Delivery Market does just that

Scott Andrews

Hot Dog Diego

There are plenty of opportunities downtown for a casual al fresco lunch, but if you need good sustenance in a hurry, choices are limited. Delivery Market, a deli located opposite San Antonio Children's Museum on Houston Street, is known for getting lunch-to-office on the quick, with free delivery in the downtown area. They make a number of sandwiches and salads, and stock a small grocery with fresh produce (melons, mushrooms, garlic were on hand recently) and bread. Tobacco products are to be had, too; this is a delivery deli in the New York fashion — if you need it to get through the shift, they can probably have it delivered along with your lunch.

We started out by ordering chipotle chicken sandwich on ciabatta ($6.50), with Swiss cheese and a spicy mayonnaise that packed a punch. It, and a side of picnic style (no eggs) potato salad arrived at the offices within 30 minutes, not bad timing for mid-day rush. And better yet, the sandwich arrived nicely warm, the cheese melted on the sliced meat, but the mayo not smooshing the bread into wet pulp. So yes, they can deliver a hot lunch.

We look forward to ordering the pizza, which can be covered with eight toppings for no extra charge. But first, we took advantage of a few stray minutes, and walked downtown to get the feel for the place.

Plate glass looks out on the section of Houston east of the Majestic Theatre from the Market's high ceilinged dining room, with grill in back. On the few tables, several laptops were lit up, plates being picked at, and bottles of boutique sodas or Odawalla juices were half-drained.

This is a grab-it-from-the-locker, order-at-the-counter sort of place, so there's no need to wait for a waitress. We asked the staff what they liked on the menu. One of the house-favorites is the Diego, or should I say, "the Diegos." The sandwich version has turkey, pepper jack cheese, and huge hunks of avocado topped with pico de gallo and mayo. We snagged the hot dog Diego; same topping, but on a wiener dog instead of turkey. Both are nice bites, and like the chipotle chicken sandwich, not over-packed with meat. If you're looking for a half-pound of protein on your bread, look elsewhere. But instead, be content that while this is no chef-crafted plate, it's fresh and well balanced, a trend not often practiced at reasonably priced establishments. Traditional items like the BLT, Reuben, and corned beef sandwiches, along with chicken and Cobb salads, ensure that the deli in Delivery lives up to expectations.

Tables lined up next to the sidewalk give a fresh air option to dining; a cowboy in front of the Buckhorn Saloon (and Texas Ranger Museum) on the corner provided entertainment as he talked to passing tourists, spinning his lariat to occasionally capture a fencepost. Birds hopped about, looking for morsels, and the slow parade of Houston Street wound by, twice as amusing as the River Walk scenery at pricey restaurants nearby.