Stalzy’s Deli

Get the Rachel. Might be my favorite Madison sandwich.

Overpriced, and they have no idea what corned beef is. It’s astounding. Taste your food!

It may have taken us a long while to truly discover Stalzy’s (you know, like actually parking the car, going inside and eating their food). However, in the last 3 months, we’ve more than made up for lost time. My husband and I went there for dinner one night and then came back for breakfast the next morning. I’m not even kidding! The service was lovely. One of the owners was at the counter on our first visit. He was genuine, friendly, helpful and clearly passionate & proud of what they’ve created.
Then just a month or so later, we came back for dinner (and an unplanned loaf of challah to go). I want to be sure to note, you will not have a cheap dinner here. You can expect to pay around $ 40-​ish for 2 people for dinner (with sides, beverages and desserts, if that’s how you roll). But you can also expect to have beautiful, quality, local and made from scratch food so no worries.
Okay, now for some much delayed, juicy details… On our first ever dinner visit, I ordered the evening special: the Brisket Reuben (DUDE! Stupid good, yo!) with macaroni salad (so-​so, no my fav) and their beet dill salad (amazing, tender, balanced — I order it every time I’m there). My husband got the burger with kettle chips and he was a happy, happy boy. The burger was done perfectly, the bun was divine — a «culinarily» good time was had by all.
The next morning we showed up for breakfast. The service wasn’t as amazing as the night before, but the food did not disappoint. The challah French toast was comforting, buttery, not at all soggy and very delicious. I also got an egg and a side of bacon to ensure I started my day with a punch of protein. Their house-​cured bacon was incredible. Order it — early and often — it’s the real deal. When my husband asked how it was, all I could muster was a quiet «Oh my god, shut up…». Translation: SO GOOD!!!
And finally, on our most recent visit, my husband had the burger (again) because he loves it. He actually verbalized that it’s one of the best burgers in the city. I will be having it next time. I ordered the Classic Club at the recommendation of a friend with the beet dill salad (still my fav side) and the potato salad (really good — I would order it again). It was a great club! The bread, as always, was ridiculously wonderful and once again, the sandwich was totally balanced in flavor and texture.
So there it is. I’m definitely a fan (hook, line and sinker) and I look forward to many more deli sandwich adventures with our new friends at Stalzy’s. Maybe 2016 will be the year of the deli sandwich… who knows. Either way, onward and eat more beet dill salad!!!

Stalzy’s have mastered the art of meat on crispy bread. The tough guy roast beef sandwich (Roast beef, havarti, red onion & horseradish mayo on white) stands out as one of the best things I’ve had out to eat. Other highlights of the menu include the sausage platter, the roast beast, the warm german potatoe salad, and the Fried Walleye sandwich (special). Their Friday Walleye fish fry is also really hard to beat! All this with mix and match six packs, loaves of baked-​in-​house bread, and Haribo gummies at the checkout, what’s not to love?

So super good! This is the opposite of corporate food. My wife grew up in small-​town Wisconsin, and on top of loving the food, all of the old school details, such as toast being served already buttered, brought back a flood of happy childhood memories for her. Recommend!

This used to be an enjoyable spot. But unfortunately the food and the service has gone downhill, a lot. The sandwich I was served today was not what I used to get there, and no side? Wasn’t asked if I wanted one and wasn’t served one. Last, there are probably 100+ options if you want a bottle of beer or a juice or soda but not a single option if you’d like a glass of wine. I asked the, what the scoop was on this in the past and they don’t seem to care. With the new surly attitude and the food suffering and a refusal to listen to customers, no reason I can think of to go back and I won’t.

Nope. Uh-​uh. Not gonna happen.
I’ve been here once. I got a pastrami and swiss with mustard on rye, my standard order for a Jewish deli. A Jewish deli sandwich is supposed to be enormous, overflowing with meat. This was not. It was about half the thickness that I would expect. The real problem was the pastrami. It was so salty that it wasn’t edible– not bordering on inedible, not just a touch too salty, but completely inedible.
I won’t be going back.

I love me a big juicy pastrami sandwich on rye. Been meaning to get to Stalzy’s for some time to get one which many seem to believe is the best pastrami sandwich in town. My two prior lunch attempts where foiled by a big crowd and a cash only policy, respectively. This time, I planned ahead and went to miss the lunch rush and with cash in my pocket (actually with my wife who had cash in her purse).
Straying a little from my purpose, I ordered the «Brooklyn breakfast» which is pastrami and an egg with cheese between two slices of grilled rye bread. A side of potato salad was mandatory. My wife had a corned beef reuben with a side of pickled beets.
There was a clear star in this meal — — the pastrami. It was awesome. Served warm with just the right amount of fat and seasoning. (Apparently, you don’t get all the pastrami you can eat if you work there. I know. I asked our server). Five stars for the pastrami and I would give it more if I could.
The supporting cast was pretty good too. The space is clean, casual and the service is very good. It appears that they really care about the quality of their food. The potato salad was good and had a tangy flavor which was a little unusual for me but was a nice change. My wife loved her pickled beets. Everything was fresh and neatly plated.
Portion sizes were fair for the prices. The prices are on the high side which I can understand given the quality of the meats and what I’m sure is the significant amount of time needed to prepare them. It seemed that most of the sandwiches are between $ 6 – 12; sides, $ 2 each. Sandwiches are served a la carte with a pickle spear.
For our two sandwiches, sides, and a cup of coffee with tip, lunch came out to a little over $ 30. In retrospect, seems a little high as I did leave a little hungry. But the pastrami. Oh, the pastrami…
All told, four stars. Five would be deserving if it were a little less expensive or there was a lot more pastrami.

Hi, All
I’ve been looking forward to trying a Madison-​centric Pastrami for quite a while! When I got home with my mountain o meat, I must say I was disappointed. Waay too salty! Now, before you get out your jump to conclusions mat, I must inform you that I have made corned beef from scratch at home on multiple occasions, and I’ve had Katz’s flown in. Neither were this briny. Katz’s, quite frankly I found too mild for my taste. The only thing I can think of is that Stalzy’s either makes too strong a brine vs. seasoning, or they let it steep too long. I would love to try them again, but they need to taste their own product against a control in order to correct the situation. Breads and sides were awesome, so no probs there. Bevvy choices are up to par with the menu. Maybe my batch didn’t get a proper rinse? Unknown, but I will give them a shot again to see if a pattern is forming out of the mist. They sure beat the crap out of the African joint that preceeded them in this space. If I wanted goat chunks in peanut butter, I bet that this white boy from Wisconsin coulda done that!

While in Madison I wanted to find an authentic Jewish Deli. I searched Unilocal for the «Jewish Deli» and found this place. The name sure sounded to me like the proprietor was going for Jewish, so… Stalzy’s it was.
The layout of the place was really cool. It had a few booths and a little lunch counter. It could only go down from here in my book, and it did.
If Unilocal allowed reviewers to title their reviews, I would title this one, «What the Fu£k is a Bialy?»
Seriously, what’s a Bialy?
I’m sitting in the booth across from my buddy and he asks me what I’m going to have. I tell him, without even picking up a menu that I have my heart set on lox and bagels. Then he says something so despicable I can hardly being myself to repeat it. I mean I’m going to repeat it for you guys but I just want you to know how annoying it is for me to do. He says, is a «Bialy» the same thing as a bagel? I told him it was probably some hipster way of saying bagel. I had already made up in my mind that I wasn’t going to play this game. I’ve lived this long without saying venti or grande, I wasn’t calling a bagel a Bialy.
I told the cashier I wanted a bagel and lox. He said, «You mean a Bialy.» I said, «you don’t have bagels?!?» He said, «Nope, only bialies.» Then he pointed his stubby little sandwich maker to this dusty bread abortion. A bialy was a half bagel/​half English muffin. This was no Jewish Deli.
I opted for eggs, sausage and bacon with a side of latkes. The thought the food was great but It could have been attributed to the fact that it took the cook just under and hour to prepare my very basic order.
I would have liked to have tried some of their other dishes but I didn’t get a chance. This deli is less Jewish than Einstein’s Bagels but it’s worth trying.

Took maybe twenty minutes half an hour to get food from the time we ordered. Food was pretty good. Corned beef was hot and delicious but the bad service takes everything away.

We ordered two, simple sandwiches, and it took 30 minutes to get them. When we asked about it, the staff was rude and dismissive. Not worth your time.

Yay! I’m a fan.
Only place in Madison where you feel like you are at an authentic NYC diner. They won Madison’s best sandwich for a reason; IT’S THE BEST! They won for their Rachel, which is a Ruben but with slaw instead of kraut and pastrami instead of corn beef. But you can get it what ever way you like.
My favorite is the Hawkwind burger with a side of house made coleslaw. This way you can dip the side of chips into the slaw.
Stalzy’s is artistic in their approach and make everything to order, so don’t go if you are in a hurry. Slow food movement at its finest!

Food
Just say no. I ordered the grilled cheese with turkey. It was so salty that it was barely edible. The sandwich was pretty small for $ 5.50, I was hoping that the sandwich would be somewhat filling. I did not make it a platter meal because the side options were terrible. Four out of seven are mayonnaise based salads. The other three are pickled or vinegar. Sauerkraut is prevalent throughout the menu. I understand every establishment has to have a style or niche but there was nothing that appealed to me.
Service
The service was pretty slow. They do not take names or numbers for the orders. So every time something comes up in the window they stop at every table and ask who it belongs to. It is pretty annoying when you are six orders back from the front of the line.
I have no intention of heading back.

I gave this 2 stars. If I go back and breakfast is killer I *might* bump to a 3.
And that’s because of the service.
We’ve been in here about 3 times since it opened, most recently tonight, and the staff is just snarky and rude. You get the sense that they think patrons should be just lucky to eat there. Kinda ruins the whole experience.
First, snark. Then after the rudeness you get to choose — at a walk-​up service counter — whether you want to tip? Um, no. I have to admit it takes some skills to be rude in 3 – 4 different ways in a 2-​minute transaction.
Another poor guy came in after us at 7:50 and the staff person said first thing to him, «We close in 10 minutes.» Proud of the guy for saying something like «Can’t you pound out a sandwich in 10 minutes?» I mean, really.
We had the turkey pastrami (pretty good) and a tuna melt that was a one-​slice, open-​faced melt. It was just ho-​hum. The potato salad side was good. I wish the menu would have said they had German potato salad, too, because another staff person came up to us with it in hand to asked if we ordered it. (We hadn’t, would have if it were on the menu.)
So the food’s decent, they’ve got a lot of beer, but there’s a 2.7% debit card charge. And like most of the other reviewers have said it’s expensive, too.
But just remember, the rudeness is for free!

Went here for Oktoberfest fest on a windy cold 43 degree day. The weather looks liked it kept people away. Went here for beer and the live band. Karben4 brewery supplied the beer. The fest food looked good but we already ate. For Oktoberfest I thought a Latin American jazz band was strange. The weather and the out of place band led us on our way.

Great sandwich joint. Quality ingredients make for wonderful sandwiches. I would agree that the sandwich size is a little on the smaller side. However, for me it was perfect for lunch. I would also say the price reflects well on the portion size.
ATM located in the restaurant if you get caught without cash. They will refund a dollar if you show them a receipt.

Ignore everything I said in my earlier review and go get breakfast today!
(Seriously!)
The sandwich joint with Madison’s best fish fry also serves incredible breakfast!
And it really doesn’t matter what you get… potato pancakes, Challah French toast, corned beef hash… it’s all going to be good and it’s all served ALL DAY!

It took us many years before we encountered this little gem in Atwood neighborhood. I have little knowledge about Jewish deli so it took us a while to figure what to order. I really appreciate that the staff explained the menu to us with great patience. They make bread, corned beef, pastrami and sausages themselves and provide the meat to other restaurant in town. You can also purchase bread or meat to go.
We had «Brooklyn Breakfast» (beef pastrami sandwich) and a Challah French Toast. Very delicious. Quite a refreshing taste from other more regular brunch places. The portion is a bit small, though.
People in our group had Stalzy’s bloody Mary. Pretty fancy. Apparently they are quite good that a friend of us ordered a second one.
I hope to return sometime in the future to try out Saltzy’s non-​brunch food.
Note: Cash only. Seat yourself before your order.

Famished & frustrated beyond belief thanks to Charter Communications and their complete incompetence, I raced over to Stalzy’s for a quick bite to eat before heading off on more errands. But not before peeling off a lovely «welcome to the neighborhood» parking ticket from my car… I should’ve stayed in bed today…
Anyway, about Stalzy’s…
What a great place. The staff was superb; oh so friendly, expedient, and fun. I ordered the turkey and cheese sandwich, and chose rye for my bread, based on a recommendation from the staff.
The bread may just be the hidden star here. Yes, the turkey was «real,» flavorful, moist, and piled plenty high. Yes, the veggies were crisp and fresh. Yes, the cheddar was thick, fragrant, and ever so slightly crumbly (a good sign). But the rye bread… wow. Soft, flavorful, perfect crust — mmm, so good.
The kosher pickle wedge sealed the deal. I’m definitely a fan. I can’t wait to go back, try the fish fry, and enjoy an ice cold tap of Hamms or Lake Louie (or one of the many bottles of microbrew available here).