Reuben-Sliced corned beef, Swiss Lorraine, Sauerkraut and Russian dressing on marble rye. Jimmy's Cuban-Marinated pork loin and Sahlen's ham with Swiss Lorraine, sliced pickles, Webbers mustard and mayo. Minestrone soup-made fresh daily.

(photo: Rose Mattrey)

Joe’s Deli is a result of a confluence of events. Two great local restaurants had run their course: The owner of Mastman’s decided that it was time to hang up the meat slicer and retire, and the Park Lane likewise started to wrap things up. This left the busy corner of Hertel and Colvin with a deli-shaped hole in its heart, and left Joe Lyons, the former head of the Park Lane’s catering facility, looking for a new gig.

Recently married, and with a baby on the way, Joe decided it was about time to strike out on his own. “We’re not exactly looking to replace Mastman’s,” he told me. “Those are some big shoes to fill.” Of course they offer pastrami sandwiches, and their corned beef and reubens, both old Mastman’s specialties, are the biggest sellers. But, Joe says, “mostly I just make the kinds of food I like to eat.”

The food Joe likes to eat, fortunately, is the kind of food most everybody likes. The menu covers a respectable assortment of the best kind of sandwiches, with adventurous but reliable combinations: The tuna melt, for example, combines tuna, avocado and pepperjack cheese. Not quite the usual, but you can instantly see where they’re coming from with that one.

The most intriguing item on the menu was the Lunchbox, a sandwich consisting of sliced bologna, American cheese, crushed Fritos, and mustard and ketchup. I am not a fan of Fritos, and my guest had his heart set on the Muffaletta, so we got the Lunchbox wrapped up to go and took it back to the Artvoice office for some field testing. “Tastes kinda like a corn dog,” Joe said, and explained that his buddy back in grade school used to always squash Fritos into his sandwiches, making for a popular taste sensation. It did not disappoint: bologna-ey, ketchupy, mustardy and most of all crunchy. It was a big hit in the art department: The art director implied that it could be the best sandwich she’d ever had, and her associates both gave it a thumbs-up. We ran out of sandwich before the editorial department could comment.

My guest’s Muffaletta was also not a disappointment. Muffalettas are a New Orleans invention, traditionally served on a loaf of bread the size of your head. Joe’s version was a bit more manageable, a lunch-sized treat served on a toasted, crusty roll. It consisted of Sahlen’s ham and salami stacked up for half the sandwich’s height, then overlaid with provolone cheese, and topped off with a big heap of olive salad. The result was a salty, tangy, satisfying concoction.

I ordered something from their menu of “this week’s specials”—a roasted vegetable wrap with provolone cheese. The roasted vegetables (red pepper, portobello mushrooms) weren’t slimy, but instead were tender and slightly crispy. The whole thing was drenched in a zingy balsamic vinaigrette, and had some crunchy bits of lettuce in it.

We also split a cup of one of the day’s soups. We tried the black bean soup, perfect for a crisp but sunny autumn day: It was thick and creamy in texture, sweet and oniony and just a tiny bit spicy in taste. We scraped the cup clean before our sandwiches were even ready.

The deli doesn’t have a soda fountain, so you can choose from an assortment of bottled drinks. There’s something about sitting in a sunny window sipping lemonade through a straw stuck in the neck of a bottle. The way Joe’s works is that you come up to the counter and place your orders and pay for them, and then you find yourself a seat, and Joe or one of his friendly staff will bring your food out when it’s ready. They’ll even check up on you as you eat your meal, to make sure everything’s as you expected.

The deli has been open for slightly under a month. They’ve ironed out most of the kinks, scrapping the Saturday breakfast in order to focus instead on lunches, which have proven very popular. They’re also getting a lot of business from people on their way home from work, stopping in to pick up dinner. The selections are good for kids, too—if the fancy sandwiches don’t appeal to a picky eater, they offer a Build Your Own Sandwich option so you can put only approved ingredients into your sandwich.

The result is a deli that’s less firmly traditional than its predecessor in this location, but Joe’s steers clear of excessive trendiness either. It’s good food, not too plain and not too fancy. When I asked if he was having fun with this new venture, and Joe flashed a smile, saying, “We’re having a blast.” His whole family has pitched in, and many of his friends. His wife comes in on her days off and helps out, too. “She’s a little bit pregnant,” Joe explains, so there’s only so much she can do, but she’s fun to have around. The walls are still mostly bare, as they wait for art from the photographer who did their wedding. (“Mark Dellas,” Joe says. “He does great work.”), but the gleaming new countertops are decorated with floral arrangements and plants bearing notecards from friends and family inscribed with messages of congratulations and good luck. His sister, visiting from New York City, was plotting to replace all the cards with forged signatures from famous New York chefs, but for now, the friends and family well-wishes remain.