Hello, deli! M & R Deli in Mount Kisco turns the big 45

Since it opened 45 years ago, M&R Deli has focused on delivering quality to its customers.

“Keeping it old school” is how Matt Henley, who owns the delicatessen with brother Ray, described its secret sauce. “Everything’s fresh.”

Along with homemade food, the Henleys offer modest prices, a consistent menu and engagement with their patrons, many of whom span four generations.

“We’ll know a customer, and we’ll know their grandchildren,” they said.

Deli is in their DNA. As kids, they worked in their father’s deli in Bronxville. By the time their father passed away in 1973, the brothers were out of college and decided to take over running the business.

In November 1978, the deli burned down in a fire, leaving the Henleys out of work. They wanted to open a new deli, but there was no available space in Bronxville at the time. Still, they were not deterred from their deli dream.

“Because we had our lives in it, basically,” Matt said. “It was all we knew. It was what we did.”  And it was who they were.

In April 1979, the Henleys found a space in Mount Kisco, and M&R Deli was born.

Right away the pair knew that they wanted to expand on the store that they had in Bronxville. Since their location at 135 E. Main St. had more space, they were able to enlarge their menu and provide seating for customers. And since the Mount Kisco location was a market before it became M&R Deli, they were able to use what was there during the deli’s early days. (They renovated the store a year later to add more products.)

Through ups and downs, including the pandemic, business has remained good in part because the Henleys have remained steadfast. Or as they put it, “There’s no saying, ‘I’ve got to go home now.’ You’ve got to be there.”