Szymanski Deli & Liquors

A pretty good Polish deli, though it’s fairly cramped. There was a language barrier even with my very limited knowledge of Polish, but they were friendly enough though. Good selection of cured meats, there was a tray of very dark sausages which were «double smoked» according to the label. The wedzona was very good, and the kabanosy is pretty good here, though they all were a bit dry for my taste. Next time I’ll try the smoked fish everyone seems to be raving about. Beer selection is pretty limited, liquor/​wine is ok, I was able to find some Polish mead at least. Worth a try.

we buy here a lot. our 711 kinda shop. every wednesday they give discount to seniors, 15%, so bring your grandma or pa to get the discount ;)

Great local store with a lot of excellent food. Double smocked sausage $ 4.99/lb or smoked Salomon for $ 6.99/lb — can’t beat it. Pastry straight from their little bakery on the back, just great. One negative about this store — not enough room to even have full size shopping cart.

Gregs deli they have everything from A to Z I wouldn’t order for dinner but everything else tastes great also huge choice of liquor and the prices are pretty good

A Polish friend took me there. He speaks Polish, thankfully. The smell of smoked sausage knocked my socks off as we stepped inside. They have everything Polish– kabanos, ham, fish, spirtus (Polish Vodka). I will be back when I can. Going there for me was an adventure. I can’t believe I used to live a few blocks away and never knew it was there. Well it pays to know people ;)

I’ve been looking for light rye in Chicago for a while now. Harvesttime has the light rye from Bob’s Red Mill but that is too easy! I did find what I thought was light rye except the packaging was all in Polish. A woman who worked here saw me with a potato vodka under one arm, some bread from Chris’s Bakery, a bag of pickles from a barrel, and some light rye. She kindly bought me a shopping basket. I asked her if this was indeed the light rye I was looking for. She didn’t quite understand me and asked someone behind the meat counter. After a few failed articulations of what I was asking, he confirmed that it was light rye.

If you don’t speak polish don’t even bother to go there. My husband and I were looking for Paczkis last Saturday. The woman in the Bakery was very rude, not even tried a little to understand what we wanted. Finally we got the pastries to find that were very dry and tasteless. Maybe she was trying to tell us that? Who knows.
Too bad, we like to support local business around the neighborhood.

They have the most amazing smoked fish! so worth the drive and wait. We get it once or twice a month and we drive from Lemont just for this fish. Amazing!

Great selection of polish food. Always been treated well. Very competetive prices and the most important — freshly smoked trout. Heaven.
Sandwich made to order wit plenty of meat, cheese and veggies for $ 3 it’s much better option than subway

I’ve been meaning to join Unilocal for years, and my recent experience at Szymanski’s finally drove me to it.
Having been born in Poznan and growing up here, I take huge pride in everything to do with the language, culture, and customs. Food is obviously an integral part of that. One of the things I enjoy most about my weekends is when my dad comes to visit from Wisconsin, we have brunch at the Red Apple, then go grocery shopping.
Typically we go to Wally’s (now Cermak Produce) for the majority of what we need, but for the few items we can’t find we’ve gone to Szymanski’s. Usually, we’ve never had a problem. I’ve enjoyed their fresh baked goods, smoked fish and paszteciki time and time again.
We stopped by there first for some fresh veal, smoked chicken, and other meats. While waiting in line, I took out my phone to take a photo of the sausages to post to Instagram and while I was doing so one of the cashiers pushed past me and yelled loudly that taking photos was not allowed in the store. I joined my dad and he read off his order from my mom’s list. He asked if they had baked ham. The incredibly rude woman behind the deli said «yeah.» My dad asked for ½ a lb, to which she replied «what kind?» «The baked kind,» my dad responded. She walked away from him. Finally she came back and my dad (5’8, Pat Sajak look-​alike with a mean streak) said «you know what, no thank you.» We put our baskets down in the middle of the aisle and walked out.
If they thought I was competition and taking photos for that reason, they were wrong. However with that kind of customer service, not only did we go to the competition, we’ll be going there from now on and not stepping foot in an establishment like this again.
Let me also say that Polish groceries are notorious for this type of treatment in Poland, and apparently it didn’t change with stores here in America. The difference between Szymanski’s and Cermak Produce is overwhelming; the girls at Cermak are smiling, joking, offering samples (of vodka even), being helpful and actually providing a service. Not only that, we found fresh veal and smoked chicken there this time around, so they offer even more now. Even if it is busier, the more positive experience is much more worth it.

I’m not sure whether I’m charmed by the authenticity of this Polish deli or offended that they don’t speak to me in English.
I dip into Szymanski (no idea how it’s pronounced) for lunch meat every now and again. The patrons and employees all speak Polish first. You’d think you were in Warsaw, but I suppose Portage Park is close enough.
When it’s my turn at the deli counter, they always ask me something in Polish. Huh? So I start ordering, and they immediately get the point, responding in broken English.
I stick to the basics when it comes to the lunch meat, which is something labeled simply as «salami,» Muenster cheese, and whatever sort of ham tickles my fancy that day. Sure, I’d like to be more adventurous, but everything else is written in Polish.
The bread rolls are good here too. And any place that has caramel Kit Kat bars (albeit at a steeper price than, say, Fresh Farms in Niles), is OK by me.

How to shop very small place prices are higher comparing to other stores

Truly authentic Polish deli. They had one kind of smoked fish the day I stopped in — trout — that they make on the premises. Super reasonable price-​wise and oh so delicious. I’m definitely a SUPAH-​FREAK when it comes to smoked fish and theirs is wonderful!!! they also make their own polska sausage (displayed on a huge platter right next to the smoked trout) and THIS is what sausage SHOULD be like everywhere. crisp thin casing. just the right amount of ‘smoke’ and tender perfectly spiced meat inside — none of those chunks of grizzle or when you bite down think «what the HECK is that???» Every kind of imported polish vodka, including a variety of flavored ones… check out their authentic homemade pierogies in the freezer — bought a little bag of my favorite potato ones (about 9 or 10 pierogies) for about $ 3…
I’ll definitely not be a stranger to this little gem…

Szymanski’s one of the best Polish Delis in Chicago.
Good bakery, sweet things and a great selection of bread. Good selection of imported and locally produced Polish food. It appears they have a large smoke house built on to the rear of the store. I went in for a smoked fish one morning, you know the kind you can buy in the vacuum sealed bag in most other Polish Delis? Well no smoked fish in the morning because they smoke them in the morning and sell them in the afternoon. The freshly smoked fish ROCKS. Lots of other smoked meat too. Don’t miss the bacon.
Most of the employees are more comfortable with their native Polish than English. If you are polite and smile a little they are happy to help you. I assume from the other reviews here that if you go in with a scowl on your face and treat people poorly you will not get the best service.

I have a love/​hate relationship with this deli. Avoid the dairy (milk/​kefir). On more than one occasion I have purchased milk/​kefir that was curdled. Trying to return it was a headache. The owner claimed that the price I paid (on the receipt) was not the price on the shelf, which turned out to be lower, and would not give me a refund. It took some arguing but he finally relented. The customer service skills must have been honed in communist Poland. Most, if not all, of the workers appear to be in some state of disgust or contempt. Stick to your basics at Szymanski’s and you’ll be fine. The red cabbage salad is the best I’ve had and the croquettes are to die for. Also, plenty of cold beer available. Overall, you’d be better with Montrose Deli or J&J.