Milwaukee Waterfront Deli Review

Great grilled cheese and great place. The visuals of the upper floor are extravagant and eye-catching.

Definitely a must-go for that alone.

The food options are great and the prices are pretty good as well.

the roast beef wasnt exactly what i expected....comparing to JJ's 'taste'. nice place, pleasantly busy

I love almost all of their creamy soups any time of the year! Really good pre-made salads and a deli tgat will customize ur sandwich! It is one of my favorite places to go for work lunch.

Great food in a cool atmosphere. If you are looking for a place to get some breakfast food, you can't go wrong with the corned beef hash and eggs. Lunch is just as great with daily specials and plenty of options.

I am in town for work for an extended period of time. I have now gone to Waterfront twice - the second time to give it a second chance.

My first visit was a late morning visit, and I was appalled at how rude and inconvenienced the girl working was. I just tried it for a second time and got sick off the sandwich I just ate. I called to notify them, and they offered to take my name and give me the sandwich free the next time I was in...

...why would I order the sandwich again?

Staff was super nice and accommodating! Even gave us a free cookie, which was much appreciated! Food was great, will go back again and again. If you're looking for a great sandwich, soup, salad place I highly recommend them! Today was my first time there, but absolutely will not be my last.

High quality sandwiches and sushi at very good prices. WFD is a downtown icon. Pass up the fast food options and pick from dozens of made to order sammies and breakfast choices.

A deli that had no pepperoni or sour dough bread! Nice environment, but limited supplies and a haughty clerk.

Delicious food, friendly staff. Great for a quick and healthy meal or even to sit and linger longer. Neat atmosphere with the cream city brick and conveyor that delivers food upstairs. Best breakfast burrito I've ever had too.

finest quality ingredients and top-notch employees!

Very solid lunch spot. Sandwiches are small, but packed with meat. The soups are always very good too. Tons of sandwich options, with some fresh stuff pre-packed for those who are looking to move quick.

Great sandwiches and specials for lunch along with a tasty breakfast menu make this a great stop before or during work downtown.

This is a great spot to grab a quick bite! I have tried many of their sandwiches and salads and have yet to be disappointed. The orders come up in a timely manner, even during peak hours. They have a balcony to sit at or a great upper level with plenty of seating. Just wish it were open later! Highly recommend!

Great Variety of hot and cold sandwiches and salads. Sandwiches tasted great.

Great pasta salads with the pine nut lemon and the southwest chicken being my favorites. Their daily soup selections are awesome especially the chicken tortilla and the white bean chili soups. They normally have three daily soups. The hot sandwiches are also delicious. They even bake a nice thin crust pizza, try the buffalo chicken one! Prices are reasonable as well.

The deli is decorated very well, and the conveyor belt they have set up to transfer food to the second floor is a cool way to use the layout of the building

Best deli downtown, with a wide variety of daily menu specials.

Their salads are so fresh. Their sandwiches are amazing with well-thought out combinations of flavors. I was lucky enough to work across the street from here. It's busy at lunch but they move it along quickly. You can grab a drink, sushi, or even wine to have with your lunch. If you sit upstairs, your food comes on a conveyor belt, which is probably the coolest way to get your lunch. It's on the pricier side, but so worth it for a fresh spot to eat.

My service was friendly, and even though I didn't get exactly what I was expecting, my food was excellent!

Awesome decor, roughly 1920s jazz scene with its own quirks (OK, more than a little kitschy), and great, great food! Had the Prosciutto con Parma, bit of a wait, but at the peak of lunch rush it wasn't unexpected. Only complaint: a little light on the prosciutto. Sauce was tangy vinaigrette and bruschetta-like tomato sauce, with good hunks of eggplant and a handful of arugula..

Good sandwiches, cool delivery method!-Mechanical engineer standpoint.

Everything at Waterfront Deli is amazing! The food is fantastic and reasonably priced. The salads are amazing!! I recommend it to everyone!

Awesome food, great price, especially for downtown.

always loved coming here when I worked downtown. salads, pasta, sandwiches, lots of people and they oddly take pre-payment for the hot dog stand purchases that are a block away because they don't have a card reader. really dumb.

The food was good. But it is pricey and the service was slow even though I was there after the lunch rush.

Extremely busy and crowded at lunchtime. Food is adequate and good quality. And a bit pricey.

Great food. Love going here,. Always happy with service and food

A nice casual place with good sandwiches. They have an upstairs dining area with a novel mechanical track that carries your food up for you in a basket. I know my sandwich had a good time getting to me!

A real deli vs a chain sub sandwich shop. They do a brisk daytime takeout biz downtown. Small menu of a few over-stuffed deli sandwiches on good bread ala NYC style. Pastrami on hearty seeded rye & Reuben were both good with chix noodle soup (like Grandma's) & a crunchy, satisfying fresh chopped veggie salad. A generously- portioned half sandwich would have been more than enough with one of their homemade salads &/or soups. Also pizza. Missed breakfast but items sounded good.

Although you can prepay for your Ofelia cart order at Waterfront Deli, if you use your debit card, they will charge you sales tax. However, if you prepay using cash, they will NOT charge sales tax. How stupid! The female worker who "barked" this information at me was very rude. Not sure if or when I will ever go back, especially if this worker is there.

Fantastic corned beef sandwich! Fast, friendly and efficient service. Highly recommended!

I've been here since I was little and they're nice people. Their Milwaukee Waterfront Deli are really good but a bit overpriced.

First time here- I had some difficulty figuring out the process so just ordered one of today's specials. They have a cute system that sends your system up to the second floor if that's where you're dining. I had a grilled sandwich, it was good, not great. Next time I might try one of their good looking salads or soup of the day.

Love their foods! Always providing new menu selections, with fantastic service and friendly staff. Their hot bar is quick and easy, and never gotten anything I did not enjoy.

Salads are very big for the price and the pizza is great.

The food here is great! The set up is just a bit confusing. Maybe a sign at the end that says "order here". It is a neat set up with the upstairs outdoor deck. Keep up the tasty bagel and lox!

Fast friendly affordable ..... and locally owned not a chain.

They have the 4 s's: great sandwiches, soups, salads, and sides. Everything is fresh, and there is enough change from day to day to give you variety. Seating areas are nice and the decor is uniquely Milwaukee.

Really good lunch spot that has anything from lasagna to enchiladas and great high quality sandwiches.

Amazing! Waterfront deli sub was one of the freshest subs I've ever tasted, from bread to met to veggies. Curry chicken salad hands down best I've ever tasted! Queso veggie salad on point and pistachio pear salad wonderful!

Reliable downtown lunch location. Love the mechanical contraption that takes your food to the second floor.

Extremely Overpriced for the portion sizes and items offered. Especially the "soup." $5.75 for a "bowl" ?? Really? Serious? Rude staff in the morning so I don't even go there any more. The only reason they have so much business is because THERE IS NO PLACE ELSE CONVENIENTLY LOCATED to go for lunch. Sloppy work counters. Dirty, unswept floor. I wish John Hawks Pub was still open. I wish I was closer to Rosie's on Water. This place is MILKING the downtown workers and taking advantage of the fact there aren't many other "fast" places to stop for lunch. If you're single or independently wealthy, then this is the place for you.

This place was a fun random find! Was in from out of town for a matinee at the Pabst and needed a place to grab lunch with my son between hitting the museums and the show. Had planned on taking him to the Dogg Haus next door for hot dogs but they were closed, so this was the easiest option. They did have a jumbo hot dog option, which kept my son happy, though it was served on some nice crusty Italian bread rather than a usual hot dog bun. (My kiddo liked it and I thought the bread was great, but might be a no-go for a kid who s a pickier eater!) For myself, I got a lox sandwich, the usual on a bagel with cream cheese, red onion, and capers. It was good but nothing out of the ordinary. The selection and food overall was above average in my opinion, and price was maybe a *little* high (a bit over $20 for the 2 sandwiches, a bottle of juice, and a bottled beer) but not unreasonable.

The atmosphere, particularly in the main eating area on the upper level, made it a unique experience. My son LOVED the pully/belt system that delivered the meals to the second level. The theater-themed murals on the walls added a nice touch, and the single-user bathrooms were clean, well-maintained, and nicely updated. Overall, a fun and unique place to grab some lunch before a show!

This place is a gem. Great food at a good price. Menu had a lot of options. Steps from City Hall.

Ofelia's makes AWESOME soups for this location but sadly the flavors are muted by the laziness of staff that actually huffs and puffs when you ask them to stir the soup before serving it. Not all staff, just the younger ones, everyone else seems to understand the concept of Food and Flavor. Sadly after MANY attempts of asking to stir on each visit to get the response of "Ive been serving it already" this will be my last attempt for soup at this location (along with many co-workers).
**At a soup house they will stir with each customer serving even if 50 people are in line being served one after the other..hmmmm must be a reason..yes FLAVOR***

This is THE LAST STRAW! I regularly visit the Waterfront Deli during lunch. It's a convenient, quick place to eat while working downtown. Their pasta salad is fine...nothing to write home about. I am a vegetarian. So, in the past, I've gotten their soup. I've asked the people working what the ingredients were, they assured me the soup was vegetarian. I have brought the soup back to work, open it up only to find small pieces of chicken in the soup. Maybe they should try being more informed about the ingredients. So I stopped getting the soup...whatever, not a big deal. It never tasted that great anyways. So instead, I started to order the vegetarian croissant. The ingredients are listed...all veggies. It was delicious the first couple of times. As the name states, it's VEGETARIAN. However, a couple months ago, I was eating my vegetarian croissant and bit down into a piece of chicken stuck to the bottom of the sandwich. Grossed out of course, I spit it out. Didn't make a big fuss about it...mistakes happen. Next time I went in to order the vegetarian croissant, I politely asked them to please wipe off the counter to make sure meat isn't stuck to the bottom again. For the second time, there was meat on it. There was a little bit chicken salad stuck to the bottom in the corner. I cut that part off. Again, didn't make a big deal. TODAY, I go in and order the vegetarian croissant. They looked busy and the work station where they were making sandwiches looked like a complete mess, so I asked to make sure there wasn't meat on it. Get the sandwich back to my office, and there is a chunk of BACON sticking out. This is the final straw. I've asked politely to make sure this doesn't happen. If it happens once, it's a mistake, but this has happened THREE times now. WATERFRONT DELI is NOT VEGETARIAN friendly. I will not be eating there any more unless they redeem themselves somehow. I gave them enough chances. I do not trust them, and they don't care about their food preparation or their customers' requests. They should change the name of the sandwich since half of time, there is meat stuck to it...definitely not vegetarian!

Has amazing soups and salads ! The food is always fresh .

Best cafe-style eating in downtown Milwaukee. High value for the price. This is my favorite place to go.

I eat here most days for lunch. They have a good selection of specials, sandwiches and decent prices. Sometimes they can be backed up during the lunch rush, but it's a nice lunch spot if you are downtown.

Loved the place!! Bathrooms are pristine, great food, prices, and options. I just wish there were more outlets! Its a beautiful and prime study space.

I went to waterfront deli early in the morning on my way to work, the food was okay but the service was beyond terrible. The girl taking my order looked and sounded like she was annoyed I'd even come in. I wouldve walked out without buying anything if I wasn't hungry and pressed for time. I don't think I'll be coming back here.

Awesome place to get lunch if you work downtown. Great food at great prices.

My go-to lunch spot downtown. Nothing special, but still pretty good.

Great variety of deli-food! Get the Chicken Ceasar Salad, its the best!

Delicious food, amazing affordable, adorable cafe with dumb waiter that delivers food to seating area upstairs- a lot of fun for kids

Great place for lunch. Very good sandwiches and soup.

Decent sandwich place with lots of options. A bit expensive for what you get though. Also, not a great place to get coffee, as they don't seem to have experience in this area. Overall, the atmosphere is what takes the cake and makes this little dive a place I would return to: old brick building, tall ceilings, intricate decor, upper floor patio, and a dumbwaiter system to receive your food on the second floor!

Such an awesome deli! Good and friendly service and inviting atmosphere. Great food and prices too- highly recommend!

Would absolutely recommend visiting this place. Excellent vibes, delightful dishes, fantastic service. I recommend this place.

Stop there at the last hour of the day for half off all daily entrees.

This spot gives great service and yummy food. My favourite restaurant in the city. The meals came out rapidly and the prices are reasonable. Recommended.

My only complaint is that almost everything is pre-packaged so you cannot have slight alterations (like no cheese). They have a great menu that changes daily and is fresh