Deli King Tewksbury

Deli King in Tewksbury is another self-service restaurant similar to Brothers. They are located on Rte 38, and it's a convenient stop if you are going to the nearby big Walmart that beats everyone's prices on Bob's Mashed Potatoes. Deli King was recommended to me for having an excellent Reuben.

The cooks look like they just broke out of a greek prison, but it turns out that they are quite friendly, especially if you have visited a couple of times. However, they have completely failed to answer important questions like Why do you serve baked lamb on Saturdays instead of the promised baked pork chops, and Why do you have roasted potatoes only on Wednesdays?

The takeout menu hasn't been updated, so the prices are a bit out of date. However, the prices on their website are correct.

Plenty of parking, and there is even parking in the back with its own entrance.

The inside is light and airy. The seats in the booths have seen better days. The restaurant is impeccably clean.

Deli King delivered a classic Reuben ($9.25) executed perfectly. I got it made with light rye since I'm not a fan of dark rye and, of course, extra dressing. Nobody gives me enough dressing. The Reuben was griddled nicely with the cheese melted. Plenty of corned beef brisket that was tasty, but why do they slice it so thinly? The corned beef was evenly distributed on the bread and wasn't just a lump in the middle. There was plenty of crisp sauerkraut. The pickle was unremarkable. Nothing to complain about except the cash-only policy, but I can handle that.

They have comfort food, and the portions are big. Here is Thursday's special of Roasted Pork Dinner with two sides ($14.95). There were no roasted potatoes, so I went with the real mashed potatoes and breakfast potatoes. The real mashed potatoes were delicious, and the breakfast potatoes were nice and crispy. I got two big pork chops on the bone. Unfortunately, the pork chops were really dry. The gravy was excellent and really tasty. I'll try this again since I liked everything apart from the dry pork. How can a place like this not have roasted greek potatoes every day?

I went back at a later date for the same dish, and this time the pork was cooked way better and was really enjoyable. Two thickly cut pork chops for this price is a really excellent deal. I went back to the serving counter on my way out and got more gravy for my leftover pork chop. I forgot to leave a dollar on the table for the bussing lady on this visit.

If you get this to go, it's so much food that they have to use aluminum foil to cover instead of the intended cover.

Breakfast for lunch, and there is nothing wrong with that. This is the Corned Beef Hash ($8.95) with two over-easy eggs and light rye for my toast. The corned beef hash was good, and there was plenty of it. Homefries were cooked perfectly and even seasoned. They were also peeled, and that's another plus. The eggs were cooked as ordered, but since they were cooked on a flat-top, they were more steamed than fried and completely lacked browning.

Baked Stuffed Haddock ($13.95) is a special on Wed, Fri and Sundays. Shown here with the real Mashed Potatoes with Gravy and Roasted Potatoes instead of veggies. It's a huge piece of fish that today was on the dry side. The "stuffing" is crab and bread crumbs, but the stuffing is only on top. That's not really stuffed, is it? I have only once got fish with the stuffing inside, and that was at Cafe Escadrille. Asking for some of the cooking liquid resulted in them using a slotted spoon pretending to add the liquid.

Roasted Potatoes are only available on Wednesdays. Why? *shrug*. None of Wednesday's specials goes especially well with roasted potatoes. The roasted potatoes were excellent and slightly lemony. Mash with gravy was an interesting concept with fish. This time I got tartar sauce that wasn't too bad even if the tartar ingredients were chopped too coarsely. 😢

Roast Leg of Lamb ($14.95) is only available on Mondays. Mashed and Home Fries since there are only roasted potatoes available on Wednesdays. Tried again to find out why, but nobody knew. "We only do them on Wednesdays." The mashed is the real deal, and the home fries are excellent, peeled and seasoned. Look at the amount of roasted lamb I got! The tender lamb was seasoned, and so was the excellent gravy. Of all the places that I have had this dish, this is by far the best rendition. The only improvement to this dish would be some lemony-roasted potatoes. 😄

Baked Lamb aka kokinisto ($14.95) Friday or Saturday only. Same sides as the last visit. Roasted potatoes would have gone well with this. The lamb was tender, and the sauce was tasty, and for once, I got enough sauce. There were a lot of bones, but I think it was all lamb shanks, so this is understandable.

A cup of New England Clam Chowder ($3.75 or $4.50, not sure what I got charged) is only offered on Fridays. The chowder was on the thin side and needed seasoning but was loaded with potatoes. I wish the same was true for the clams, but the clams that showed up were nice and tender.

Since my first visit, I have had my eyes on the Three-egg Omelet with Corned Beef and Cheese ($9.25). I asked for the omelet runny, and I got it. This is a simple dish, but it was delicious. The perfectly cooked home fries added more deliciousness. Not sure why it's marked as a special since it's available every day?

While I was standing there waiting for my omelet to cook, I asked why there was no stuffing in the baked stuffed haddock?

- There is stuffing.

- But only on top and nothing inside.

- Ask grandma, that's how she cooked it.

Address: 885 Main St, Tewksbury, MA 01876 Phone: (978) 858-3855

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