PICKLE RICK BOUFFARD POSING IN FRONT OF HIS AWESOME RESTAURANT
Pickles NY Deli (Website) in Longwood is preparing to launch a dinner menu on October 1, adding entrees like chicken alfredo, chicken parmesan, lasagna, and meatloaf as the deli’s new ownership group builds on what has been a nearly two-year run at the helm.
Co-owner Rick Bouffard (who I will now always call “Pickle Rick” but not to his face) and his business partner took over the deli in February 2025. The two had worked together for almost 20 years, previously as franchisees of Tijuana Flats, before deciding to step away from that brand.
“We wanted to have a little bit more creative control,” Bouffard said, adding that profitability and sales margins under the franchise model had grown inconsistent as corporate leadership changed.
The idea for taking over a deli came together during a lunch on the Pickles NY Deli patio, before Bouffard and his partner owned the place. Bouffard said he ordered the Brooklyn Reuben and thought it was the best sandwich he had eaten in Florida. The two initially considered building a competing concept from scratch before a mutual friend connected them with the deli’s previous owner, who was looking to move on from the restaurant business. A five-hour conversation at a Starbucks led to the sale shortly after.
Since taking over, Bouffard said the team has focused on operational changes rather than altering the food itself. The deli consolidated from 11 food vendors down to three, working with larger suppliers under stocking agreements to keep ingredients consistent and in more supply. The recipes, Bouffard said, have not changed.
“I bought it because I’m a fan of it,” he said. “I’m not looking to change anything.”
The Brooklyn Reuben remains the deli’s top seller, accounting for more than 10 percent of sales on a menu Bouffard admitted was fairly extensive. The sandwich combines house-made corned beef and pastrami, Swiss cheese, house-made sauerkraut and Russian dressing on thick-cut rye bread. The corned beef is cooked in-house overnight using a low-and-slow method, and the pastrami comes from Sy Ginsberg (Website) in New Jersey. And it’s cussing fantastic.
The deli also makes its own potato salad, sold by the pound, along with soups including French onion and a chicken soup made from slow-cooked whole chickens, alongside house-made pasta salads, hand-stretched New York-style pizza cooked in a 700-degree oven, stromboli, flatbreads, and wraps built to order. Pickled green tomatoes, a house favorite, required Bouffard to source a new supplier in Tampa after the original vendor raised its minimum order requirements. Knishes are currently out of stock while the deli works to replace a supplier that went out of business.
The upcoming dinner menu will run alongside the deli’s regular offerings rather than replacing them, Bouffard said. In addition to the pasta dishes, dinner will include stuffed cabbage, mashed potatoes, garlic bread and mixed vegetables. The new meatloaf emerged as the clear staff favorite during testing, and Bouffard said a meatloaf sandwich will be available once the dinner menu launches. Because I needed to know as soon as he said the word “meatloaf.”
Pickles NY Deli currently opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 5 p.m. Sunday. Dinner service is expected to begin around 4 p.m., though Bouffard said hours will be adjusted based on demand.
The deli also has a full bar, including house cocktails such as the Pickletini, a vodka martini with pickle juice, and a Pickle-Rita.
Bouffard said he has no immediate plans to open additional locations but believes the concept could eventually expand beyond Longwood.
“We have people who travel over an hour to come here regularly, and they’re vocal about it,” he said.
