Amazing Salmon Belly, Oil-Cured Sardines, Lox, Herring and Rockin' Breakfast! - Gjusta

The prices are relatively high but are justifiable IMHO. Regardless of their location and the impact of this on price, the quality and breadth of their food is remarkable. You can find lesser versions of their dishes everywhere. You can find similar quality versions of some Gjusta’s dishes at other places but involve a lot of running around - not good in LA. And then there are dishes that only Gjusta has - period.

I went to Wexler’s the other day and got a bagel w/ lox and cream cheese - $13. It was delicious. The salmon was luscious and the bagel was old school wonderful. Not much else to grab there that morning, other than a black&white. To get most items would require waiting when I’d prefer at like versions at Gjusta (e.g. smoked trout).

At Gjusta, I can get a wonderful bialy of like deliciousness plus a gang load of other foods of unquestionable quality as well - much of it straight from the cases. From that point, determining the various choices comes down to personal preference.

The vast majority of what Gjusta offers is made in-house. And considering the quality and variety, I always walk away with amazement, wondering how they pull off all of this every day. A dream team of specialists all under the Gjusta/Gjelina roof? I can accept that this effort doesn’t come cheap, and if a premium is demanded, I can’t argue with this.

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Hi @MyAnnoyingOpinions,

Thanks for the report back. I think @bulavinaka hit the nail on the head.

I understand your feelings - don’t get me wrong, it’s certainly not cheap. But there’s something to be said about the quality of ingredients and the execution: You said that what you paid seemed “a bit much for sandwiches, two pieces of flatbread and three small portions of fish.”

But the key is in the details you left out. It’s not just a generic “sandwich” that you might get a Subway. I ask where you can find a Tuna Conserva Sandwich (Fresh Housemade Olive Bread, Caper Aioli, Roasted Peppers, Salted Cucumbers, Radish, Sprouts, Tapenade) on the level of Gjusta: It is quite simply leagues above any other “Tuna Sandwich” I’ve ever had.

The Prime Rib Butcher, Turkey Butcher, the Porchetta Melt that you had are all standouts, and their generically named Veggie Sandwich is the most flavorful, packed sandwich that I have ever had, filled with farmers market fresh vegetables, herbs, house-made pickled veggies, on housemade, fresh-baked bread. Their “sandwiches” are so good, I’d gladly skip, say, 3 “Subway $5 Sandwiches” and just eat 1 Gjusta masterful sandwich every time.

It is that good.

Their 3 “small pieces of fish” is also unfair in the description. Look at the 10+ visits and multiple people’s pics above. It’s more than that for a Smoked Fish Plate. And the condiments you get (a variety of housemade pickles and vegetables, luscious cream cheese, and slices of housemade bread (which are thoughtful and so delicious)) are not to be overlooked. Finally, the actual smoked fish is phenomenal, it’s the best in the city (not even close).

Would I like for it to be cheaper? Or course. But when they execute at this level, it feels worth it (for me at least) to splurge once in a while. But I understand everyone’s values are different.

I have one friend who refuses to eat at Shunji, Mori, Tsujita Sushi, etc., because she feels her neighborhood sushi joint that she’s been eating at for years is just a better “value” at $30 - 40 per person. When she heard those places can charge up to $150 - 200 per person, I understand her perspective. Is Shunji, Mori, Tsujita Sushi and similar really about 600% of the “value” of her neighborhood joint? I can’t answer that for her.

But for me, I’d rather save up and eat at Shunji, Mori once in a while, than eat 5 dinners at not as fresh cheaper sushi joints. Thanks.

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The basic bagel (bialy) with “lox” and cream cheese at Gjusta is terrific and actually a couple of bucks cheaper than Wexler’s–and there are three styles of lox to choose from (regular, gravlax, and pastrami-cured).

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It is borderline impossible to set foot inside of Gjusta without spending more than $50/person it seems like…but god damn is it worth it.

The place is a deli that was in the running for best new restaurant in the country when it opened…in some ways I think that says it all.

@bulavinaka RE: Gjusta making almost everything in house…I am currently trying to think of what they DON’T…cheese/butter is all I can think of, and those categories almost don’t count imo. Anything else??

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As I said, the food was very good. And I understand the ingredients and execution are good. Still, the meal we ate was in the genre of sandwiches and “pizza” slices and we paid $70 (for counter service, fetching our own water and not very comfortable seating). It’s in that sense that the price seemed high nonetheless. Please understand that I’m not saying their sandwiches are not better than Subway’s and so on. I’m saying that if I spend $70 I’m generally not looking to eat a meal centered on sandwiches (of whatever quality).

Relatedly, people who are willing to pay very high prices for well-executed meals in this genre should certainly not complain about high prices for well-executed (and in some cases, unusual) meals at Thai and Chinese restaurants.

And despite all of the above, I also said that the food was very good.

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I guess I forgot to post about my lunch there last month? Either that or the search is messed up.

The inadequate seating is disgusting, especially since assholes just linger. Bad hospitality, not convivial. We’d never have gone there if we realized we’d have to stand the whole time we were waiting for our food and eating. I don’t understand how they got away with the bait-and-switch zoning thing.

We were starving so we devoured a lot of the salads before I thought to take a picture. I thought these were very good and an excellent value.

Smoked fish sampler, pretty disappointing. Overall seemed amateurish, I think all of them had one flaw or another: underseasoned, dry, not fatty enough, not smoky enough, not filleted properly. The bread was pretty good, the dense seeded pumpernickel-ish one was quite good. Accompaniments were excellent.

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Other than what you mention, maybe water? Seriously - it’s easier to list what isn’t made there.

Well, Robert, you and I may form the small club of Gjusta smoked fish skeptics. I think it’s a pretty incredible place for roasted meats, breads, and salads. But the smoked fish section is more variety than a deft hand in smoking. It is a pretty good value given all the other stuff you get.

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I adore Gjusta, except for the smoked fish. I love sandwiches, and the bread used in their sandwiches for that matter, am alright with the prices; but @robert and @haeldaur, I too am in the small group of folks who do not think their smoked fish is anything special.

Living in Berkeley sets the bar pretty high for bread.

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Where to get bread in Berkeley?

So I stopped by the clusterfuck today that is Gjusta. It is mind blowing how good my meal was today.

Prime rib and turkey butchers. The turkey was way better than the first time I had it, which I thought was average that time. And the prime rib, you already know.



Also had the falafel which was awesome as ever. I think you can put their hummus on anything and it would taste great.

And a personal favorite, the cucumber, dill, avocado, pistachio…et al was fantastic yet again.

Finished off with a carrot cake to go. Pow! So tasty.

Gjusta Gjusta Gjusta

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WHAAAT? I was there too AND had the turkey butcher AND falafel sandwich AND carrot cake. Chicken parm was awesome as usual. Those pumpernickel brownies are waiting for me tonigtt as is the pastrami gravlax…

Turkey butcher was great. The dip capped it off. Sweet daughter destroyed most of it - only got two small bites.

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Mental note: brownies and chicken parm

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I was there on the 3rd for lunch! And I’m glad you mentioned that Cucumber, Avocado, Pistachio… salad, It really is fantastic.

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On that falafel sandwich: while eating the tail end of it, I inadvertently spilled most of the ingredients out from the bread. I noticed the inside had been toasted to a quick char. It’s obviously another step in layering in more flavors to this sandwich. Never noticed that before.

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Yeah, that and the cauliflower with anchovy are my two favorites to date. Ridiculous. The cucumber just has some many different tastes and textures.

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I was passing by and was surprised to see them open on the 4th so stopped in and got the bbq ribs with apricot glaze and the mixed berry crumble tart to go for a post-fireworks dinner. All terrific. The ribs reheated nicely and were very meaty and flavorful.

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This is such a tease. :yum: I totally would have ordered this if it was available for lunch. Haha thanks for the intel.