A good friend tipped me off to a great, local culinary experience. He’d emailed me the name and address. I plugged those into Google to see what I could find and got this: www.americandreamhotdogcarts.com. What?! He wants me to review a hot dog cart up in the industrial park area?
Well, he knows I do like street food, especially good, ethnic street food sold in carts (see Inkwatu 2008/09/06: New York Street Food). So, I emailed him back and we agreed to meet at the address he’d given me for lunch.
I got there a tad early because I wanted to take an exterior picture. After getting a smidgen lost in a warren of short streets that don’t go clear through, I located Jo-El’s: a bright blue warehouse with typical warehouse doors in the midst of an industrial area. There was a hot dog cart out front.
Closer inspection of the signage on the doors assured me there is a deli and market inside. I guess I was overly awed as a child by the Wizard of Oz when she steps from black and white into a land of living color, because stepping inside Jo-El’s is definitely a cultural shift that thrills.
Joel and Ellen Goetz’s Jo-El’s Delicatessen & Marketplace (2619 23rd Ave. N., St Petersburg, FL 33713; 727-321-3847) has a deli along one whole wall with a center section of tables separating a market with about four isles of imported kosher foods and a full kosher butcher shop with fresh cut kosher meat and poultry prepared under the supervision of the Vaad Hakashrut of Pinellas County.
This place is so good, that customers come from as far away as Sarasota to shop, bypassing lesser markets along the way. I’ve always associated kosher food with quality. This is QUALITY quality. The best of the best—no exaggeration.
Now it’s true. Jo-El’s does sell hot dog carts. This Inside Tampa Bay Business article discusses Goetz’s business model and success. It reports that, since January of 2009 he has sold “25 carts a week—15 more than usual.” He attributes this increased interest in food carts to the recession. His carts are displayed within the store along one whole wall (see picture at top of this article). They are available for rental for private functions, as well as for purchase.
There is also a Jo-El’s Delicatessen and Marketplace at 11727 N. Dale Mabry Highway in Carrollwood, on the Tampa side of the bay, owned by daughter, Sharon Goetz (see St. Pete Times: Local market helps set the Seder table).
Yet another venture is Jo-El’s Catering LLC with fish platters that feature hand sliced nova, nova spread, whitefish salad, Norwegian Salmon, bagels and bialys, and meat platters with lean pastrami, corned beef, fresh rye bread, and New York style potato salad; also parve (see food classifications at Milk and meat in Jewish law), dairy, and fruit, veggie, and sweet platters. They cater private parties, business affairs, birthday celebrations, and breakfast buffets!
All of that and more is available at the deli counter for lunch. My friend and I both had freshly made—right on the spot, not frozen and microwaved—falafel sandwiches in a soft pita with a humus spread, topped by crisp, marinated veggies. We both wanted to try the Coney Island potato knishes, but we were too stuffed. I’m trying to decide what sandwich I’ll eat next time: the chopped liver? The chicken schnitzel? The Beef tongue?
Oh my…
Jo-El’s, in St. Pete, is open Monday 9-3, Tuesday through Thursday 9-5, Friday 9-4, Sunday 9-1, closed Saturdays.
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
AWESOME PLACE! Been there many of time to get a bagal cream cheese & Lox also can get the real deal sabrett snapper hot dogs. Don’t get better than this place. Oh did I mention that he wholesales and has a commissary.
i was born in brooklyn new york in 1940. my mom was jewish and ym dad was italian. i plan on going to your daughters store in carrollwood very soon.i love lox, kosher salami ,and creamcheese, once in a while a bagel. i miss the hot dogs i used to get at the great coney island. thank you for being here in florida.
A nice way preserving the tradition of delicatessens serving kosher-style food… Florida is truly blessed with quite a number of quality delis and diners that manage to provide excellent kosher food. It surely makes people appreciate the health benefits and unique tastes that kosher-style food has to offer.
Jo-els. Love the food, friendly people, atmosphere. Brooklyn Deli “feel”. Great whitefish salad!
We love Jo-El’s. If we had not found this article months ago we would have never known about this place. My boyfriend and I love New York style kosher deli and thought we would be without one after moving to St. Petersburg. Even the Too Jays in Bay walk went out of business. So glad to have found Jo-El’s. It is the real deal.
Thanks, Frankie. Yes, it’s the real deal. It’s time for me to go back…I’m craving their great falafel sandwich.
i am interested in some hard rye bread loafs am wondering if its possible to get some older bread at a reduced price if so on what days and price?
I am looking for whole smoked white fish
I love deli places and knowing that many have had to close down because of the bad economic climate or because deli owners were not able to drive a substantial amount of traffic to their place is disheartening. I own a Fort Lauderdale catering and have had to make changes in my menu and services to keep my business running. This is why I’m pleased to know that Jo-El’s is not only surviving but is still thriving.
Like most folks who have enjoyed a hot pastrami from those NYC deli’s made famous by their sandwiches, I was becoming disillusioned by local wannabes that never quite measured up. That was until I stumbled across an internet review of Jo-el’s and thought I’d try once more. I am so glad I did. It was damned good. For those familiar with the layout of St Pete it is not difficult to find at all. Just approach from northbound 28th street and make a right on 23rd ave, right behind the gas station. When you get there, dont let the warehouse appearance discourage your stomach’s yearnings. The establishment focuses on what is important…good food. My sandwich was made to order on rye so fresh the inside was soft and the crust was golden and crunchy without being hard. Nothing can mess up a sandwich faster than hard to chew bread. As for the pastrami, there are two options: lean or regular. I chose the regular since fat is where the flavor and juices are. When my sandwich was brought to the table by a smiling young man the aroma preceeded it perfectly. I am almost ashamed at the way I dove in, juices dripping and napkins armed and ready…almost. Topped off with Doc Brown’s rootbeer and I drove home a very happy girl with a potato knish and a rootbeer for my daughter. She’s already asking when I will take her for a sandwich.
THE PLACE ON DALE MARBY CLOSED YEARS AGO.
MY WIFE & I HADN’T HAD SUCH A GOOD PASTRAMI SANDICH IN YEARS. BE SURE AND GET THE REGULAR NOT THE LOW FAT.
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