Micro Brews and Deli Dreams at Oak Deli & Brewery
Hearty fare to pair with craft brews. Photos by Jessica Ashley Silva
A little more than five years ago, life as we knew it came to a halt when the pandemic hit. For many of us, work slowed down or stopped altogether, and we isolated at home with nothing but time on our hands and a need for serious distraction. We all coped in different ways, which often came in the form of learning to crochet, planting a COVID garden, or starting a bread-baking journey (I see you, fellow Millennials who killed your sourdough starter faster than your Tamagotchi circa 1997). For Bryce Cherpelis, owner of local production company 12 BC, the creative outlet of choice was brewing. While his company’s event production was stifled by our need to socially distance, Cherpelis immersed himself in the beginnings of what would ultimately become Arcata’s most micro of craft beer producers: Oak Deli & Brewery.
Cherpelis, originally from Colorado, came from a family with experience brewing their own homegrown hops, so the choice was natural. Kirsten Reddy, co-owner of Oak Deli & Brewery and Cherpelis’ wife, tells me they both had a background working in restaurants — her in the front of the house, him in a deli. With Arcata’s requirement to have food available at establishments that serve alcohol, they leaned into Cherpelis’ deli background to round out their vision with a menu of elevated sandwiches, fancy charcuterie fixin’s and salads to complement their house-made craft beer.
The food is everything you want to accompany a cold pint of beer. If you’re a meat eater, the only choice for your first order is a Tony, a behemoth of a sandwich worthy of capturing the hearts of any East-Coaster. They start with a fresh Brio Bakery roll (already off to a great start), and layer it with capicola, salami, ham and provolone, all sliced fresh each morning, along with red onion, tomato, lettuce (shredded, as it should be) and a side of pepperoncini. Finished with a slather of mayo and a drizzle each of olive oil and red wine vinegar — this sandwich isn’t missing a single element, it’s exactly as it should be.
Once you’ve tried the Tony and you’re ready for some lighter fare, dive into a massive salad, like the Spun Goat. If you’re a goat cheese lover, this salad is a homerun, with a bed of spinach topped with a small army of chévre chunks, bacon (with the appropriate thickness and crispness, according to this writer), tomatoes and onion with a tangy balsamic vinaigrette. Before you even take your first bite, the quality of the ingredients is apparent. “I always tell our customers that the backbone to making our menu is: If I wouldn’t serve it to my children, I wouldn’t serve it to you,” says Reddy. “We get the highest quality ingredients possible for us to access: fresh, simple and all natural” is their philosophy when approaching their food.
During the summer, their location just a few blocks from the Arcata Plaza makes it easy to source locally grown produce from the farmers market, like the succulent heirloom tomatoes from Willow Creek Farms they feature in their classic caprese salad. Even outside of farmers market season, they support local when they can by purchasing all of their organic herbs from the North Coast Co-Op, and by featuring local cider and wine from Humboldt Cider Co. and Septentrio Winery, respectively.
Reddy and Cherpelis are starting to incorporate more scratch-made foods into their menu. Along with their homemade beer cheese to accompany their yummy soft pretzels, and their homemade hummus and tzatziki (Cherpelis is Greek, so homemade for these is the only way to go), they are adding homemade soups to the mix. Their flagship house-made offering, though, is the beer. In the just over three years Oak Deli & Brewery has been open, the restaurant has seen a change in its brewing setup. The restaurant used to have less seating to make room for brewing equipment but, as Cherpelis tells me, they’ve recently moved it all off-site to Blue Lake so they could create more space for patrons and open for dining on Mondays, when they used to be closed for weekly brewing.
During the transition, Oak Deli & Brewery offers two taps that, at the time of writing this article, featured a Mexican ale and a pilsner. The Mexican ale (5.2 percent ABV) is clean and crisp in flavor, with a nice body to it without any heaviness or bitterness — something you’d love to drink on a hot day sitting by a river. The pilsner (5 percent ABV) is delightful, with the subtlest hint of floral flavor, refreshing in its brightness and lightness. As Reddy tells me, they usually have six taps available, usually featuring an IPA, an ale, a lager, a pilsner and one rotating between a Vienna or a Munich-style beer.
While the second location in Blue Lake is not yet finished, Reddy and Cherpelis are working on permitting to make the new brewery space available for hosting private parties. Until then, they remain committed to their original space and loyal patrons at the deli. I recommend stopping in and sitting a spell. Watch the regulars filter in and fill up the seats, see the staff buzzing about building sandwiches and pouring beers with smiles on their faces, all while absolutely excellent music fills the place — it’s a whole vibe.
“Both my husband and I feel the same,” Reddy says, “that our favorite part of owning this is the community that’s been created and our regulars who come in once a week, if not more. We love providing a safe space with good energy and kindness.”
Oak Deli & Brewery
1101 H St., Arcata
(707) 840-6046
oakdelibrewery.com
Facebook: oakdelibrewery
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