Callahan’s Restaurant & Deli: A Lot of Everything
950 Gulf Shore Drive, Destin, 837-6328
By Bruce Collier April 20, 2006 Issue
2/3

As the name indicates, Callahan’s Restaurant and Deli allows you to eat onsite, or you can buy the makings of your own meal for home preparation. Along the back wall of the restaurant is a long deli and meat counter. In addition to a range of cheeses and cold cuts, you can select steaks and chops, ribs, ham and bacon. Another cooler holds bottles of wine and a wide range of domestic and imported beers. The remainder of the wall space is devoted to shelves lined with pasta, spices, gourmet pickles, sauces, grill seasonings, cookies, and candy.

We ate there early on a weeknight. Our waiter took our drink orders and gave us time to look at the menu. There are actually two menus. The first is a folded affair, listing soups, salads, sandwiches, burgers, sides, and a short list of modestly priced entrees. An insert lists appetizers and higher-priced main dishes, including steaks, chops, pasta and seafood. A board outside the entrance announces daily specials.

One’s choice is virtually limitless. In addition to seven dinner salads, I counted 30 sandwiches, including burgers. Pretty much every kind of deli sandwich known to man is there, and I suspect they’d customize on request. Grilled cheese, muffeletta, steak sandwiches, barbecued pork, hot dogs, pastrami, corned beef, and sausage and peppers are just a few of the items available. All versions come with pickle, chips, or fries.

My friend and I had come for the big game, though. For starters, we ordered bacon-wrapped blackened scallops and potato skins. For the main course, he liked one of the specials, a pair of grilled grouper tacos with guacamole, black beans, corn, lettuce, cheese, and rice. On his endorsement, I ordered a New York strip steak, with baked potato and the vegetable of the day, butter beans.

The waiter brought the appetizers out. Either would have made a meal. There were six large-sized scallops, wrapped in thickly sliced bacon and resting on a pool of marinara sauce. At seven dollars, it was a good deal, and a tasty one.

The potato “skins” hadn’t quite said goodbye to their contents. There were four, more like whole potatoes, nearly buried under cheese, chili, and bacon, with a dish of sour cream. We finished the scallops, and boxed up two of the potatoes to go. Two other starters are offered, onion rings and fried cheese sticks.

After a respectful interval, the waiter brought our soup and salad, which came with the entrees. The salad was the typical mixed green variety. The soup, potato, sausage, and kale, was flavorful and substantial. Like the appetizers, it would have sufficed, especially with the basket of yeast rolls our server brought out. My friend, who eats regularly at Callahan’s, said that one of the reasons for its success was its portions. They’re uniformly huge, making it a popular choice for hungry families and value-conscious snowbirds.

Out came the main courses. My friend just gave me one of his tacos. The other was more than enough for him. Like Mikey, I eat everything. He noticed that the black beans weren’t in the taco. The waiter brought out a separate dish of them. I took a few bites of the taco, which was too big to eat out of hand. The fish was hot and tender, there was plenty of guacamole, and it, too, now sits in my fridge.

My steak was prepared as ordered, and even with sharing, it was a whole lotta beef. Rimmed with a thin ridge of fat for flavor, it was juicy, chewy, and indulgent. None was boxed.

Other entrees from the dinner menu included liver and onions, pot roast, prime rib, filet mignon, barbecued ribs, chicken fried steak, grilled or blackened fish, penne or Cajun pasta, scampi, and a fried seafood platter.

Dessert varies daily, and can be viewed sitting atop the deli counter. The night we visited, there was key lime pie, red velvet cake, and assorted cheesecakes. We got the key lime pie and red velvet cake. Both were good, standard versions of these old favorites. If cake or pie looks too daunting, you can also buy a box of cookies or a Ghirardelli’s chocolate bar for later.

Callahan’s has been around a long time, especially in this area’s mercurial restaurant market. I was impressed by the large crowd already there on my arrival. Reservations are not accepted, and the best one can do is call ahead to see just how much of a wait you can expect. At lunch, you will wait. Callahan’s has long been a popular midday spot for local business people. The management makes maximum use of the restaurant’s somewhat cramped space, so if you like to eavesdrop, you may have an opportunity. Of course, you’ll probably be seen doing it. You’ve been warned.

(Top)