(Editor's note: this article includes photos of comped food.)
Kneller's Delicatessen & Appetizing at 2545 E. Speedway Blvd. #115 is now open for dinner, expanding beyond its established breakfast and lunch program into evening service for the first time. Owner Jeremy Kneller-Hernandez said the dinner launch completes the vision he has carried since before the deli opened in May 2025: a New York-style deli and diner operating all day in Tucson.
"It was always the goal to have a NY style deli/diner in town," Kneller-Hernandez said. "This is something I dearly missed. Now that we have breakfast and lunch established, we think now is the perfect time to share the deli at night."
A from-scratch deli in full stride
The dinner expansion coincides with several upgrades to the operation. Kneller's now bakes all of its bread and bagels in-house. Pastrami and brisket are sliced fresh to order from the steam table, and everything is brined in-house for three weeks. Local beef, free-range chicken, and local produce anchor the ingredient sourcing.
"We are now slicing steaming-hot, fresh pastrami and brisket to order," Kneller-Hernandez said. "We brine everything in-house for 3 weeks. It's a flavor bomb every corner of the menu."
He also credits the bread program to head baker Anna Summer.
The full menu runs all day, with bagels available until 2 p.m. and certain items, including the House Favorites section, available starting at 11 a.m.
What's new on the dinner menu
Comparing the dinner menu to the earlier breakfast and lunch program, several items are new or significantly expanded. The most notable addition is the house potato hoagie, a house-made hoagie roll that now anchors the cold and hot sandwich sections.
"We are mainly showcasing our new potato hoagies," Kneller-Hernandez said. "They make the sandwiches really pop."
New cold sandwiches on the dinner menu include:
Chopped Grinder: house hoagie with mayo, local green leaf, mortadella, calabrese salami, provolone, house pickles, tomato, and red onion ($17)
Chicken Salad: house hoagie with chicken salad, brie, green apple, green leaf, and lemon aioli ($16)
Tuna Salad: house rye with tuna salad, green leaf, and lemon aioli ($15)
The hot sandwich section is entirely new and includes:
Chopped Cheese: house hoagie with brisket ground beef, pickled green chili, provolone, and dijonnaise ($17)
Sheila's Brisket: house rye with traditional smoked brisket, date gravy, pickles, and deli mustard ($20)
The Rachel: house rye with roasted turkey, coleslaw, Swiss, and Russian dressing ($16)
Italian Beef: house hoagie with soaked roast beef, giardiniera, pepperoncini, and provolone ($18)
The Smoked Prime Rib Dip is also new, available after 11 a.m. as part of the House Favorites section. It uses a house hoagie loaded with smoked prime rib, horseradish aioli, provolone, caramelized onion, and jus ($24).
Breakfast items run all day on the dinner menu and include several new additions. The Breakfast Burro puts potatoes, brisket, scrambled egg, cheddar, and chipotle aioli inside a flour tortilla, with a pastrami sub option for $2 more ($14). The Diners Breakfast offers two eggs any style with potatoes and house rye toast with jam and butter, with optional add-ons including bacon, mortadella, Taylor ham, and brisket ($9 base).
The Appetizing Board, available both day and night, brings house pickles, house rye, potato egg salad, giardiniera, pickled beets, house rotating jam, and coleslaw to the table alongside a choice of house cured lox, whitefish salad, chopped liver, tuna salad, chicken salad, or salami ($18).
Classic Knish, available until 2 p.m., packs potato, caramelized onion, and cheddar into a house-made pastry ($4.50), with a rotating Knish of Day for $6.
The full picture
The Matzo Ball Soup is now made with chicken gribenes alongside the chicken bone broth, herbs, and matzo ball that regulars already know ($10). The Corned Beef on Rye now specifies a 10-day brine ($20), and the Pastrami on Rye details a month-long brine and in-house smoking process ($22).
The deli sides, soups, and salads run all day. Wine and beer are available alongside the expanded food program. Kneller's described the evening vibe as "funky elevated deli," and Kneller-Hernandez said the goal is for the deli to feel as comfortable at dinner as it does over a morning bagel.
Kneller's Delicatessen & Appetizing is at 2545 E. Speedway Blvd. #115. For hours and more information, visit knellersdelicatessen.com or call (520) 955-8881. For earlier coverage of the deli, see the Tucson Foodie opening feature and the profile of Jeremy Kneller-Hernandez.
