The Deli Boldmere

We walk past The Deli around once a week when grocery shopping and finally decided to pop in for a glass of wine over the weekend. Based on the atmosphere and quality of wine, I love this little spot. It is so cosy.
We were the only customers in the store and received superb service. The owner runs this location and a few other shops, plus hosts food tents at festivals during Christmas. She came over to our table and made some wine recommendations and gave us a bowl of crisps on the house. My partner, Seth S., and I both ordered the Pinot Noir from Romania. It was delightfully full-​bodied and smooth.
The lighting is dimmed just enough to encourage good conversation and a comfortable atmosphere. There are two main rooms for seating, each with groupings of chairs or booths around bistro style tables. The art and décor feel like a brasserie.
I would highly recommend The Deli for a delicious glass of wine (or 3) and great conversation with friends.

Just 20 minutes on the train from New Street Station towards Sutton Coldfield lies the leafy suburb of Boldmere, where in 2011 Pippa Goode opened a foodie haven, The Deli in Boldmere. How she managed to avoid the obvious name of «Goode Food» is beyond me, I can’t help but love a pun. The frontage is modern, and wouldn’t look out of place in any of the smartest streets.
The deli stocks everything you’d expect it to: jams, chutneys, oils, vinegars, pulses, pasta, coffee, Ortiz tuna, bread, cakes, pastries, honey, and most importantly — marvelous cured meats and cheeses. We went along for an intimate private tapas night at the deli, and greedily tasted everything we could get our hands on. It was all cooked by Pippa and co-​owner, with serving help from her son — it’s a proper family affair.
I’ve had tapas in Spain but few places replicate the experience in a pleasing way back here in Blighty, the deli managed it admirably. The food was served as we chatted over wine, it was a drawn out affair over several hours. We started with prosciutto, rocket, and manchego cheese drizzled with local honey (hard cheese and honey — delicious).
Dishes kept on coming including vegetarian offerings of baked goats cheese, mushrooms stuffed with blue cheese and walnuts, bruschetta with ripe tasty tomatoes and basil, and Spanish omelette. There were plenty of meaty dishes too: meatballs, the most delicious chicken with olives, chorizo topped with fried egg, and garlic king prawns. To finish we had an epic cheeseboard and a raspberry cheesecake that was perfectly creamy and sweet.
Private tapas nights start from £12 per person, but we went all out for the £25 per person option which includes several more different tapas dishes and bring your own booze — great for the wine lovers to spend the evening drinking special bottles from their own cellar with excellent food.
Pippa is keen to increase the deli’s standing as a centre for Boldmere social life. As well as the private hire for tapas and parties she has instituted a monthly knitting night, and Summer Tapas Fridays consisting of a set menu of 8 tapas dishes plus a sweet for £15pp available from 6.30 till 9, with Mediterranean wines and beers available.
The deli is open seven days a week and you can pop in for breakfast between 9 and 12 (£6 for a full English). Obviously you can go just to buy groceries like artisan bread, but you’ll doubtless stay for a sandwich (from £4), sharing platters (from £9.50), a glass of wine, coffee, tea, and cake. Or treat yourself and go the whole hog with high tea for £12 per head.
The deli and its staff are charming and competent, and I can’t see how it can’t go on to get busier and busier over the next few years.
Thanks to Pippa and her team for a super night.

Breakfast Review:
One of the best Full English breakfasts in the Midlands! Its a wonderful deli, on the High Street in Boldmere, with outdoor seating — which is superb when the sun comes out!
The breakfasts are awesome. Superb sausages, great bacon, exceptional bread, (the deli sells some of the best bread in Birmingham). 2 succulent sausage, 2 bacon, fried egg, 2 half tomatoes, mushrooms. toast, quality butter. Its one of the best in Birmingham, (I rate it joint 2^nd).
The staff are great, headed by Pip the owner and her team of assistants, (including sons). The only real problem with this place is that I always spend a fortune on their amazing cheeses, breads, cakes and pâté’s.
Try it. You will thank me!

With a remarkably attractive frontage and elegant outdoor seating area, this independent café is unavoidably alluring to any passer-​by out shopping on Boldmere High Street. The cheeses and homemade cakes on display inside look delectable, and the carved wooden décor and flooring add a sort of quaint, country feel to the place. The staff are welcoming upon entry and the Deli almost always seems to be filled with enthusiastic customers.
In reality, however, though the set-​up is attractive and very well-​themed, The Deli’s is remarkably overpriced, with the average lunchtime snack costing in excess of £9. There isn’t anywhere near as much choice as you’d expect food-​wise either, with the menu limited to little more than 10 dishes. The Deli is perfect for a mid-​afternoon coffee and cake on a date, or with a group of friends, but if you’re looking for lunch, you’re probably best visiting either Vito’s or Hindley’s over the road.

The amazing thing about the existence of a place like this in Boldmere is… why did it take so long?
It’s not the biggest place in the world — I went with my sister and her husband and their two boys, along with my own little boy, and even as a group of 6 (3 adults, 3 nippers) we pretty much took up the whole of the inside area. Luckily we arrived before the lunchtime rush (Does Boldmere have a lunchtime rush?) so we didn’t deprive anyone of their lunch. That said, I drove past yesterday and saw that — along with the good weather — outside tables were now bumping up the number of covers that the place can handle at one time.
So…the food. Well, it was excellent. My brother-​in-​law and I shared a Tapas platter, which was more than enough for two greedy blokes, especially when the bread ran out and we were kindly offered more free of charge. The kids had bacon and or sausage sandwiches and loved them.
Aside from the café part of the deli there is, as you might expect, a deli part of the deli. If you haven’t filled yourself up on the delicious lunchtime food then you may well be going home with something for dinner. Highly recommended.