Pomperdale Deli

Critic's Review

The day before Thanksgiving, I really wanted to avoid the supermarket, and things are less hectic in the Morning. I woke up way too early, so by 10 It was like mid-day for me. I decided to get some Deli Breakfast. While Top Hat is closer, I opt'ed to drive down to Pomperdale for some deli meat and eggs.

They have a clunky quick service model here; When the Vogels ran the place you paid on your way out. The new model is pay in advance, and they give you a number to put on your table. Tipping in advance is impossible, and it's a good thing I didn't because there's no waitress service at all. You fetch your own coffee (although nobody actually told me this; coffee is included with the eggs, but they didn't give me a cup. You just kind of have to know that you can go to the coffee station in the corner and pour reself a cup. Or at least that's how I thought it worked.

Pomperdale Coffee

The coffee is 'eh'; drinkable but nothing more. I had a nice view of the display cases. Salads, meats and pre-wrapped bagles. Nothing like a bagel with butter that was wrapped at 6am.

Pomperdale Display

The tables are lined along the narrow space, 6 to a row. It's sort of 4 and 2, but who would want sit at the outside table with a table of 4 inside? So even when the place isn't that crowded it seems like there's no tables; with 2 people taking up 6.

Pomperdale Inside

There's a dude who brings out the food. When he put it down I was immediately saddened. This didn't look good, at all.

Pomperdale Breakfast

The plastic plates are a nice touch, but the oily eggs (reminiscent of Waffle House) and the badly overdone pastrami and big potato chunks didn't remind me of anything positive.

Pomperdale Corned Beef and Hash

This, people, is not hash. If they chopped it better it may have worked a bit better, but as delivered this was not good.The worst part is that it didn't taste like corned beef. It was sweet in some way, and the unseasoned potatoes just seemed in the way.

Pomperdale Rye Toast

They do have huge slices of rye bread, but it didn't remind me of a good sturdy rye from NY.

Pomperdale Corned Beef Hash and over easy eggs

By itself, the pastrami was just too well done. Mixing in the yolk softened it a bit, but it was very disappointed. My bar with corned beef hash is Mary Kitchen, which I happen to like. If Deli corned beef hash isn't better than the mushy stuff from a can, it fails. This is a C-

By now it was almost noon, and the Eat-In crowd was out and most people were doing take out. I'm not sure I'd wait on line to eat here.

Pomperdale Take-out Line

Certainly not for breakfast.

Conclusions

Maybe it's not fair to compare this to the old Pomperdale's, but since they're using the 'history' for their marketing, it seems like fair game. Here's the deal: The Vogels, the original owners, would never serve me the junk I got today. And they would have come over to see how I liked it. And they would have given me something else if I didn't.

This place is now run by meat slicers. I'm not sure why the corned beef wasn't good; I got a decent pastrami sandwich here on my last visit. But I can't recommend the place for breakfast. No service, plastic plates and pedestrian food. Nothing to see here.

Review 8/27/13

Pomperdale Deli Fort Lauderdale

This place has changed hands a couple of time since legendary original owner Lawrence Vogel passed way; the people who bought it from his widow almost destroyed it with bad meat, cheap supermarket bread and a bad attitude. The new owner takes over by way of Queens and TooJays; I hadn't had a decent pastrami sandwich in a while, and it was time.

The inside is nicer; there's a NY-style mural on the wall and lots of point of sale stuff; Vogel was more focused on serving his customers than fancy decorations.

Pomperdale Deli Inside

While many delis use the term "overstuffed", you'll be hard pressed to actually get one. They have overstuffed here.

Pomperdale Pastrami Sandwich

The bread isn't the real hearty kind that the old Pomperdale used to use; their mustard was pretty good (They use National Deli brand) but I prefer either Gulden's or Boar's Head Deli mustard. They also don't give you a nice Koshur Dill; the "overnight" dills suck. Luckily I had some Claussen Hearty Garlic Dills in the fridge.

Pomperdale Pastrami with Claussen Dill

Half is enough for lunch.

Pomperdale isn't the same as it used to be; you always felt like the Vogels just wanted you to really enjoy your food. This place is more of a business; the prices are more NY than South Florida. But it's the best pastrami sandwich in Fort Lauderdale

Review 6/24/2011

On June 10, 2010 a piece of Fort Lauderdale's culture was lost when Lawrence Vogel passed away. Pomperdale Deli was a special place; where you ate and then paid on your way out. No Checks here; they trusted you to pay what you owed.

You'd walk in from the deserted street on a sweltering summer day to find the place packed with people snarfing down cole slaw and biting into big pastrami sandwiches. The noise level in the place was unbearable, with older couples cackling at each other. One thing that was clear though; the people who worked here really wanted you to enjoy your food. I really enjoyed their chunky chicken salad, which came with 2 pickles on hearty rye for $6.95.

Pomperdales Orig Owners. Good Hearty Seeded Rye with Pickles

It's changed hands a couple off times since. I went in shortly after it changed hands the first time,and it was just an empty room.

Pomperdale inside

I ordered a pastrami sandwich, and I got this.

Pomperdale Pastrami on Seedless Rye

A decent sandwich on pedestrian rye bread and no dill pickle. There were 2 italian guys behind the counter, one who yelled out "Hey, you all paid up ova there?". What a disappointment.

It seems that it's changed hands again, as now there is an older dude with a clipboard in charge of the place. There are point of sale items at the register, and the wall now has a New York City themed mural.

Pomperdale inside new

The Jewish couples aren't back, and the warm friendly ambiance has been replaced by corporate steel. I ordered a chicken salad sandwich; the woman asked what side I wanted, cole slaw I said. But then she charged me $1.50 for it. I assumed it was include by the way she asked. The dude with the clipboard came over and explained to her that they have a smaller size for $.70 that comes with sandwiches. They took off the $1.50, and i guess they didn't change the order because it included the slaw.

Pomperdale Chicken Salad and Cole Slaw

This was a pretty good sandwich; good rye bread, a good sized sandwich and nice chunky chicken salad. No dill pickle, just a half dill. I can't remember the last time I got a dill pickle at a deli [sigh]. The cole slaw was better than the overly creamy stuff they used to have, but it had something in it that I didn't like. Dill seeds or something like that. I peppered it up and it was better.

So the old couple who treated everyone like family is gone, and the friendly neighborhood place has been replaced by a pretty good, more corporate type of Deli. Not as special as it once was; but they serve a pretty good chicken salad sandwich.

Review 06/22/09

Pomperdale in 2009

East Commercial is a funny street. There's lots of traffic, and quite a few restaurants and bars.

But you never see people walking around. There's no foot traffic; particularly when its 95 degrees out. So you get to Pomperdales, if you don't miss its small storefront, and it seems pretty tranquil. Then you open the door, and you hear 25 or so elderly couples cackling, most of whom are snarfing down Pastrami Sandwiches and cole slaw.

People come from all over to go to Pomperdale, and with good reason. When I go there, I\'m reminded of what a real Deli is like; overstuffed sandwiches, quality ingredients and people behind the counter who want their customers to really enjoy their lunch. The lean (but not too lean) pastrami is stacked high, the chicken salad is large chunks on thick rye bread, and half a sandwich is enough for lunch. Of course you get pickles, no charge, because what\'s a sandwich without a big dill pickle anyway?