DINING OUT: Mike’s Deli

The simple comforts of home-cooked food can actually be pretty complex. Working all day, doing homework with the kids, and somehow managing to get a nutritious and flavorful dinner on the table on a weeknight can be something of a challenge.

That’s when your sources kick in, and Bay Ridge is fortunate to have a reliable source of tasty, freshly made comfort food right here, Mike’s Deli.

The sparkling shop prepares some 25 different salads and about 40 different hot dishes – a different selection on each day of the week — for enthusiastic customers who rave about the deli’s freshly made roast beef, according to owner George Loparnos, who has owned the Fourth Avenue store for 14 years, and has been in the food business for approximately four decades.

And, when Loparnos says homemade, he means it. “We make our own mayonnaise,” he said, “and our own macaroni salad, potato salad and cole slaw.” With two cooks and a kitchen helper, Loparnos prepares macaroni and cheese (with a blend of six different cheeses – “our signature dish,” he says), lasagna, meatballs, the list goes on and on, including homemade crumb cake on Sundays.

“We’re about the only old-fashioned deli left,” Loparnos notes.

And, the recipes are Loparnos’ own. “I don’t measure anything,” he said, stressing that experience has enabled him to develop dishes that become favorites of his customers.

Our sampling of some of Mike’s Deli’s most popular foods made it clear why the food is so well-loved. The macaroni and cheese ($5.49 per pound) is creamy and flavorful, luxuriously rich. The fried fish ($14.50 per pound) was perfectly breaded and fried to a satisfying crunch. The tasty coating was a perfect accompaniment to the soft, flaky inside, which melted in our mouths. If you are in the mood for some classic Italian food, try the lasagna ($6.50 per pound), a signature dish of the deli, or the Italian meatballs ($1.75 each). The lasagna had the right combination of flawlessly cooked pasta, deliciously seasoned tomato sauce, ricotta, and melted mozzarella cheese. The meatballs, smothered in flavorful tomato sauce, were a seamless blending of herbs, spices, and meat.

The sautéed spinach with garlic and oil ($5.00 per pound) was intensely flavored and addictive. The roasted sweet potatoes ($5 per pound) were chunked and cooked till tender but not mushy – a perfect counterpoint to a simple roast. The roasted potatoes ($4.50 per pound) achieved a precise combination of seasoned potato skin and a soft, delectable center.

As for the cold salads ($3.99 per pound), they well deserve their stellar reputation, creamy and sweet – -that homemade mayonnaise definitely makes a difference! – with a pleasing texture, firm yet tender.

With such a wide selection of dishes and a create your own salad option, there’s sure to be something to satisfy. And, you can enjoy them in the comfort of your own home, without doing a stitch of work.

Now, that’s comfort food!

MIKE’S DELI

9510 Fourth Avenue

Brooklyn NY 11209

718-238-5200

Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Free delivery within a one-mile radius with a $12 minimum (till 9 p.m. on weekdays, 8:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday)

Hot and cold catering available

Curbside service