The popular Sal’s Italian Deli has returned to Bristol with its first brick-and-mortar shop, writes Michele Haddon for the Philly Burbs.

The Italian restaurant was located at the discount big box store off New Rodgers Road and Bristol Pike until closing its doors last August.

For the new shop, the owner of the original eatery Tony Canale came out of retirement and partnered up with his son, Gaetano, to bring back the same delicious meatball parmigiana, Sicilian hoagies, and many other homemade Italian specialties that the restaurant is known for.

Canale was first introduced to the Italian restaurant business half a century ago, when he arrived in the U.S. from Sicily and started working at his uncle’s pizza shop in Brooklyn. He was 18 at the time.

“I couldn’t even speak English. I learned everything from working in the pizza shop,” he said.

He later ran Italian Family Pizzeria in Bristol for decades with his wife, Nina, before selling it and opening Sal’s Italian Deli in 2020. Despite many obstacles, including the pandemic, the eatery developed a strong following among locals.

Read more about Sal’s Italian Deli in the Philly Burbs.

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