4 Deli Side Items that Customers Love

When you own a deli, the lineup of sandwiches is definitely one of the most important elements of your establishment. However, a sandwich alone does not constitute a fully balanced meal. For that, you'll need to add a list of delicious side dishes that will suit customer preferences and tastes. These four classic side dishes are guaranteed crowd pleasers, and your deli will earn a heafty profit and gain a fine reputation, with these sides on the menu.

Classic Green Salad

For customers who are looking for a healthy alternative to fatty and salty side dishes, a classic green salad is a great choice. These salads are incredibly easy to prepare, and the ingredients needed are very inexpensive. You can also purchase many of the ingredients in large bulk orders, which will cut back on the expense of preparing green salads. The most important component of a quality green salad are the greens that are used as the salad base. A mix of leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, baby spinach, arugula, and other herbs are a perfect start to a high quality green salad. If you are looking to cut costs, you can simply use pieces of dark green romaine lettuce or shredded iceberg lettuce. Dress the salad with chopped vegetables such as onion, carrots, celery and green bell pepper. Top the salad with shredded cheese, croutons, and salad dressing to finish out this delicious side dish.

Potato Salad

Potato salad is a classic side dish that is often featured at a deli. Part of the wet salad family, many customers choose this side dish because the cool, creamy mix is a perfect complement to a hot and toasted deli sandwich. To make excellent potato salad, it's important to start with high quality baked potatoes. The skin is removed from the baked potato, and the potato is diced into one inch cubes. Mayonnaise and mustard are then added to the cubes. Other additions include dill pickles, onion, and boiled eggs which are added to the potato salad and gently mixed together. You can experiment with different types of potatoes, different spices, and different added ingredients to create your own unique spin on potato salad.

French Fries and Potato Chips

If indulgence is what your customers are looking for, pairing deli sandwiches with hot and crispy French fries or kettle cooked potato chips is the easiest way to satisfy their cravings. Many delis have house potato chips, which are thinly sliced Idaho potatoes that have been kettle cooked in boiling oil. French fries can be crinkle cut, thick cut, thinly cut, or even curly cut and seasoned with a mix of tasty seasonings. Always a crowd pleaser, French fries also have a high profit margin and enjoy enormous popularity whereever they are found.

Assorted Fruit

Offering an assortment of fruit is a great way to satisfy health-conscious consumers who are interested in getting their daily dose of essential vitamins and minerals. You can purchase bulk fruit cocktail, which consists of fruit pieces marinated in syrup. For a more gourmet approach to this side dish, you can slice fresh fruit, add berries, and then toss the mixed fruit with sugar or raw honey.