JB's Deli — Restaurant in Lake View Township

I do my best to shop local but I’ve given up on this place. I’ve been here twice before, so I get it — they are slow and terribly inefficient, so I don’t go if I’m in a rush. But today I waited in line for 15 minutes and there were only 3 people in front of me, one of whom had ordered before I arrived. Another customer just wanted 6 bagels, and a tub of cream cheese. While I was waiting, a family of 3 walked in and were chatty with the owner, although it was clear they had not been there before. They asked if they should pay first (not the normal or obvious process), and he said sure it’s fine. When it was finally my turn, the younger employee asked for my order, but the owner stopped him, told him to make the THREE SANDWICHES for the queue jumping family first. He knew I was ahead of them.

It would have taken AT LEAST 15 more minutes of waiting to order one freaking bagel with cream cheese. And it would have taken them 5 minutes on top of that to make it! So I left and am now eating a bagel and writing this review a few blocks away. Too many good breakfast places on Clark to go back. The reason I gave them 2 stars (not 1) for service is because they are friendly and nice, and 2/3 of the staff is on the elderly side. It’d be like giving one star to my grandpa. But, they need a better process and more staff.

UPDATE: I decided to read some of the other reviews and am SO THANKFUL I have never ordered anything but cream cheese on a bagel there. I have never seen an establishment with more complaints about...

I really like supporting small businesses. I was very happy to find an actual Jewish deli nearby. This place reminds me of the neighborhood Mom and Pop stores I grew up going to as a kid. Restaurant in front, groceries in back. I tried to order pickup using g a food delivery app but the restaurant informed me that it does not offer this. So I went to the deli for what I thought would be a quick trip in and out for lunch. However, even though there were only two parties ahead of me in line, it took my entire lunch period to receive my order. I didn't even get to eat it until I had it for dinner when I got home. I got the sandwich called "My cardiologist needs a new car (I think). It was a colossal double-decker monster of a sandwich with hot roast beef and brisket on one level and hot corned beef and pastrami on the other. I split the sandwich with a coworker and still was stuffed when I finally got to eat it. It was delicious! Because of this and the fact that the staff was very nice and friendly, I gave it 4 stars. I took off one star for the long wait, because they don't offer pickup service online or tap and pay, and because the potato pancakes were reheated and absolutely wretched. If you can slice the meat to order for a sandwich, you can certainly put a fresh potato pancake on the griddle while you do so. I waited over 30 minutes for a sandwich and the wait was not even acknowledged. However, I would go back when the wait is not an inconvenience. Please go for the sandwiches, egg...

Maybe in America a Jewish deli serves pork, but not where I come from. A "Jewish" deli, even if it isn't kosher, should never, ever serve pork, which is an abomination. But I did eat here, not noticing (or imagining) that they served pork, until later on, and I can honestly say that this was by far the worst chicken soup that I've ever had. If you say it's made from scratch, then it should be made by actually cooking a chicken in a pot with added whole or cut vegetables (carrot, onion, zucchini, parsley, celery root and leaves, and dill for example). Instead, it tasted just like "instant" chicken soup--dissolved cubes of powder in hot water. There only were a few pieces of carrots in the soup. The kreplach (קרעפלעך) were a gummy, gooey, disgusting mess. This was not, by any means, real homemade chicken soup. So I paid $5.37 for a medium-sized bowl of barely edible soup that didn't at all taste like the real thing--it was merely bad food in what I would hardly call a real Jewish deli לידיעת הישראלים: הם מגישים פה חזיר וזה מגוחך לקרוא למקום הזה מעדניה יהודית (אני לא מצפה שהמקום יהיה כשר, רחמנא ליצלן, אבל לפחות שלא יגישו חזיר במעדניה שמתיימרת להיות יהודית), שלא לומר שהאוכל פה איום ונורא לעניות דעתי -- למרק היה טעם של מים חמים שהמיסו בהם אבקה בטעם מרק עוף של אסם. בנוסף, העוגה שאכלתי היתה בינונית להחריד וגם הטריות שלה מוטלת בספק. בקיצור, המחיר הגבוה יחסית לא מוצדק ולא שווה את הישיבה פה - חבל"ז, ואני מתכוונת למשמעות האמיתית,...