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The Yellow Deli

315 E. Broadway, Vista, CA 92084

You should visit this deli for its fabulous arty bathrooms alone. And for its quirky, beautifully carved, purpose-built house. And for its musicians who play in the patio at night. And because the place is open 24 hours every day except the Sabbath, which is celebrated from Friday lunchtime till Sunday lunchtime.

The people who run Yellow Deli are a community of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. They try to live like the early Christians.

Their house-restaurant is a collection of rooms, caves, alcoves, barn doors, raw wood, and poles, like a ship (an ark, maybe?).

And, man, they deliver on the food. Yes, it’s a little bit nuts-and-twigs, but they have beef and lamb sandwiches. And salads come direct from their garden in Valley Center, picked today. And wonderful wholesome soups. The potato-cheese soup’s to die for. You can get a cupful for four bucks and change. And the veggieburger would fool even my dedicated carnivore Carla.

But don’t expect TV screens. “TV has replaced the hearth,” says one of the crew.

“‘Hearth,’ ‘heart,’ same word.”

Instead, they have live bands of guys playing mandolins, zithers, and drums, and they hold discussions on subjects like “Should spanking be allowed?”

— Ed Bedford

Additional Info

Hours

Sunday noon to midnight
Monday 12:01 a.m. to midnight
Tuesday 12:01 a.m. to midnight
Wednesday 12:01 a.m. to midnight
Thursday 12:01 a.m. to midnight
Friday 12:01 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Restaurants details

Cuisine
Price range of entrées $4 - $8
Delivery Unknown
Outdoor seating Yes
Party room No
Reservations accepted No
Kids menu Yes
Occasional live music Unknown
Vegetarian friendly Yes
Payment options Unknown
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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