nothing marking where to make your order or if it’s waiter service. I walked over to the area where people where working and felt like I walked into the back kitchen area of a sit down restaurant. There are 4 women working, not a single one looks up, says a word to me or asks if I need anything. Lol. So I feel like I’ve accidentally walked into a kitchen and walk back out into what I figure is the dining area to look for a waitress. I realized quickly that isn’t how it works there so rather than feel embarrassed I used the bathroom to wash my hands and reset myself. (Social anxiety sucks)

The bathroom is gross. The sink is grimy. The spigot is broken and barely working, also sticky. The only way to dry your hands is from a basket of paper towels that is sitting almost halfway into the sink. So as you wash your hands you have to shove them into the back the sink just to get water while also dodging this wicker basket of paper towels that sits over 40% of the sink. Surprise surprise the fresh towels are all wet and filthy.

I should have left right then. Instead, I awkwardly walked back into the area where people are working. Eventually I find There is one posted menu (and it’s filthy.) After a few minutes a young lady comes to the area I am and stands there staring at the wall without saying anything. Ended up settling on a Reuben because the menu is hard to read and the employees clearly can’t be bothered to help with anything. It was about $16 for the sandwich, bag of chips and a gnarly old blue plastic glass for the soda fountain.

The dining room is small and dark on one side. There’s a mic stand and amp there for a musician. The tables are nice, but every table I touched was sticky and dirty. The chairs are flimsy and old that wobble with every movement. Eventually I find a table I thought was clean, as you’ll see in the photo turns out there was a layer of dust and dirt on it. See photos included. As I looked around, it was clear this dining room is treated like a house. There are house plants everywhere. The wood is all stained. The areas by the plants haven’t been swept or mopped in ages. The table next to me had dirt and grime marks on the floor in the shape of a ring from the pedestal that holds the table itself. It looked like it hadn’t been moved in years. I was fighting against a sticky table the entire meal.

5 minutes of waiting I get a Reuben thrown at my table by the same young lady in an absolutely FILTHY yellow deli basket.

The sandwich was small. First impression It did not have a good smell, something I figured out eventually was the sauerkraut. There was a glob of semi melted cheese that made the kraut smell even worse. Directly on top of the Sandwich is a small pickle, drenched in pickle juice which meant the bread was soggy before I even touched the food. First bite was gross. I ended up picking through the sandwich and only eating the meat.

It’s a BIG skip from me on this one boss. Terrible...

I just stopped here for the first time the other day and had to immediately go back, because MAN, THIS PLACE ROCKS!!! the food is all home made and super delicious, i have tried the potato salad and the broccoli cheddar soup, and their french fries…all of it is incredible. oh, and have i mentioned the home made cake? yesterday there was banana cake with cream cheese frosting, today is lemon blueberry!!! the service is fantastic, all the people that work there are very friendly and awesome at preparing the food, you can literally taste the love they put into it! the cafe area is very large, bright windows and full of plants, super charming decor. i just really love this place! im sad it took me this long to discover it, but its my go to lunch spot from now on!!! seriously pop on in and go taste for yourself!!! you wont regret it, i promise :) p. s. seriously the potato...

They're food is very, very good. My husband and I eat here often. Only missing a star due to the lady who brings food out to the tables is constantly talking with customers (loudly) about her political views and covid. The last three times we've been she's been loudly talking about her stances and while she can talk to whomever she wants maybe she could speak a bit quieter so everyone else can just relax and enjoy the delicious food.

Also, please clean better. The register doesn't seem to have ever been cleaned (ever), the salt/pepper shakers are nasty/sticky as well as other high touch areas being dirty. The flu is rampant right now, as is stupid Covid. The lady at the register has spread her beliefs about not believing in Covid so much but even if Covid is bullsh*t, the flu is still out there as are many other viruses as well as food borne illnesses,...