Hen’s Cozy Deli in Walker’s Point

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Does Hen's Deli feel like home? It’s certainly homey. 

More specifically, the informal eatery open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays in Walker’s Point has the ambiance of a den as much as a deli. Comic books and board games are strewn about on wooden tables and a dining counter facing outward toward West Florida Street. Lighting is appropriately a bit dim, like a favorite childhood basement hangout. 

But instead of, say, hunkering down on a beanbag chair to watch some TV or become entranced by a video game, Hen's Deli's food is what enraptures one’s senses enough to make return visits. 

Like other places with deli in their names, Hen’s has at least something of a Jewish culinary connection. But with bacon and sausage as protein options to join eggs and American cheese on its breakfast bagel sandwich, keeping kosher isn’t a concern here. Midday offerings include a third-pound pork salami sandwich and an Italian sub filled Sopressata and Capicola cold cuts amid Provolone cheese.

Go figure, then, that my dining companion and I both opted for likely the most Israeli items on Hen's menu during a recent visit. My Hadassah sandwich was a flexitarian delight: lox cream cheese schmear spread over a rosemary bagel is topped with tomato, cucumber and a micro sprout salad containing fennel and mint. Making it open an open-face entree for a couple dollars upcharge made for additional, if slightly messier, tastiness, and a chilly bottle of Italian spring water Acqua Panna washed it all down without disrupting the Hadassah's fresh, crunchy lend of flavors and textures. 

Hen’s Bagel Levantine has a colorful, explicitly Middle Eastern profile, with pickled onion, tahini yogurt sauce, baba ghanoush, and tabouleh topping a curry bagel. My friend described his as being stuffed with goodness and flavor. And it may well be my choice when next I visit. But Hen’s torta looks pretty tempting, too; its version of the hearty Mexican sandwich features a rotating array of proteins comingling with mayonnaise, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and pinto beans between a halved telera roll.

The deli’s coziness connotes to a limited dining area that may necessitate something of a wait during Hen’s busiest hours. But for the nearly familial comfort of its atmosphere and uniqueness of its fare, Hen's is worth that possible bit of inconvenience.