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    Hali Deli

    4.0 (83 reviews)
    ModerateDelicatessen
    Closed 9:30 am - 3:00 pm

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    Salmon cakes
    Leemor Y.

    Salmon cakes (4.5/5) with challah were great, very good portions for pretty cheap. Montreal bagel was also legit. Space is set up like a classic Yiddish diner. You also get free knishes if you take out cash from the atm (although the atm only accepts Canadian cards). Note it is a cash only spot.

    Tonya P.

    Any restaurant that the whole menu is offered in the morning is fine by me. I ordered a hot dog with french fries while everyone else was scarfing down breakfast dishes. Hali Deli offers a wide variety of options, something for everyone. We grabbed a cute little table up front, our server was charming and the dining room filled up quickly, so I suggest arriving before 11am on the weekend. CASH ONLY The ATM did not work while we were there. Bring a fist full of dollars so you can order everything. Do not skip the hand cut fries.

    Soup
    Owen R.

    Excellent chicken noodle soup, just needs to be a bit hotter. Good sandwich, soup combo. Waitress was nice. Only real downside, owner smoking a lot out front, bad second hand smoke entering the restaurant.

    Emmanuel C.

    OH MY LORD!!! HEAVEN on a plate! Ever since I heard of this place last week I've been dying to try it out... and today was the lucky day. Let me tell ya, it was definitely worth the walk from the south end in "feels like -17C" weather. I was meeting up with a few friends for a Friday lunch. When I arrived the place was just bussling! Packed to the bones with people waiting. Luckily, my friends (who chose to drive) where already sitting at the counter with a seat waiting for me :) I went in thinking I would get the smoked meat sandwich, but after sitting down for a few minutes and seeing all the orders coming out of the kitchen I was at a loss... and then I saw the special "Smoke Meat Mac N Cheese"... even harder to decide. One of my friend had the Reuben (which he loved). Since I couldn't make up my mind, I settled on the Deluxe Grilled cheese sandwich (with tomato and smoke meat on the inside) and split a Smoke Meat Mac N Cheese with my other friend (we couldn't get it as a side)... All I can say... FOOD COMA! Despite the $3 pop (since it was in a classic glass bottle I didn't seem to mind) overall this place was amazing and I will definitely be back. Be aware, it is cash only but they do have a bank machine on site! Go and enjoy! I know I sure did :)

    Reuven's  Reuben - Piled corned beef, sauerkraut, melted Swiss on twin grilled rye,with Russian dressing - $11.99
    Jon M.

    I have been eyeing this new addition to Agricola St for a few weeks now. I work and live in this area of the north end and have been hoping for a decent food place to open up in the area. A co-worker joined me for lunch and I must say after the disappointing visit to "Sully's Smoked Meats" a few weeks back I am very pleased to see success so close to home. The menu has a breakfast section (YES!!!) and a good amount of deli style dishes. Overall the decor, service, menu, and prices were well polished and a great accomplishment for any restaurant owner. I usually dread going to new places right after they open but this place was all hands on deck. Service: (4/5) No less than three people were working the front and more working in the kitchen. There was minor issues with having to ask for spoon with my soup and the waitress greeting us with a smile but no questions about what we wanted to drink but besides that every thing ran quite smooth.We were in and out after 30 minutes. The owner came out and greeted diners as well which is always appreciated. I could tell, like me, he really enjoys his food too! The place was full up with one or two sets of guests waiting for seat and this was shortly after noon. Food: (5/5) I ordered the Reuven's Reuben (Piled corned beef, sauerkraut, melted Swiss on twin grilled rye,with Russian dressing - $11.99 From the Menu), Chicken Matza Ball (Jewish soup dumpling made from a mixture of matzah meal, egg, oil and water served in soup. - $4.99 From the Menu) My co-worker had a Smoked Meat Sandwich and both with classic large glass bottles of coke. The soup was great, never had it before but the broth was amazingly flavored with a large ball of something I never ate before. It was very tasty. The carrots were big but a good firmness overall. The Reuben came plated with thick home cut fries, cooked just enough. I added salt before but it should be noted they were well seasoned before. The sandwich was not large but it was stacked with meat. There was hot melted swiss on top and the corned beef was perfectly juicy and amazing. Whatever the russian dressing was it was great. A little sauce popped out of the small hole in the rye and I was glad to eat it off my finger with some melted swiss. My co-worker's smoked meat sandwich was larger and looked like the real deal. The coleslaw was very fresh and a good way to cleanse the palate. There also was a crisp pickle as well which is always the first to disappear! Decor: (4/5) The decor fits the bill with a good amount of seating and can fit around 30-35 people with two seaters, four seaters and about ten counter seats. They definitely have fixed up behind the counter and had a new bar that looks stocked and fresh. There were a few items along the trim of the counter that looks a bit aged but overall the whole space improved greatly. I do not use the bathroom so I am unsure if there are facilities or not. Value: (4/5): The meal was decently priced and I was happy with the value. A sit down meal with a full plate with supper portions for 11.99 or 9.99 plus tax is better than most places in the neighborhood. Smith's Bakery charges similar price for a large sandwich with potato chips and the service level is lower. The soup may have been a bit more pricey at $4.99 but it was a lunch sized soup and it was made very well. It should be noted that this place is cash only with a ATM onsite. Obviously some places will get away with this behavior but it does end up costing debit customers and is inconvenient for first timers. I do however find that cash only places often have the better food value because of reduced overhead. Being cash only with a ATM means that debit and credit users are subsidizing my meal instead of the other way around! Overall (5/5): A great experience, I have given Hali Deli a 5 star rating, my coworker said 4 stars because of the lack of debit options. [Revisited November 22, 2012 -Had a similar excellent experience as before. Hot Brisket Sandwich with carrots and old style homefries (cut and fried potatoes). This is on the dinner menu so it had two sides and larger portions. Carrots were sweet, potatoes were fried well, and the brisket sandwich tasty with enough gravy that it was covered but not overkill either. My co-diner had Grilled Cheese deluxe which sounded a bit boring at first but when I saw the smoked meat, tomato's and perfect golden colour I changed my tune. The place was packed at 12:30 but there was three stools at the end. Seems the turn over is quick so waiting for a seat wouldn't be too bad. I liked how when I dropped my knife and picked up up a server came and took it away immediately while leaving a clean set. Overall the whole meal took 25 minutes!}

    Victor's Big Breakfast - three eggs, hash browns, challah toast, smoked meat
    Murray W.

    I love it whenever a great restaurant style that was previously absent from the Halifax food scene shows up. Hali Deli is one of those, being one of two recently opened Jewish-style delis, and after seeing their menu with a significant all day breakfast section, and many tasty sounding kosher delights, I was all the more eager to check it out. Stopping in on a cool fall day with the first ominous snow of the year, I was hungry and looking to fill up on a big deli breakfast. Luckily there was Victor's Big Breakfast on the menu, which is supposed to come with three eggs, smoked meat, corned beef, salami, with challah or rye toast, and potato latkes or hashbrowns. While my brunch companions and I waited for our food, I surveyed the area. While I had never been to the previous tenant of this space, Cousin's, I'm guessing that things have been spruced up a good bit, although the wood paneling on the wall goes a long way to maintaining that cozy diner feel, as does the counter with rotating bar stools. When our food arrived, after a little while I noticed that my latkes, which are shredded-potato pancakes, looked oddly like hashbrowns. This didn't bother me though, as they were great. They are the only hashbrowns that I can think of in the city that are definitely made from scratch as they were medium sized chunks of potato that had been cooked on the flat top, which added in nicely browned crusty bits for added texture and flavour, not to mention the tasty sweet onions added into the mix. Interestingly, the eggs only come over easy or sunny side up, but that was fine with me as I like my yolks runny and they contributed an additional level of deliciousness to the hashbrowns. Having never had challah before, it was a nice touch, as any non-commercial bread would be. It wasn't as dense as I thought it might be, and had a hint of sweetness and a light sprinkling of sesame seeds on top. In retrospect while writing this review, I realized that I got only one of the three meats that is supposed to come with the big breakfast, the smoked meat. Had I thought of it at the time, it would have been one of the few times I would send something back to the kitchen. Had this mistake and the aforementioned lack of latkes not occured, this would have been a hard four star review. The meat that I did have was good, with a mildly cured flavour that wasn't overwhelming and the slices of brisket easily fell apart in my mouth. While their ordering systems need more refinement, I'm definitely going to come back to try out more of the menu, and not just the ones I missed out on having the first time around.

    Ashlee F.

    We went to Hali Deli for lunch - it was empty when we arrived, but, soon after they got 3-4 more tables. We spent sometime pondering the menu - they have a lot of different, unusual to me, options. He went with the hot dog + fries and I had the grilled cheese deluxe; your traditional grilled cheese with smoked meat and tomato. It comes with a side of (delicious, home made) coleslaw which I put directly on my sandwich - I recommend you do the same! I stole a few fries from his plate and they were so good!! I'm not sure what kind of spice they put on them, or how they cook them, but they're nothing like any fries I've ever had before, definitely worth trying! I saw a picture posted on Yelp of their 'Smoked Meat Mac and Cheese' and I wanted it immediately, but it wasn't on their menu. I'm guessing it was a daily special, so I'll have to keep my eyes open and go back! Everything was great; ambiance, prices, service. The only problem was that our food came out lukewarm, like they've been sitting there for a bit before arriving at our table.

    Smoked meat sandwich with potato salad & cole slaw
    Colleen D.

    B loves a good smoke meat sandwich every now and then so when he got to pick the location for lunch on this Saturday, he wanted to give this place a try. We weren't disappointed. Love the vibe of the place, the old time lunch counter & stools and the milkshake blender sure brought back memories. We arrived around 12:30 to quite a few empty tables but they filled up quickly. We perused the menus but pretty much knew what we wanted so ordered quickly. We both ordered the smoke meat sandwich. Our server (I think also the proprieter) suggested one of us get the fries and one of us the potato salad so we took him up on it. We didn't have to wait too long before our plates were in front of us. We were happy with our meals, good meaty sandwiches, (there is a choice of regular or deli mustard on the table). Fries were done right, potato salad & cole slaw both very tasty, only thing I could nit pick about was the dill pickle was kinda meagre but very good all the same. The one server on this day did a pretty good job of handling all the tables, I imagine being the owner of the place gives one motivation to ensure good service. We decided this place is a winner and will likely be back. At the very least I want to try a milkshake for old times sake.

    Shmear and bagel
    John V.

    Oh my! What a delightful brunch at this extremely comforting little central Halifax restaurant. Totally unplanned, we were drawn in by the casual old school, big city feel emanating from Hali-deli. Service was instant. I stopped in the washroom that was as clean as a Yiddish mama would leave it, faintly smelling of bleach and cleanliness. I had the "shmear" and my companion has the latkes. Mine was a Montreal bagel with a generous scoop of smoked salmon and cream cheese mix, capers, onion, cucumber and tomato and a leaf of romaine. The latkes came with sides of sour cream and applesauce. Delish on all counts! Pay attention other restauranteurs - no TV here. GREAT! just terrific food and excellent service in a comfortable environment. We will be back!

    grilled cheese deluxe

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    Good service,,a maritime twist to an urban deli. Fries were great and the smoked meet was good.

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    The Five Fishermen Restaurant

    The Five Fishermen Restaurant

    (287 reviews)

    $$$

    Downtown Halifax

    The seafood chowder was excellent, containing far more varieties of seafood than the normal…read morechowder. The mixed seafood platter included a lobster claw perfectly boiled so it was fully cooked but still juicy--not rubbery as at many other places. The scallop was well-seared and nicely seasoned so as to add flavor but not to take away any natural scallop flavor. The shrimp were properly cleaned and sautéed just as taught in the culinary school I attended. And the risotto that acted as the bed for serving was rich and creamy. The different sauces added to each portion of the risotto holding the various delicacies added joyful surprises for the tastebuds. The cheesecake was marvelous and would have won the contest for best dessert of the trip, but it barely lost to Five Fishermen's PBJ Ganache, which won for its heavenly offering of chocolate Service provided by Kevin and his trainee Dan was friendly but not intrusive and entirely correct. The restauran's decor was welcoming and conducive to good conversation.

    We had high hopes for Five Fishermen, and while there were definitely some highlights, the overall…read moreexperience didn't quite justify the price. First off, the atmosphere is lovely--refined but not stuffy--and the service was wonderful throughout. Our server was friendly and attentive, which really helped set the tone for the night. We originally wanted to try a couple of cocktails, but the prices were sky-high, so we stuck with beer instead. Thankfully, the beer selection was solid and went well with our meals. I ended up ordering the burger, mostly because the steaks were way out of our price range. That said, I was pleasantly surprised--the burger was excellent. Super juicy, with a delicious aioli and tomato jam that really elevated it. My wife had the vegetarian risotto, and while she enjoyed it once everything was mixed together, the base risotto itself was pretty bland. Not a bad dish, but definitely not worth what we paid for it. If we weren't on a budget, we might have been able to explore more of the menu--and maybe that would have changed our impression. But as it stands, this one's a 3 out of 5 for us. Nice place, but just too expensive for what we got.

    Shuck Seafood and Raw Bar - Small seafood platter with snow crab, oysters and scallop ceviche

    Shuck Seafood and Raw Bar

    (91 reviews)

    $$

    Waterfront, Downtown Halifax

    I've been to Shuck several times. Always good food, nice location and good service. It's also well…read moredecorated and has a pretty good deck for people watching. However I never find the food gets to the level of some of the other Halifax waterfront restaurants. We sat in the back patio, so away from the wind but limited views. Mixed emotions about that but it was a good spot for a quiet meal. We shared several appetizers and, as I said above, everything was good. The tuna tartare, maybe really good and the oysters as well. Hats off to the gluten free options, including calamari. Our waiter was excellent, knew his menu and gf possibilities. Never a bad choice but there are better ones in the area.

    We didn't get any oysters. We actually enjoyed our food for the most part, despite the three stars…read more This is a case of the ambiance ruining a meal to the point that we had to just learn, laugh, love about it. Skip the $45 lobster cocktail app. Yes, there sure is a deceptively generous half pound of lobster on that funny little plate, but it and any other seafood listed as part of this dish are drowned in a runny, very dill forward cream sauce. The chorizo shrimp pasta was fantastic. Pasta was al dente. Textures and flavors wonderfully layered. Delicious. The burger was fine. Fish and chips also fine, fries were fresh and hot. Great wine and cocktails list, languid but friendly service on a Thursday night in July. The interior space is all cement, metal and stone. Nothing offers acoustic relief from every tipsy guffaw, loud comment and the noise of the bartender shaking that martini, scooping the ice or collecting glasses. I wished I had brought my AirPods. If you're tired after a day of exploring and just want a decent meal in a place that's easy to find, go for it. We did see a couple wrestling with the $150 seafood tower. Two wide tiers placed too close together. It looked challenging. I know it was because we could hear them negotiating it from across the room.

    Hali Deli - delicatessen - Updated May 2026

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