Deli owner mingles matzo with mirth in Bellevue's 'Old Main' neighborhood

Who: Steve Gilbert, owner of Gilbert's on Main, 10024 Main St. in Bellevue, serves a side of humor with his corned-beef and pastrami sandwiches.

Craziest stunt: When he opened in 1995, Gilbert, 53, advertised by standing in the intersection in front of his delicatessen each morning and giving fresh bagels to commuters.

"Drivers loved it; the police didn't," he said. "Giving away the bagels was better than direct mail. People still talk about it."

Parking woes: With development of new condominiums around what's commonly known as "Old Main," customers say they have to drive around the block three or four times to find a parking place. Savvy folks know they can park a couple of blocks away take the pedestrian path leading from Bellevue's Downtown Park to Main Street.

Goal: To become the New York-style deli for the Eastside, complete with chopped liver and blintzes. His mentor, Ben Gula, ran The B & B Corned Beef House and Deli Restaurant in Seattle's Times Square Building.

"Ben's my idol. He sliced the corned beef thin and piled it high," Gilbert said. "That's why our sandwiches are larger than Rhode Island but smaller than Montana."

Gilbert trains his staff to "provide a level of service that died long before any of us were born."

Training to run a restaurant: None. Gilbert grew up on Mercer Island, studied psychology at the University of Washington and managed Island Video before partnering with his sister to open Gilbert's. He loves the restaurant business and credits his staff for making the restaurant a success.

"It was my sister's dream to have a delicatessen, but she's a clinical psychologist and has no time," he said. "I love it, but a restaurant, in the current vernacular, is 24/7."

The unexpected: An accordion player entertains the Friday lunch crowd with French-bistro music. Jazz trios and quartets play weekend mornings. Gilbert, who unwinds by hanging out in bookstores, lines his windows with glorious picture books on movies, travel and nature for diners to enjoy while they're waiting for their food. On nice days he sets up tables on the sidewalk. Self-serve ice water, with slices of orange and lime, sparkles in a glass container on the counter.

"You could serve plain water, but isn't this more fun to look at?" Gilbert said.

On the menu: Linda Brown, wife of former Seattle SuperSonics star Fred Brown, once asked for fresh tarragon in the mayonnaise on her vegetarian sandwich. Linda's Avocado Tarragon Delight was named after her.

Gilbert shares the secret for his matzo-ball soup recipe — 26 quarts of water and three unfortunate chickens.

"It's unlucky to be a chicken around here," Gilbert said. "We also serve Jewish sushi — lox."

Location, location: Gilbert describes his Main Street neighborhood as emblematic of the best of the USA, with storefronts on a wide sidewalk, inviting strollers and shoppers.

"To make it perfect, we need an antiquarian bookstore and a violin maker," he said. "We have wonderful restaurants up and down Main Street now and great stores for browsing."

Advice to restaurant-owner wannabes: "Invest in real estate instead. You're just plain loco to want to run a restaurant, but I can't think of anything I'd rather do. I love it," he said.

Sherry Grindeland: 206-515-5633 or sgrindeland@seattletimes.com.