While on a recent trip to northern Michigan to visit family over the holidays, we stopped off in Ann Arbor to visit Zingerman’s Deli. We had been receiving their holiday catalogs and we thought pretty much everything in them looked really good — so we planned to stop on the way up north.

The deli itself is very small, and jam packed with all kinds of foodie goodness. There is an amazing cheese/deli section with expensive and exotic cheeses and deli meats. There is a small bakery counter with tons of different kinds of breads and sweets. There is also a small “alley” behind the bakery counter with vinegar and olive oil samples. The most impressive sample on our visit was the aged balsamic vingar, with a sweetness and consistency reminiscent of maple syrup but a much more complex flavor. There is also a small coffee counter and an area in the back of the store that you can place your sandwich order. On the day we visited it was so crowded we could barely make our way around the tiny store.

Ben ordered a vegetarian sandwich, I ordered a croque monsieur sandwich and Jonathan got a peanut butter and jelly. We also got a magical brownie to share for desert. The sandwiches were extremely yummy. Ben’s tasted fresh and the cheese was excellent. Mine had swiss cheese grilled to the outside as well as the inside of the sandwich. The mustard was slightly spicy and the ham was very good (and I don’t really like ham). It sounds like it would be messy, but it really wasn’t messy at all. The sandwiches on the menu all had two prices, one was for a “standard” portion and the slightly more expensive one had more meat and cheese, but had the same amount of bread. We opted for the more expensive option, on the thought that it was not likely we would be headed back this way any time soon. We were not disappointed. Ben’s only complaint was that for a vegetarian sandwich he thought his could have been priced lower rather than being the same price as my sandwich which was loaded with ham.

We also purchased 3 of their candy bars, which we were surprised to find on our receipt were $5 each… we have not yet finished the first one — the original. It is awesome, I would go so far as to call it God’s gift to candy bars. It is extremely rich, and although small and pricey it is worth the indulgence!

The brownie was nothing short of awesome. It was not too fudgy nor too cakey, and had a strangely complex flavor. It was not your typical brownie. If you are ever in the Ann Arbor area, we highly reccomend a stop at Zingerman’s!