Many a vacationer over the summer months who visits Rehoboth makes it their goal to stop for lunch at Lori’s Café. To them the trip would just not be complete without a taste of Lori’s famous chicken salad and the experience of dining in the colorful camp courtyard. Lori’s, in a way, has become an institution of sorts. People flock from all over just to satisfy their hunger for the blue cheese chicken salad.

The insatiable lust for this almost sainted sandwich and all the other food that Lori’s has to offer creates a mad dog-like desire from vacationers and locals alike. Nine seasons and still going strong this little café that could still offers the food and atmosphere that people have loved ever since it opened its doors. An important part of Lori’s success outside of her talent to create and serve a appetite satisfying meal is the location. Being in the nerve center of much of the community’s activities and events, Lori’s is almost a cornerstone, if not a necessity for the CAMP Rehoboth courtyard.

Walking into the Oy Vey Café, one is embraced with bright orange and yellow colored walls and the warm and sensuous smells of french bread baking, turkey cooking or coffee brewing. For the early riser in the summertime or for the late weekend sleepers looking for a simple but tasty starter for the day, nothing beats the classic bagel and lox plate. This summer delight is adorned with succulent capers and red onions as well as lettuce and tomato. This accompanied with the café’s fine selection of coffees and espresso drinks creates the perfect beginning to the Rehoboth morning.

For the fall, Lori switches gears by adding several autumnal delights to warm your ever cooling spirits. There is nothing like her hot baked potato. Add sour cream and fresh chives and you are truly set. Another addition is the turkey chili. Either in a cup or bowl and adorned with sour cream and/or grated cheese this mild chili heats the gullet. The chili is full of huge chunks of turkey (all baked at the café) and crunchy bites of green peppers, corn and onion. I strongly suggest a cup of this with a half of your favorite sandwich.

Speaking of sandwiches, you’ll always have your choice of turkey, ham, roast beef or pastrami. I suggest enjoying any of the above on the heavenly wheatberry bread (soft as a pillow!), freshly baked french, rye or even a bagel. With the weather finally cooling down, nothing would go better with your turkey with honey mustard on rye than possibly a large bowl of Lori’s matzo ball soup. Lori will alternate between other soup options so be on the lookout for what is on the Special board.

For those uninterested in Lori’s array of meats, you have her fine vegetarian selections. Take the Very Veggie for instance. On wheatberry bread and a smear of honey mustard you’ll get crunchy green peppers, cucumbers, carrots, onions, tomatoes and lettuce. Ask to add some sprouts and cheese and you have one hell of a meal. Another summer favorite is the Avocado Supreme: absolutely the creamiest and best hummus ever topped with fresh avocado. Like the chicken salad this is simply to die for! You’ll also love the other summer favorites such as the simply delicious freshly picked basil on a bagel of your choice covered with either cream cheese or honey mustard and topped with tomatoes, or the chilly cuts of cucumber with optional sprouts on top of cream cheese on a french baguette.

Of course, one cannot discard another of Lori’s specialties: the Brie a la Val. This is pure heaven. French bread is spread with honey mustard then sprinkled with toasted almonds, then granny smith apples, then topped with brie cheese. This is all placed in the oven and when it returns it is one magnificent treat. Strongly recommended!

There are plenty of drink choices at Lori’s. Have some pink lemonade with your hot pastrami or turkey reuben sandwich. Or try some freshly brewed iced tea with your Fancy Fish sandwich (tuna salad with avocado and sprouts and bacon!). Or possibly a cool healthy strawberry-banana smoothie with your side of potato salad? Then you could have a double-shot cappuccino or latte with your egg salad sandwich.

As this season progresses into November Lori will undoubtably shut her doors for another long miserable winter. However, the chicken salad should be a-mixin’ in the bowl by mid April. Until then we can only dream of the sublime succulence of a slice of oy vey in a sandwich.