Borscht Belt Coming To Bucks; Will Soon Be Opening In Newtown

NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — The Borscht Belt Delicatessen, which has built a reputation as an authentic New York-style Jewish deli in Stockton, N.J., will be crossing the river into Bucks County.

After maneuvering through a sea of red tape, the owners of the popular deli will be opening soon at the Village at Newtown South, which is anchored by the Newtown Farmers Market.

And when that happens Newtown customers can expect the same delicious food and sandwiches, new menu items, more seating, extended hours, and a nostalgia-inducing ambiance.

In a social media posting on Friday, the deli announced “big news! The Borscht Belt Delicatessen is on the move from Stockton, NJ to Newtown, PA and we couldn't be more excited!

“Our deli has been a huge success and we're thrilled to bring our delicious food and warm atmosphere to our new home.

“To celebrate our success and to show our gratitude for our beloved community in Stockton, we're hosting a month of festivities starting this weekend. Join us for specials, giveaways, entertainment, comedy, 20 percent off merchandise, tastings of new menu items, weekly discounts, and more!

“Don't miss your chance to say goodbye to Stockton and hello to Newtown with us. See you soon!”

The deli owners had originally planned to operate both locations. “Sadly ‘forces’ made that an impossibility, so this is bittersweet,” they wrote on Facebook.

The deli is co-owned by Mike Dalewitz and celebrity Chef Nick Liberato, both of whom have close ties with Newtown and are looking forward to their new location. In 2021 they opened the Borscht Belt, which Liberato describes as his “love letter” to the Jewish Deli.

“We are very excited,” said Dalewitz. “It’s a homecoming for Nick himself. Being a Newtown resident, for him it’s a really big deal.”

In early 2022 the deli owners received conditional use approval from the Newtown Township Board of Supervisors for their new location.

“This is really your classic Jewish deli serving classic deli foods,” they told the board of supervisors. “We will be shipping in food from vendors from in and around the New York City area. Some of the food is made on premises as well.

“We intend to be open seven days a week with hours contemplated of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.,” said Dalewitz. “We are going to try to increase that time so we can open up for dinner as well.”

The deli was originally scheduled to open in late August 2022 inside the former Cross Culture Indian Restaurant at 2124 Eagle Road. Bureaucratic red tape, however, has delayed the opening for months.

“We signed our lease in February and we thought it would be easy to go from an existing restaurant to a new one but it’s been a helluva trip,” said Dalewitz. “It’s been a long and grueling red tape process, which we did not anticipate.”

According to Dalewitz, the format of their Newtown location is going to be a little different than Stockton.

“We’re going to be doing a slightly different menu with more plated items and more breakfast heavy,” said Dalewitz. “We felt that was a need in Newtown to have more breakfast options. We’re also going to have some upscale features that are a little different. So things will be more plated than the market style that we do in Stockton.

“Nick is a top chef master, celebrity chef at two star Michelin restaurants. To get to the plated foods for him is very important. He loves the presentation. He loves to be creative with these dishes.”

So when do they anticipate opening?

They have not yet announced an opening, but advise customers and future patrons to "keep on checking social media.

"We are as excited as ever. We’re two Bucks County residents. We want an amazing experience when we open so we want to get it right," said Dalewitz. "We are so ready for this. And for us to open up in Newtown was always the dream. We are just thrilled.”

Key menu offerings include various platters with fresh lox, meats, spreads, daily fresh bagels and baked goods, pickles, Bubby Bell’s Matzo Ball soup, Borscht Beet salad, and piled-high pastrami sandwiches fresh from their custom-built pastrami machine made in New York.

The deli is known for its signature sandwiches including its Reubens and Rachels; the Henny Youngman (hot corned beef on top of potato knish, served open faced with melted Swiss), Jackie Mason’s Cuban (corned tongue, deli mustard, pickles and Swiss on a challah loaf), the Jerry
Lewis (triple-decker thinly-sliced roast turkey, cole slaw, Swiss cheese and Russian dressing), the Joan Rivers (pastrami, schmear of chopped liver, tomato and Russian dressing); and more.

Other menu items include sandwich classics, including hot pastrami, hot corned beef, chopped liver, tongue and classic tuna and egg salad; create your own nosh; soups including Bubbe Bell’s Homemade Matzo Ball and “Jewish Penicillin” (chicken noodle); freshly-baked breads; specialty fish sandwiches; and a selection of sweets.

They will also be bringing in Ess-a-Bagels, which by some are considered the top New York City bagel. The bagels will be delivered fresh each day.

The deli was founded in 2021 when Nick Liberato (Paramount Network’s Bar Rescue and Netflix’s Restaurants on the Edge) and Michael Dalewitz announced their partnership and the launch of The Borscht Belt Delicatessen.

Combined with the appreciation of the American Jewish Deli and culture, and the lament of beloved New York delis slowly disappearing, the Borscht Belt was born.

“Top-priority is to serve-up convenient NY-style, ‘old-school’ delicatessen favorites with a savory and contemporary twist, satisfying a variety of food-connoisseurs while keeping every wallet size in mind,” said Liberato.