Found Treasure: Della Rose Deli

September 13, 2024 – A number of things feed the soul at Della Rose Deli & Drive-Thru before any of the sturdy sandwiches satisfy the stomach. 

The team, owners included, greet people by name. “How are you, Jay?” “Nice to see you, Bill.” “Evelyn, you’re all set.” 

The homespun familiarity of the menu—subs, chili, potato salad—connotes its own comfort and reliability.

The prices, $9.99-$12.25 for full-sized hoagies, defeat fatigue from rising restaurant rates.

In other words: Treasure, Found.

The menu makes it hard on someone like me, who self-identifies as both sandwich-loving and order-indecisive. 

I want to try five sandwiches, at least, including the signature tri-tip done with a house blend of salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder and garlic, slow-roasted in the big oven and sliced to order. 

That’s the reason locals are waiting at 9:30am for the first fresh batch of the day. 

From the register, co-owner-operator Scott Kunkel reports the one-page, stoplight-yellow menu is actually leaner than it could be. 

“People say they want more choices, but it’s hard to do with a small shop,” he says. “We try to keep it simple, and do what we do well.”

The house specialties bounce from the Cali Club with turkey, ham, avocado, bacon and Swiss with the works on a choice of bread, to the Buckin Beef with roast beef, horseradish and pepper jack on sourdough, to the Valley Veggie with avocado, cheddar and Jack, sprouts, onions, cucumber, tomato, Mayo and mustard on wheat. 

There are also a few wraps and six premade salads like the chef salad, Asian chicken and, yes, tri-tip salad. 

I settled on an Italian sub with salami, ham, Cotto salami, provolone, oil and vinegar with the works on a French roll, and a Cheddar Chicken with roasted chicken breast, bacon, cheddar cheese, mayo, lettuce and tomato. With support from a macaroni salad and a slice of lemon pie.

Simple satisfaction on all fronts, old-school style, everything you need, nothing you don’t, a hard-working lunch for two. 

Kunkel and his wife Karen bought the place from Fred Della Rose when he was ready to retire six years back. “She’s the brains, I’m the brawn,” Kunkel says, adding that they were ready to move on from operating local Papa Murphy Pizza outposts.

“We were appreciative of the corporate setting and the training wheels it provides,” Scott says. “But paying franchise fees got old. Plus we knew the [Della Rose] business because we shopped here.” 

Speeding up service—both walk-in and drive through—was a priority, from improved phone ordering protocols to double register attention to fresh technology to receive the line of cars wrapping around the building. 

The size of the team hustling behind the deli counter at rush hour is eye-catching.

“We keep it moving because a lot of our customers only get 30 minutes for lunch,” he says. “I have to get a sandwich in their hand as soon as possible.”

Another aim was updating recipes and adding daily specials, often named after customers who helped inspire them from the build-your-own options. The BYO foundation builds on everything from pastrami to tuna salad, six cheese choices and seven bread options.

Soups are another thing to spotlight—”Obviously love goes into a good soup…” Kunkel says, “and special seasonings”—namely clam chowder, corn chowder, asparagus chowder, broccoli cheese, chicken dumpling, zuppa Toscano, minestrone and more.

“We took the business and made it the way that we like it,” Kunkel says. “We added a lot.”

Just not too much. 

Edible talked to one of their many regulars to get his take. Steve Massolo of Massolo Brothers Trucking—who hauls lettuce for local farms—ticks off a range of reasons he goes several times a week: convenient location, great soups, the tri-tip, the tuna melt, the pastrami on rye—and adds the Kunkel mom-and-pop ownership has been a clear upgrade.

“For the people who work over there, with the patches on their jackets, it’s perfect,” Massolo says. “I gotta tell you, the place is packed all the time, and there’s a reason for it: It’s good.”

Della Rose Deli is open 8am-4pm weekdays at 1309 Abbott St., Salinas. More at dellarosedeli.com.