From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Revised July, 2009 Welty's Deli Sandwiches. Deli. CBD: 336 Camp. 504-592-0223. Map. Breakfast and lunch Monday-Friday. Casual. AE MC V www.weltysdeli.com   WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY   When Welty's opened, its menu clearly was planned without reference to what every other downtown lunchroom has offered for the last hundred years. The freshness of the offerings is itself an attraction, even though it seems like a sandwich shop in another city.   WHY IT'S GOOD   The sandwiches that take up most of the menu are made in a much lighter style than that practiced by the classic poor boy shop. The breads, meats, cheeses, and dressings cover such a wide range and depart so much from the conventional that it's a great change of pace.   BACKSTORY   Donald and Tina Welty are a young couple who worked in other local restaurants before opening this one shortly after the hurricane. When they opened their place, they clearly planned their menu without reference to what every other downtown lunchroom has offered for the last hundred years. The freshness of the offerings is itself an attraction. It's so popular that one has to lunch there early or late to avoid a long wait in line.   DINING ROOM   A single long room, comfortable, clean, and bright, with the order counter and kitchen in the rear and a line (usually) running through the middle. A very helpful staff brings your food to the table.   ESSENTIAL DISHES   The daily specials are offbeat and worth a look. Deli-style sandwiches: roast beef, pastrami, turkey, corned beef, and ham. Soups of the day. Muffuletta. Club sandwich. Reuben sandwich. Caesar salad. Shrimp remoulade salad. Welty salad (greens, olives, tomato, carrots, avocado, cucumbers, balsamic vinaigrette). Asian roasted chicken salad.   FOR BEST RESULTS   Welty's is so popular that one has to lunch there early or late to avoid a long wait in line. Don't come here with a hankering for a New Orleans-style lunch (red beans, for example).   OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT   Salad dressing are not tossed with the greens, but served on a side in a plastic cup. That's what most people like, but it's not the best way to serve a salad.   FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD   Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter. Dining Environment Consistency +1 Service +1 Value +1 Attitude +2 Wine and Bar Hipness Local Color -1   SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES    Open Monday Quick, good meal Unusually large servings Good for children   ANECDOTES AND ANALYSIS   I have an irrational (perhaps even neurotic), minor problem with Welty's. Cafes much like this can be found in almost any American city. Almost no New Orleans flavor showed up on the menu. No poor boys. No red beans and rice. No gumbo. They did have a muffuletta--but that fits easily with the rest of the deli-style sandwich menu. It bothered me that I was bothered. Does everything in New Orleans have to bear the city's stamp? Of course not. Most businesses and institutions here operate just like they do everywhere else. Even in the culturally important realm of food, we have no problem with sushi bars and Middle Eastern cafes and kosher-style delis--all of which are exactly like their brethren in other cities. Still, even though Welty's menu is clearly fine as it is, I couldn't help feeling that I should have been at Mother's or the Commerce instead of there. But there's no reason why you shouldn't go. Click here for an index of all restaurant reviews. © 2009 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.