Vegan Deli and Butcher — Restaurant in St. Louis

I read good reviews on this place so I decided to swing by and try them out. I WAS NOT greeted when I walked in. I walked up to the counter and the cook and lady at the register continued their conversation with the one customer in the dining area along with myself. I walked up and grabbed a menu off the counter and sat facing the street reading over the menu. A few minutes later a guy comes from the bathroom and the cook announces his order will be coming up. He sits across from me, smiling. The guy who’d been standing in the dining area talking with the two behind the counter sits and I presume it was his wife and kid, they come inside, smile, and sit on the other side of me and receive their meal.

Now, it’s been like 5-7 minutes and still no greeting or acknowledgment of my presence. Another customer walks in, she smiles. I smile back. She stands at the counter and is greeted. Wow! The guy who came from the bathroom, his order is ready so he shimmies his way up to the counter and receives his meal. The woman who had just walked in states, ‘she’s never been there before.’ She is told about Wednesdays special. Chicken, bacon and avocado sandwich. She grabs a frozen pizza from freezer and places an order. I stand in line behind her now I’m up next.

Now it’s, “Hey, what can I get for you.” I don’t think they expected me to stick around or even order for that matter. I ordered the ‘special’ which was on display after learning of the chef’s favorite. To which, the lady behind the counter face was becoming a bit contorted (maybe he and I was chatting too much for her) A younger gentleman from the back stands at the counter and rings me up. I place the menu you back and am told it will be a few minutes. I go sit where I was seated. My order is ready in like two minutes. The lady hands me my food and she is all smiles now, I’m exiting, of, course.

The sandwich tasted good, but was priced high.I paid nearly $17 for a sandwich. One I could’ve made at home, because this wasn’t from their garden. More like a deep-fried Quorn chicken patty, if you will. The customers had more customer service than the owner, cook, or employees at this place. Sorry, I didn’t know everyone’s title. So, after my experience of being the only POC in there at the time and how hard it was for them to greet me (cringey), I sometimes wonder if they served me the display sandwich. 😂 Mind you, my back was facing the counter. I can laugh about it now, but it’s not a place I would suggest to anyone I know. This was a -...

I think I have a weird parasocial relationship with VD&B. No, hear me out - I spend a LOT of time creepin on it. I look at the instagram multiple times a week - what's the special? Any fancy desserts or new pizzas this week? Any cool news in general? New pop-up? Sold out because hoards of hungry vegans have descended on Chris & Co to eat his incredible, hand-made small batch vegan eats?

Because that's the thing. VD&B is, in fact, mighty but small. Chris may be an absolute wizard, and I mean that literally and will prove it someday, but he's one dude. So my only caveat is to have a little patience and check to make sure the hoards haven't snarfed up all the sandos before you.

So, having said all that, I want to tell you that everything is good. And I mean EVERYTHING. The lobster roll? Delicious. The bread is confusing to me because I don't understand how it's simultaneously so soft and absorbent but stands up to the "lobster" goo so well. The lobster goo is briny and creamy and has some chunky bits for that mouthfeel experience. Party pots? Also known as "funeral potatoes" in some circles, I can confirm that I would do crimes to get my hands on them. The Italian subs? See again re: wizardry because they are a legit sub sandwich experience. They are. I have fed them to various people who have been like "but I thought you were...? Is this...?" and then I get to chortle with glee because the experience is that good. Crunchy bread, thick fillings, just the right smooch of sauce to make it amazing. I could go on and on. The pizzas? Incredible. The bagel and lox? Like, I know the gist of the lox. I know about cream cheese. But the lox is legit and the cream cheese is like eating a fluffy cloud of schmear goodness. Settling down with an order of "spaghetti o's" is the lunchtime equivalent of settling down under your favorite warm blanket with your favorite book and a cat.

And it's all completely cruelty free. We, people of St. Louis, get the opportunity to eat these things without hurting a single living soul...except for ourselves when we insist on finishing a whole sando and...

Owner, Chris, is an STL vegan chef-hero. He left and came back to open this awesome space on the South Side. As the name suggests, this is a deli. They’re still waiting on the deli case, so you can’t order pounds of vegan meats and cheeses yet, but in the meantime you can enjoy sandwiches made with those anticipated items. He also has sides, take & bake pizzas, and bagels. He features desserts, like cookies and brownies, from a local small business owner. Everything here is vegan. Everything.

The grand opening was Saturday, 28Oct, and they sold out in a few hours. They are currently open Wednesdays-Saturdays, 11am-7pm, so I returned on Thursday to check it out.

Cuban - Toasted, pressed bread filled with pulled pork and ham. Served with a dijon, pickles, and cheese. I omitted the cheese and added mayo porque me gusta mis sandwichitos Cubanos así. So good! If he ever adds bacon to the menu I’ll be adding that too.

I got a side of potato salad. It’s mayo based, which I actually prefer over the mustard potato salad. It was very flavorful. The potatoes were more al dente, which is fine. I think I’m just used to softer, overcooked potatoes in my potato salad. Still and all, it was good and I’d order it again.

My friend raved about her Maine Lobster Roll! Gonna have to try that next. I do hope some tuna shows up on the roster in the future.

There are several gluten free options too!

The thing that stands out about Vegan Deli and Butcher is that he makes his own products. No Impossible, Beyond, Gardein, Tofurky, etc., sold here; it’s homemade! You can taste the difference in the quality and flavor of his food. If we’re lucky, he’ll throw in some weekly specials once operations are cruising smoothly, and we might get some of his infamous Crack Tacos. IYKYK!

There are only a handful of tables for dine-in, so be prepared.

Park on the bank parking lot if you can’t find street parking. It’s safe and you won’t get towed.

Go check em out and...