Restaurant of the Week: Upper Crust Deli in Manistique

by: Tor Thorne

Posted: Jun 9, 2023 / 05:35 PM EDT

Updated: Jun 9, 2023 / 07:21 PM EDT

MANISTIQUE, Mich. (WJMN) – In this edition of our Restaurant of the Week series, we’re making our first stop in Schoolcraft County at Upper Crust Deli in Manistique.

Located along the Manistique River just off of Lake Michigan, Upper Crust Deli has been serving classic deli fare in the Manistique community for over twenty years. In recent years, their offerings have also expanded to include additional menu items as well as event catering.

We spoke with Brittney Weber, who co-owns the deli with her sister Kylie Weber. Upper Crust Deli was founded in 1999 by original owners Linda and Doug Smith, who operated the restaurant until 2019, when they sold to Weber and her sister.

The sisters were born and raised in Manistique, growing up there before moving away for college after graduating high school. Eventually, both sisters moved back to Manistique, working different jobs in the area. Previously, the sisters had worked at another local deli during their time growing up, which Weber says gave them the idea to operate one of their own.

Now up and running for a few years, Weber says Upper Crust enjoys a lot of quality support from the Manistique community, as well as travelers coming through town, particularly in the summer.

Along the way, Weber says she and her sister's success wouldn't have been possible without great support from their family, as well as their great employees from around the Manistique area.

Signature Items

Weber says their classic deli offerings of sandwiches and homemade soups are their most popular items. Their number one seller is their cranberry chicken salad sandwich, which is served on a croissant. Their Upper Crust Reuben, as well as the schooner with hot beef pastrami, melted swiss cheese, coleslaw, and thousand island dressing on grilled sourdough bread, are also favorites of their patrons.

Check out some of their items below:

Which items deserve more attention?

Weber says that items on their menu that deserve some more attention are their protein and poke bowls, which are newer additions since they took over in 2019.

Poke bowls originate from Hawaii, and at Upper Crust Deli include their spicy and tropical poke bowls. The spicy bowl includes chicken or salmon, jasmine rice, a veggie kale mix, tortilla strips, sesame seeds, additional fresh produce items like cucumber, green onion, jalapenos, avocado, and sesame ginger dressing sriracha. The tropical iteration chicken or salmon, jasmine rice, pineapple, green onion, mandarin oranges, avocado, cucumber, tortilla strips, sesame seeds, and lime.

Take a look at some of their bowls below:

You can find a full menu here.

Additional information

Upper Crust also does catering for events like corporate events and weddings, ranging from a small party up to a few hundred. They offer full-service catering, with options like gourmet sandwich a wrap trays, fruit and vegetables, meat and cheese, as well as cookie and other dessert trays.

While they do have a catering brochure for you to look over, Weber says they are always willing to discuss other items that hosts may want at their event and can customize their offering to fit what you would like.

Have a look at some of their catering offerings below:

And some of their dessert offerings:

You can find their catering menu here.

You can stop in to try out Upper Crust Deli at 375 Traders Point Drive in Manistique. They operate from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Monday to Friday and 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Where should we stop next? Let us know by sending an email to [email protected] and write ‘Restaurant of the Week’ in the subject line.

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