If you happen to be in Vernon Ct which is east of Hartford and have a craving for a New York style Jewish Deli then Rein’s is the perfect place to eat. They are an institution in this area and the go to place for anyone wanting a great sandwich or meal.
We stopped here most recently on our way back from Boston. They are open 7 days a week so we knew that even in the evening on a Sunday we were going to be able to relax and nosh.
I love their corned beef; you can get it marbled with fat or extra lean. I always go for the extra lean and add a side of coleslaw. It is served on good chewy Jewish rye bread. I didn’t opt for cheese but you can of course. Since it was a cold early winter day I decided to have a warm apple cider to drink. It was served in an Irish coffee cup with a rim of cinnamon sugar, delicious.
My husband had their macaroni and cheese which is served with warm stewed tomatoes. He loved his meal. Especially the tomatoes. The macaroni and cheese is made with Cabot cheddar cheese so it had plenty of flavor.
One of our friends had a pastrami Reuben, it comes either regular or fresser which means over stuffed. They do corned beef, turkey pastrami and roast brisket of beef and even a veggie Reuben. It had the pastrami, Switzerland Swiss cheese and sauerkraut, all grilled on rye bread. All of the sandwiches can be done as a Rachael which substitutes coleslaw for the sauerkraut.
Our other friend had what we laughingly called a smorgasbord. She ordered one stuffed cabbage, a potato knish and some pickled beets. It was a great combination. The stuffed cabbage has a sweet and sour sauce with raisins and it is delicious, so good that it is what I would order when I stop here next. The potato knish was good and the pickled beets were huge and perfect with pickled onions as well.
While we were waiting for our order to arrive we feasted on half sour pickles. We actually went through two bowls; we laughingly admit that we could skip everything else and just eat the pickles.
We had a great waitress who was on top of everything and even split our bill for us. We wanted to have dessert, they had gingerbread bread pudding, peppermint ice cream, rum balls, rice pudding noodle pudding and a whole lot more but we were just too full.
On the way out, stop by the freezer and pick up some of their soup or other ones of their entrees. They also sell bagels, rugulach, rye bread and sweet breads. Most of their desserts have also been packaged to take home as well.
Breakfast is available all day long and includes cheese blintzes, lox and omelets. The menu offers plenty of Jewish deli fare as well including potato pancakes, chopped liver, matzoh ball soup and potato kugel.I highly recommend this deli restaurant when you are in the area and don’t be surprised if you have to wait in line to get in, this is a very popular place.
