thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
December 2001- The closing of the Deli Haus in Kenmore Square, on Commonwealth Ave.
They served their last fried banana, bacon and peanut butter sandwiches, and poured their last Guinness beer and Vanilla Ice Cream float that December, while the world was still reeling, post 9/11.
A dive of a joint just a jaunt down the street from Boston's legendary rock/punk club The Rat (The Rathskeller) and the massive record store Planet Records (not the tiny one in Harvard Square), it featured an excellent jukebox, stunning and beautiful waitresses, and late hours- open every day 9 a.m. to 3 a.m.
They were in business 40 years, but increasing rents and the "cleaning up" of Kenmore Square by John Silbur, when he grabbed reigns of Boston University (he was responsible for turning the nightclub Narcissus, affectionately and scarily known as Nar-syphilis, into the B.U. bookstore) put the kabosh on the joint.
They tried a quick save by changing their name to "The Underground" and pushing more of a beer-pub feel, but they couldn't make enough money to pay those skyrocketing rents.
The property had sat dormant and vacant from December 2001 to around December 2006, a testament to the fact the greed of the landlords prevents any business from even thinking of making a go of it in the overpriced lower-level space, though a new tenant as of December 2006 has been trying, with mediocre-at-best success.
What surrounds the area nowadays is a feeble shopping district, a few chain restaurants, and a new, massive hotel that sits where another legend, the earlier mentioned Planet Records, once stood before a "mysterious" fire gutted the store, and all the affordable apartments above.
In December 2006, the space that formerly held The Deli Haus was re-opened with new owners as a bar-pub, named The Lower Depths. It isn't what you'd call very successful, or a big hit. Overpriced and uninviting are commonly used to describe the new joint.
From an MIT article, a bit of the vintage Deli Haus experience...
"...Perhaps one of Boston’s most happening punk rock dives, Deli Haus is one of the few places in Boston to eat past 1 a.m. The Haus blends old-school diner service with new-school progressive appeal. A dizzying array of suspended flourescents and a miniature jukebox accompany the restaurant’s overwhelming music. The waitresses also fulfill their role in giving Deli Haus that extra attitude, so much so that I feel ashamed just for using a clichÉd term like “attitude.”
The Haus has enough, um, “personality” to serve sandwiches like the Velvet Elvis, which is filled with grilled peanut butter and banana. It’s your standard diner fare; not your first choice for quality, just fairly decent deli and hot sandwiches and dinner plates. Even so, some dishes stand out, like the Kenmore Melt, a delicious sandwich with grilled chicken and honey mustard on rye.
With its selection of larger dishes, such as the chili cheese fries or the bean-buried nachos, it’s a good place to hang out and chill over a $4 appetizer or two. But, most importantly, it’s the only place to go for breakfast now that IHOP’s gone..."
And in a hiccup and a burp, it was gone.
R.I.P., Deli Haus.
They served their last fried banana, bacon and peanut butter sandwiches, and poured their last Guinness beer and Vanilla Ice Cream float that December, while the world was still reeling, post 9/11.
A dive of a joint just a jaunt down the street from Boston's legendary rock/punk club The Rat (The Rathskeller) and the massive record store Planet Records (not the tiny one in Harvard Square), it featured an excellent jukebox, stunning and beautiful waitresses, and late hours- open every day 9 a.m. to 3 a.m.
They were in business 40 years, but increasing rents and the "cleaning up" of Kenmore Square by John Silbur, when he grabbed reigns of Boston University (he was responsible for turning the nightclub Narcissus, affectionately and scarily known as Nar-syphilis, into the B.U. bookstore) put the kabosh on the joint.
They tried a quick save by changing their name to "The Underground" and pushing more of a beer-pub feel, but they couldn't make enough money to pay those skyrocketing rents.
The property had sat dormant and vacant from December 2001 to around December 2006, a testament to the fact the greed of the landlords prevents any business from even thinking of making a go of it in the overpriced lower-level space, though a new tenant as of December 2006 has been trying, with mediocre-at-best success.
What surrounds the area nowadays is a feeble shopping district, a few chain restaurants, and a new, massive hotel that sits where another legend, the earlier mentioned Planet Records, once stood before a "mysterious" fire gutted the store, and all the affordable apartments above.
In December 2006, the space that formerly held The Deli Haus was re-opened with new owners as a bar-pub, named The Lower Depths. It isn't what you'd call very successful, or a big hit. Overpriced and uninviting are commonly used to describe the new joint.
From an MIT article, a bit of the vintage Deli Haus experience...
"...Perhaps one of Boston’s most happening punk rock dives, Deli Haus is one of the few places in Boston to eat past 1 a.m. The Haus blends old-school diner service with new-school progressive appeal. A dizzying array of suspended flourescents and a miniature jukebox accompany the restaurant’s overwhelming music. The waitresses also fulfill their role in giving Deli Haus that extra attitude, so much so that I feel ashamed just for using a clichÉd term like “attitude.”
The Haus has enough, um, “personality” to serve sandwiches like the Velvet Elvis, which is filled with grilled peanut butter and banana. It’s your standard diner fare; not your first choice for quality, just fairly decent deli and hot sandwiches and dinner plates. Even so, some dishes stand out, like the Kenmore Melt, a delicious sandwich with grilled chicken and honey mustard on rye.
With its selection of larger dishes, such as the chili cheese fries or the bean-buried nachos, it’s a good place to hang out and chill over a $4 appetizer or two. But, most importantly, it’s the only place to go for breakfast now that IHOP’s gone..."
And in a hiccup and a burp, it was gone.
R.I.P., Deli Haus.
Interesting to learn the source of your username, deli. 
BTW, a couple nights later, we went to that bar that "Cheers" was done in, which was pretty cool too.
