Max's Deli in Highland Park

While in Milwaukee tonight to break the fast I was told that Max's on Skokie Valley Road had closed. I suggested to the persona making this passing comment that he was confusing this with the Max & Benny's short-lived effort Downtown. Living in the city, I rarely get out there, but when I do meet for lunch in Southern Lake County, it's usually been Max's and I've never had a complaint.

Any information?

I live in Highland Park and Max's is open. They did have a deli in Lincoln Park a while ago and that closed. Anyhow, Max's is ok, not my favorite. In Highland Park, I prefer Once Upon a Bagel but the menu is more limited and it is not full table service. You will not go wrong at Max's though. Thanks for dining in Highland Park and supporting our local businesses!

Hi,

When I drove past Max's in the parking lot this evening, it was lights on. Lately, I find if I am near Max, then I go to Mizrahi Grill next door.

I prefer the pastrami at Max's over Once Upon A Bagel's (OUAB). Max's is fattier and moister, while OUAB is comparatively lean and dry. I also like Max's bread basket and pickles on the table. I prefer the Mish-Mash soup at OUAB over Max's. Each have their strengths and weakness, so whatever I hanker for decides which establishment to visit.

Regards,

Thanks for the updates. I didn't think the person I met was right, or I would have seen something here previously.

Max's has got a really good breakfast, but be warned. Everyone I know agrees, the service is really slow. I've lived in Highland Park for all but 5 years since 1979 and I might go there once a year and it's always slow service, but the food is good.

I'm completely baffled by the love for this place. The food is pretty darned awful and the service may be even worse. It's 5 minutes from my house and I almost never even think of eating here. When I do, it's typically disappointing.

Last night my extended family and I were there for their Rosh Hashana dinner service (not my call but I was not in a position to host), which featured brisket so dry and rubbery, it was basically a choking hazard. Gefilte fish was so sweet, it tasted like it had been rolled in powdered sugar. Matzoh ball soup was salty and bland, and the ball itself was basically mush.

Service was actually confrontational. There was some confusion about whether the set menu was the only option. Some people in our group, who are regulars at Max's, wanted to order from the regular menu. After some confusion about this, a manager type rushed over to our table and angrily blurted out "which one of you is giving my server a hard time?!" I was stunned. I'm not saying some of our members weren't a bit whiney but the response they received was particularly rude and amateurish. Given the circumstances, I think you've got to be better than that and be prepared to deal with a fussy crowd. It's the nature of the beast. In any case, eventually we were told that sandwiches and salads from the regular menu were available. I'm not sure what the problem was to begin with but I can say that no one in our group will be returning any time soon, if ever.

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ronnie_suburban wrote:Service was actually confrontational . . .

Apparently, the more things change, the more they stay the same . . .

A Highland Park deli is facing backlash over a Facebook post that includes a cartoon drawing of a man wearing a Nazi armband, giving a stiff-armed salute and donning a t-shirt reading, “I’m with Alt-Right.”

Greg Morelli, who owns Max’s Deli with his brother, posted the image last week. Morelli frequently posts the deli’s menu along with cartoon drawings he creates to the restaurant’s Facebook page. He said the recent events in Charlottesville inspired him to use the page to make a strong political statement.

Highland Park Jewish deli faces backlash over Facebook post featuring Nazi imagery

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Kudos to Mr. Morelli for not backing down. Rather than taking the all-too-common step of giving in to backlash, he has the courage of his convictions to standby it, for better or worse in terms of his bottom line.

We'll see whether peak irony is achieved as his most vocal critics may very well be from the same ideology that labels their gatherings as "Free Speech Rallies".

bweiny wrote:Kudos to Mr. Morelli for not backing down. Rather than taking the all-too-common step of giving in to backlash, he has the courage of his convictions to standby it, for better or worse in terms of his bottom line.

We'll see whether peak irony is achieved as his most vocal critics may very well be from the same ideology that labels their gatherings as "Free Speech Rallies".

The bottom line for me is that he went out of his way to inject politics into a business situation where none were warranted. Bravo for taking a stand (I suppose), though, this particular act seems mostly self-serving, largely unproductive and completely unwise.

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ronnie_suburban wrote:The bottom line for me is that he went out of his way to inject politics into a business situation where none were warranted. Bravo for taking a stand (I suppose), though, this particular act seems mostly self-serving, largely unproductive and completely unwise.

I agree 100% insofar as it is not the prudent business decision, and he had no economic motivation to do it. As far as whether it was warranted, objectively it was not, but it is his business so evidently he felt like it was worth it to him. Just as we tend to respect owners who want to be closed 1 or 2 days a week to be with their families, even if it creates inconvenience for their customers on those days, so too should we respect owners who feel it is worthy of their platform to make a statement many will be uncomfortable or disagree with, because they believe in it.

More unproductive and unwise than typical ownership decisions - I can agree with that. More self-serving? That is a high mountain to climb IMO.

I had lunch at Max's a couple weeks ago. It had been a while since I'd been there, and it seemed to me that the food had taken a turn for the better, after kind of going downhill for a while. I'm going to put Max's back in my rotation, when I find myself in that part of the world.

bweiny wrote:More self-serving? That is a high mountain to climb IMO.

Perhaps but I think that in this case, it's a mountain that's clearly been scaled. The items that were posted online by ownership are the owner's personal opinions. They clearly don't help the business (in fact, they are notably counter-productive), they create controversy and negative feelings about the business, and actually could cause potential hardship for the employees, should the comments push customers away.

I strongly believe that owners and managers should never treat their official communication conduits like they're open mic night. This was a textbook example of self-servitude because the comments satisfied no purpose other than the self-destructive whim of the owner who made them. And no hindsight was required to recognize that outcome, either.

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Morelli's alleged rational for posting that offensive drawing- is absurd- at best.
Has he forgotten who -being a Jew is? and what his GRANDFATHER created and built from the ground up?

By posting a drawing- be it satire- or Political Commentary- of anything with a Swastikaand an "alt-right" t-shirt, on a page dealing with Jewish Culture & Jewish Food patronized by Jewish clientele, is not just insensitive- but dumb.

Why would any Jewish person- NOT BE OFFENDED by this?
Yes- a chance to let people know how you feel may-or-may-not be the topic of debate here....but for me- after clicking on the link that Ronnie included- I am flabbergasted that Morelli's so thoughtless- as to include ANY VISUAL SYMBOL OF NAZI-ism online.

Cross this one off the slowly shrinking list of Old School Jewish Deli's.........
OY-!

Morelli appears drunk on political commentary, attention, and pushing the envelope.

the co-owner of Max's Deli in Highland Park again has ignited outrage — this time with a tweet he fired off in response to the Las Vegas shootings.

"Soon as I heard it was country music, I felt relief. White people shooting white people isn't terror ... it's community outreach. #LasVegas," the tweet read.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/highland-park/news/ct-hpn-las-vegas-shooting-tweet-deli-tl-1005-20171003-story.html

Apparently they had to close the place down early yesterday because of all the threats they were getting.

Lots of people boycotting, but I was already boycotting the place because of the awful food. Its easily the worst deli in the area.

patch.com wrote:The co-owner of Max's Deli Joey Morelli announced Thursday that his brother Greg will be removed from all participation in the business, pending a legal separation agreement. In a statement, he expressed regret about recent posts "with unauthorized images and messages" made to the social media accounts of the Highland Park Jewish delicatessen, including an "alt-right" Nazi on its high holiday menu.

Brother Fires Max's Deli Co-Owner After 1 Offensive Post Too Many

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ronnie_suburban wrote:

patch.com wrote:The co-owner of Max's Deli Joey Morelli announced Thursday that his brother Greg will be removed from all participation in the business, pending a legal separation agreement. In a statement, he expressed regret about recent posts "with unauthorized images and messages" made to the social media accounts of the Highland Park Jewish delicatessen, including an "alt-right" Nazi on its high holiday menu.

To quote George Costanza, Morelli "flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami."