So many choices, so much goodness at Oakmont Deli and Specialty Soups

Oakmont Deli and Specialty Soups along Allegheny River Boulevard in Oakmont takes lunch meat up a notch.

Featuring Boar's Head meats and cheeses, the breakfast and lunch eatery prides itself on sandwiches made fresh to order.

“Every sandwich is made sliced to order,” says owner Dan McCurdy. Boars Head deli products are gluten free — with no added trans fats, artificial flavors or colors and are lower in sodium than other meats.

McCurdy and his wife Linda, both Oakmonters, opened Oakmont Deli eight years ago.

They previously owned a restaurant in Hilton Head, S.C., during the 1990s.

The couple added breakfast about a year ago and although lunch still remains the busiest time for the deli, McCurdy says it is catching on.

McCurdy notes a third of his business is sandwiches, a third is salads and the remainder is deli sales. They also sell homemade soups.

“Time at lunch is so precious anymore. It is the goal of the deli to have a great sandwich to you within 60 seconds so you can enjoy your lunch break even more,” he says.

The bistro-style space offers seating for about 10 in an historic space with a high tin ceiling. Many customers order their fare to-go.

Grocery items such as olive oil, balsamic vinegar and pasta line the shelves and nostalgic photos on display harken back to Oakmont's past.

Stop in to see which daily soups are simmering — Chili, Tomato Basil, French Onion, Stuffed Pepper, Asiago Bisque and Clam Chowder are just some of the homemade soups offered.

Customers can build their own sandwich ($6.54), selecting from more than 25 meats such as capicollo, cracked pepper turkey, prosciutto, pastrami, Virginia ham, BBQ chicken and mortadella. Next, pick a “cover” (bread from Pittsburgh Breakworks delivered daily), then pick from more than 10 toppings and select a dressing such as chipotle gourmaise.

Homemade sides include Ellie's potato salad, vinaigrette cole slaw, broccoli salad and pasta salad.

Fresh batches of chicken, egg, ham and tuna salad are prepared daily. “The chicken salad is our number-one seller,” McCurdy says.

The Mamma Meatball Sub ($7.48) is an in-demand special, McCurdy says. It's offered on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, featuring Fontannini's all beef meatballs on a hoagie roll with provolone and marinara sauce.

A recent lunch visit for a first-timer to Oakmont Deli made a sandwich choice tough — they all were so tempting.

Settling on the Big Dan ($7.48), this hearty sandwich piled roast beef, Muenster cheese, Genoa salami, red onion, pepper rings, roasted red peppers, vinaigrette slaw on whole wheat bread with 1000 island dressing.

Yes, you can get healthy salads at his deli too, McCurdy says.

The Chef Salad offered spring mix greens, cucumbers, green peppers, tomatoes, onion, ham, turkey and Swiss cheese. Customers may choose from two sizes of salads and the large we ordered was delicious, the quality of the deli meat was apparent and the staff happily made modifications to our salad order.

Dessert is an easy choice here — artisan gelato in 12 flavors from Mercurio's Mulberry St. in Kittanning beckons from a glass case as you enter the deli.

“Right now we have pumpkin spice (only available for two months) and our most popular flavor is death by chocolate,” McCurdy says.

Joyce Hanz is a Tribune-Review contributing writer.