Corned beef sandwiches piled high, homemade-style matzo ball soup, and a pickle bar have helped make Hymie’s a Main Line favorite for decades.
Located at 342 Montgomery Avenue in Merion Station, this Jewish deli has been serving customers since 1955. Its menu includes hot pastrami, classic Reubens, potato pancakes, smoked fish, and traditional deli specialties that have become harder to find.
There’s also a market where customers can pick up sliced meats, bagels, cookies, and oversized cakes to take home.
But one of the most memorable parts of a visit isn’t the corned beef or the desserts. It’s the pickle bar, a longtime feature that makes this Pennsylvania deli a little different from the rest.
A Main Line Deli With Decades of Pastrami Behind It
Hymie’s has been serving deli classics since 1955, and it still works the same basic formula. You’ll find it at 342 Montgomery Avenue in Merion Station, Pennsylvania, just outside the Philadelphia city line.
The building holds two worlds under one roof. A small shop and deli market fills one side, while a sit-down restaurant fills the other.
That setup makes it easy to grab lunch and then pick up something to take home.
Merion Station is part of the Main Line, a string of older suburbs running west from Philadelphia. Hymie’s fits right into that neighborhood feel.
It isn’t fancy, and it doesn’t try to be.
What catches my attention is how focused the place stays. The menu leans hard on the foods that built the Jewish deli tradition in America.
Think corned beef, pastrami, brisket, smoked fish, and soups that feel like a warm blanket.
The deli is currently owned by Louis Barson, who answers customers personally online. I like seeing an owner sign his name to a reply.
It tells you somebody is paying attention to the details.
And the details start with one very famous meat.
Corned Beef Piled the Old-Fashioned Way
Ask what people order at Hymie’s, and corned beef usually comes up first. It’s the meat that shows up most in conversations about this deli, and for good reason.
Corned beef is beef brisket that has been cured in a salty brine with spices. Jewish delis made it famous in America during the early 1900s.
Hymie’s keeps that tradition going by serving it in generous sandwiches on fresh bread.
You can also ask for it lean. That’s a nice option if you prefer less fat in every bite.
Deli mustard is the classic partner, and Hymie’s mustard has its own fans.
Hungry but not starving? The half sandwich and soup combo lets you try corned beef without facing a full mountain of meat.
Pairing it with a cup of cabbage soup is a combo the owner himself has praised.
I’d start here on a first visit. Corned beef is the backbone of the deli menu, so it tells you a lot about the kitchen.
It’s simple food, which leaves little room to hide.
Of course, corned beef has a close cousin that gets nearly as much love.
Pastrami, Reubens, and the Best of Both Worlds
Pastrami starts life a lot like corned beef. The difference comes later, when the meat gets coated in spices and smoked.
That extra step gives pastrami its darker crust and peppery edge.
At Hymie’s, pastrami shows up in plenty of ways. There’s the hot pastrami sandwich, a pastrami Reuben, and Pastrami Specials topped with coleslaw and Russian dressing.
Some breakfast plates even pair grilled pastrami with eggs and potato pancakes.
Can’t choose between the two famous meats? The Best of Both Worlds sandwich handles that problem for you.
It brings corned beef and pastrami together, often with Russian dressing.
Here’s a small tip I like. If you want slaw or dressing but in smaller amounts, ask for the special on the side.
That way you control how much goes on, and the bread stays sturdier.
The Reuben deserves a mention too. This grilled sandwich usually layers meat with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing.
Hymie’s also offers a turkey Reuben for folks who skip red meat.
All this rich food needs something sharp and crunchy beside it. Luckily, that’s waiting just a few steps away.
The Free Pickle Bar Steals Plenty of Attention
Free pickles. Two words, and suddenly everyone at the table cares a little more about lunch.
Hymie’s runs a self-serve pickle bar for dine-in guests, and it has become one of the deli’s best-known features. You can load up your plate with different kinds of pickles while you wait for your sandwich.
It goes beyond cucumbers. The spread has included pickled tomatoes, health salad, and pasta salads.
Health salad, if you’ve never had it, is a tangy mix of shredded cabbage and vegetables in a vinegar dressing.
I find this detail especially smart. Salty, rich deli meats need something sour and crisp to balance them out.
A pickle bar handles that job better than any side of fries.
My advice is simple. Take a little of everything on your first trip, then go back for the ones you like.
Try not to fill up before the main course arrives, though.
Some visitors even order brisket alongside a pickle bar plate, building a whole meal around it. That’s a tasty strategy.
The pickles also pair nicely with something warm, which brings us to the soup.
Matzo Ball Soup Measured in Dumplings
Here’s a fun way to pick your soup size. At Hymie’s, a cup of matzo ball soup comes with one matzo ball, and a bowl comes with two.
That’s a helpful rule, because these matzo balls are big. Ordering a bowl when you also want a sandwich might leave you with leftovers.
Matzo balls are dumplings made from matzo meal, eggs, and fat. They usually float in chicken soup.
For many Jewish families, this soup is the ultimate comfort food when someone has a cold or just needs cheering up.
Matzo ball soup isn’t the only pot on the stove. Cabbage soup has been described as thick and hearty, and it works well in the half sandwich combo.
Fun fact: matzo is the flat, unleavened bread eaten during Passover. Grinding it into meal gave cooks a way to make soft dumplings from something crisp and plain.
I’d order soup on any chilly Pennsylvania afternoon. Pair it with a pickle or two and you’ve got a meal that feels like home, even if it isn’t your home.
Morning visitors have their own set of comfort foods to enjoy.
Bagels, Lox, and an Early Start
Doors open at 8 in the morning, so breakfast is a real option here. The breakfast menu covers a lot of ground, including vegetarian choices.
Bagels lead the way. You can get nova lox on a bagel, lox spread on an everything bagel, or whitefish with cream cheese.
Lox is salmon that has been cured, and nova is a milder, lightly smoked style.
Hymie’s tends to add vegetables to its bagel orders. That turns a simple bagel and spread into something closer to a full sandwich.
Hot breakfasts are available too. Eggs come cooked to order with hash browns and bacon, and eggs Benedict shows up on the menu.
There are also specials pairing potato pancakes, grilled pastrami, and poached eggs.
Smoked fish fans can look for herring with sour cream. It’s an old-school deli dish you don’t see as often these days.
One practical tip: you can buy bagels to take home. Picking up a bag before you leave means tomorrow’s breakfast is already handled.
Speaking of taking things home, the market side of the building is hard to walk past.
A Market Side Packed With Cakes and Sweets
Don’t head straight for the parking lot after your meal. The shop side of Hymie’s holds cases full of cookies, desserts, and tall layer cakes.
The cake slices are famous for their size. One slice can feed several people, so sharing is the smart move here.
Hymie’s has also brought in a baker making traditional Jewish pastries. Rugelach, small rolled cookies filled with things like jam or chocolate, appear in the case.
So do hamantaschen in flavors like lemon curd, cherry, and poppy seed.
Hamantaschen are triangle-shaped cookies tied to the holiday of Purim. Poppy seed, called mohn in Yiddish, is the old-fashioned filling.
It has become harder to find, which makes it a nice surprise.
Chocolate dipped pretzels come in plenty of styles too. Some wrapped pareve kosher cakes are also sold, which helps families who keep certain dietary rules.
Beyond sweets, the market sells sliced deli meats. Taking home sliced pastrami turns a single meal into a week of sandwiches.
I’d leave room in the car for a cake box. Drink orders deserve a moment too, especially one with a funny name.
An Egg Cream Without Any Egg
Funny thing about the egg cream: it contains no egg and no cream. It’s a fizzy drink made from milk, seltzer, and flavored syrup.
Hymie’s serves a vanilla version. The classic New York style uses chocolate syrup, so vanilla gives you a slightly different spin on the tradition.
Nobody fully agrees on how the egg cream got its name. Some say it came from Brooklyn soda fountains in the early 1900s.
Others think the name came from the foamy white top that forms when you stir it.
I like that a deli still bothers with drinks like this. They belong to the same era as the corned beef and the pickle bar.
The egg cream is light and bubbly, which makes it easy to enjoy beside a heavy sandwich. It’s also a good choice for kids who want something fun.
Families should know the menu works across generations. Little ones and grandparents can usually find something they like.
Dinner service matters too, since the dining room went through some big changes not long ago.
A Refreshed Dining Room and Dinner Back on the Menu
Hymie’s renovated its dining room, and by late 2024 dinner service had returned. Today the deli runs from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.
The dining room is casual and unpretentious. Seating is on the tighter side, so tables can feel close together during busy times.
The good news is that tables tend to turn over quickly. Waits are often short, and a small waiting area gives you a place to stand.
While you wait, you can browse the market.
Look for the merch while you’re there. Hymie’s sells shirts, including one with a playful Hebrew High Maintenance design.
It’s a fun souvenir for anyone who loves deli culture.
Breakfast on a weekend morning can be a calmer time to visit. Lunch rushes tend to be busier.
Parking takes a little planning. There’s a small lot behind the building, but it fills up and can feel crowded.
Street parking uses meters, so carrying coins is wise, since phone signal may be weak.
For those who’d rather eat at home, Hymie’s handles orders well beyond single sandwiches.
Catering and Holiday Orders for the Whole Family
Big platters have always been part of the Jewish deli story. Hymie’s carries that on with a catering team that prepares food for family gatherings.
Catering often matters most during meaningful moments. Families have turned to Hymie’s for shiva meals, the gatherings held after a loved one passes.
Having trays of food handled by someone else can lift a real weight off a grieving family.
Holiday pre-orders are another option. You can place an order ahead of time and pick it up ready to go.
That’s handy around Jewish holidays, when kitchens get busy.
Takeout is available for everyday meals too. My practical advice: check your bag before driving off, especially if you asked for toppings on the side.
A quick look saves a second trip.
I like that a neighborhood deli fills this role. It feeds people on ordinary Tuesdays and on the days that really count.
That mix of everyday comfort and family tradition explains why Hymie’s still feels connected to the community around it.
Corned beef, pickles, matzo balls, and cake might sound like simple things. Served together for seven decades, they add up to a living piece of Pennsylvania food history.
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