A-OK Gourmet - well, yea...

So, the 'spouse and I went fishing after we dropped Sparky off at school and, to make a long story short, wound up driving down Dempster hot, dirty and in need of sustenance and a place to sit down comfortably. Even though we were in striking distance of Kaufman's, I saw this forlorn individual standing on Dempster as I have many times, and I thought, "Well, maybe they'll have tables - and I might as well take one for the team."



If this place was just about anywhere but right across the street from Kaufman's, it'd be doing bang-up business. As it was, the room was so empty, we might as well have been serenaded by crickets - but instead, were serenaded by the two proprieters, who solicitously asked after our every possible need (so much so that I started to wonder if we'd been made.) One of my needs took me through the kitchen to the facilities, a gleaming stainless-steel kitchen, with sheet pans filled with just-baked breads that really gave me hope for the place.

Sadly, they do not have seats, but instead a counter with barstools and a big refrigerator case filled with all manner of cold salads. There was a sample of their veggie chips mix at the counter - kind of like Terra Chips but way, way better - I really liked the beets. We placed our order - I opted for the $5.99 lunch special which included one of five or so sandwiches, chips, half a pickle and a drink, a very good deal for the money - the 'spouse got a panini special for $6.99 which included everything but the drink. While we were waiting for our order, the proprieter asked if we'd like a free taste of their chicken soup, a very nice soup although made with white meat:



I opted for corned beef with swiss on rye, a nice sandwich, the 'spouse was less lucky with a caramelized-onion-beef-blue cheese panini which needed better beef (they had an Italian Beef special, I think they used the same stuff rather than roast beef, which would have been better) and more onion. The house-made chips were excellent as was the fresh pickle half.







All in all, it was several notches better than fine - but not really worth passing up Kaufman's (I kept wondering if I should go get bagels anyway.) Apparently they very proudly use only Boar's Head meats, which again would have been more of an incentive if there weren't house-roasted meats right across the street. Apparently this is a sideline to their catering business, they offer corporate catering and "social catering," so if your office is looking, this place would be an excellent alternative to Potbelly's and its ilk.

AOK Gourmet on the go...

4950 Dempster St.
Skokie, IL 60077
847-329-3800
fax 847-329-3801

This place would have been busier if they'd chosen to go kosher. At least that would have been an alternative to Kaufman's. It replaced th e space taken by Chaim's, which I was not a big fan of, but as a kosher deli/bakery always seemed to find a clientele. Since Chaim's left, there's not a kosher deli until Hungarian on Oakton, or the Jewel on Howard.

Mhays wrote:

Is that a CBR with lettuce and tomato? No wonder the place was empty.

I stop by there once in a while on my way to hopping on the Swift to go to a Cubs game. Plenty of sandwich options for the lunch special and it most certainly beats the "food options" at Wrigley.

Box lunch to go strikes me as the most likely good use of this place. It reminds me of YumBus but without the granola-crunchiness, and the prices seem more in line to me (though it's entirely possible that my perspective on pricing has changed.) There are several "special" sandwiches on the menu that I didn't try: a "Parisian Ham" with han, brie and mustard on a pretzel roll, and some kind of a muffuletta.

It isn't really a deli, more of a sandwich shop, so IMO, they wouldn't be a draw for a kosher clientele.