Despite the challenges and uncertainty that crept into every part of life in 2020, that did not stop culinary growth and innovation in Orlando. Restaurants continued to open, pivots were made to accommodate accessibility, and through the loss of jobs, we saw new ventures pop-up, in the most literal of terms.

Perhaps one of the most exciting I came across wasn’t apart of the usual foursome of doughnut, taco, coffee, and boba that Orlando has become a booming bevy of, but instead something the city FOOD-iful had desperately been needing; a Jewish Deli.

As all good friends of a foodie do, my friend Hannah (and talented photographer credited in some of these pics) put Deli Desires on my radar right when they first started their concept in the summer of 2020. The process relied solely on social media. You placed your order via DM and could have the box of goodies delivered to you, or you could pick them up. Living just a smidge outside the delivery zone, I met one of their team members in the Stardust parking lot. At any other time, this may have looked like a suspicious exchange, but in the summer of COVID, getting your foodie fix in a parking lot had become all too common.

My entire car filled with the smell of fresh Challah, which sparked both anticipation and nostalgia from the many memories of getting Challah bread and potato knishes from a bakery as a treat when I was younger.

The items I had selected for my box were a fresh loaf of sesame challah, Manischewitz butter, Everything Butter, smoked fish dip with black pepper crackers, seeded honey, and two homemade sodas - peach and pepper and sparkling honey and apple soda.

The Challah bread was light and rich, and served as the perfect canvas for the butters and even the smoked fish dip. Please don’t pass by the butter. The texture was so silky and creamy and added with the seeded honey; I promise you this will be more satisfying than you may imagine. The sodas were refreshing and honestly felt more like an indulgent mocktail, which I would buy by the case if I could.

You may think I took my time enjoying the contents of my deli box throughout the weekend from my Friday pickup, but truthfully I excitedly ate most of it that same day. It was one of the most pleasurable dining experiences I’ve had eating at home, which meant a lot. Since March of last year, I’ve eaten almost every meal either at home, in my car, or at a random makeshift picnic site. So to really get to enjoy something that had nothing to do with ambiance, Instagram worthiness, or local hype and marvel over these seemingly simple but expertly executed items was foodie bliss.

I wanted to interview Hannah Jaffe, owner and Chef to learn more about the concept so you can find out what she had to say below.

LH: What’s your professional background? Was there a defining moment that led you to Deli Desires?

HJ: My professional background has always been in the culinary world. I moved to Orlando to attend The University of Central Florida and started working part-time at a local food truck. In 2011 the food truck scene gained a lot of popularity, and part-time turned to full-time, which turned into me dropping out of UCF to pursue a career in the industry. In 2012 I chose to attend culinary school in California (ICC), focusing on Italian studies. After graduation, my studies continued in Emilia Romagna, Italy, at a culinary school called ALMA. I developed a new appreciation for Italian cooking and the country itself. With the help of my instructors, I was able to stay in Italy and stage at 2 star Michelin restaurant called Miramonti L’altro for an additional year. I was engaged the whole time I was working in Italy, and once I moved back to Orlando, I married my husband (also a great chef!), and we packed up and drove cross country. We spent a year here and a year there, traveling and learning from chefs around the country. In Denver, we worked with chef Carrie Baird, a Top Chef alumni. We spent the bulk of our time in Los Angeles. During that time, I was able to work for Michael Voltaggio at ink, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo at Son of a Gun, and at Sqirl with Jessica Koslow.
Deli Desires' idea was something we were working on for several months before the onset of COVID-19. I was always searching for this type of food in town, but nothing really existed. When the stay at home order first came out, we were all greatly affected at our jobs. We had extra time on our hands; we knew we needed to get creative. We went with a delivery model and used Instagram to take preorders throughout the week. Our trusty Delivery Goys, Tyson and Cory, would fulfill the orders on Friday and Saturday. We are all long-time service industry professionals that dreamed of starting our own business. We never dreamed it would start like this.

Photo credit: Hannah Glogower @hannahglophoto

LH: Who is a part of your original/opening Deli Desires team?

HJ: The opening team of Deli Desires consists of five people total. For back of house it is me and my husband Nathan Sloan. He started his culinary career in Orlando cooking at Ethos and Cask & Larder and then we cooked together throughout the US. I am so excited to be able to cook with him for the rest of my career. And then in the front of house there is Cory Bennett, who is wildly creative and has managed beverage programs for a few notable bars in the neighborhood. We also have Elise Ciungan who opened bars across Florida with her consultant company and spent over 14 years in the hospitality industry and is the sweetest person and friend. As well as Tyson Bodiford who has worked locally for years, and happens to be my favorite bartender in town.

LH: For people who are not very familiar with Jewish cuisine, how would you describe your offerings and the overall goal of your menu? What can they expect?

HJ: The overall goal of Deli Desires when we started the popup was to provide Jewish comfort food in the time when people needed it most. I grew up in a Jewish household in the Northeast where there isn’t a shortage of good Jewish Delis but there is a hole in that market here in Central Florida. The menu is based on some of my favorite Jewish baked goods like Bialys and Challah, as sandwiches to have a quick grab and go breakfast and lunch experience. We will have traditional smoked fish and meats such as our pastrami. We will have an incredible coffee program as well with housemade sodas and sparkling mineral waters. There will be lots of daily specials, rotating deli salads and pastries.

LH: Are any of your items kosher?

HJ: Simply put, no. The reason behind this is because the entire space and kitchen needs to be completely kosher in order to sell kosher food. It’s not as simple as keeping bacon off the menu (which we definitely will have!). A kosher kitchen needs to have blessed equipment as well as separate facilities for dairy and meat. Our tagline has been “an unkosher deli” which refers to the food but also our approach creating the menu items. I grew up in a Jewish household where we didn’t keep kosher so the food is definitely representative of the kind of Jewish food my mom cooked.

LH: What can we expect from the new restaurant? More takeaway deli or sit down restaurant or a fusion of both? Anything vegan?

HJ: Deli Desires will be a take away only restaurant. We plan on making it easy for people to come in for a quick breakfast or lunch with call ahead, or online ordering options available. We want to offer something delicious to everyone. Our biggest seller, the caramelized onion bialy, is vegan. Along with lots of our deli salads.

LH: What would you like people who haven’t tried your food to know about your business and what you’re trying to bring to the community?

HJ: I would like people to know about the flavors that I grew up with. How Jewish food has influenced American Cuisine and I also hope that the Jewish community in Orlando will appreciate having this here.

LH: What excites you the most about putting culinary roots down in Orlando?

HJ: Putting down culinary roots in Orlando is so important to me because it was part of my end goal when I started cooking. I met my husband Nathan at the Hideaway Bar on Virginia Ave when I was cooking at the Ravenous Pig and soon after married him at Redlight Redlight. We’ve always wanted to be part of a community with so many great local businesses. I want to give back to the city I fell in love with and in.

Follow @delidesires on Instagram to get all the updates about their opening at 715 N Fern Creek Ave Suite B, Orlando, FL 32803.

Deli Desires - Hannah Jaffe