"Food in our family is deeply rooted in our Polish heritage. It's the way we connect," says Alek Jakubiak of in Sydney's Waverley.
"We bond over food and that's what we wanted to do at Frank's Deli. We wanted to give people this love."
It's a recipe writ large at this bustling Bronte Road deli, which opened during Sydney's second lockdown. For owners Alek, his half-sister Sammy Jakubiak and her partner Ben Kelly, the goal was simple: to create a handful of homestyle dishes made well, using quality ingredients.
Inspired by New York's old-school Jewish delis, the trio set about converting an old butcher shop into a gleaming, white-tiled space. It features a blackboard menu anchored in Polish flavours.
Owners of Frank's Deli. Source: Supplied
"Sandwiches aren't underdone in Sydney, but we felt there was room for something with our Polish heritage," says Alek of the menu which heroes sandwiches with thick cuts of meat, cheese and pickles.
Food in our family is deeply rooted in our Polish heritage. It's the way we connect.
Frank's Reuben sandwich is a twist on the New York deli favourite. Sandwiched between chunks of pastrami, sauerkraut and cheddar is a tangy Polish dressing. "It's basically a Russian dressing with lots of dill, pickle brine and mashed-up pickles," says Alek.
The breakfast sammy also packs a Slavic punch. The gooey fold of egg and American cheese with brisket (or Polish speck, for bacon lovers) was inspired by the breakfast roll at Frankel's Delicatessen and Appetizing in Brooklyn, New York. But the mayo sauce, pimped with paprika, cayenne and horseradish, puts it squarely in Central Europe.
It's the ploughman's plate, though, that Alek says is most like home. "It's basically our heritage on a plate and what we would wake up to on a Saturday morning.
Get yourself a Polish-inspired sandwich at Frank's Deli. Source: Supplied
"It has the beetroot relish mum makes and the Polish vegetable salad that's been handed down in our family from one babcia to another."
Customers can choose between Polish ham, kielbasa (smoked sausage) or the house-smoked hot salmon made by Alek and Sammy's father. "It's something dad would make for us to eat every Christmas Eve, and so when we put it on the menu, we were like, 'dad you have to come and make it for us'.
They salt cure it for a day with salt, pepper, bay leaves and a few spices. His dad then puts it on a hot smoker with a mix of wood including cherrywood.
"It's so beautiful and salty and smoky and sweet. The sweetness you get from the cherrywood is like Christmas on a plate."
Alek, who spent many afternoons in his grandmother's kitchen, thinks food is interchangeable with love and comfort. "In a Polish kitchen, it's always mums. But my babcia knew I loved food and she was always getting me to help her," he says. "Having that ingrained in me at such a young age has given me such an amazing appreciation for food."
Baked goods at Frank's Deli. Source: Supplied
It's basically our heritage on a plate.
Deli sandwiches and excellent coffee (beans from Rozelle roaster The Little Marionette) might have brought the crowds, but it's Frank's homespun hospitality that keeps them coming back. During the lockdown, Alek would hand out Polish lollies and biscuits to customers, in much the same way he was given lollies at the Polish delis he visited as a child.
Along with the blackboard menu are shelves stacked with jars of pickles, hot sauces, oils, cheese and condiments, cook-at-home dinner packs and a fridge full of Polish goodies that include LP's Quality Meats, house-smoked salmon and pierogi, made by Sammy's aunt.
Frank's Deli in Waverley, Sydney. Source: Supplied
"When we eat pierogi at home, we caramelise onion and cook off some speck, and then top it with boiled or deep-fried pierogi," says Alek. "We've been selling chunks of speck so people can have the full Polish experience. With the Polish vegetable salad, you've got yourself a pretty traditional babcia home-cooked meal."
279 Bronte Rd, Waverley, Sydney
Mon-Fri: 6:30am-5:00pm
Sat-Sun: 7:30am-4:00pm
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