Mott & Hester Deli 1155 S Dale Mabry Hwy., Tampa Mott & Hester Deli, a sandwich hotspot with a popular catering service has closed its doors in late-February after almost 42 years at its original location. While the deli didn’t explain why it chose to close its doors for good, comments under the announcement allude to the well-deserved retirement of owners Ted and Gina Kelly, who opened the deli in December of 1982. The popular, no-frills deli with under a dozen seats offered a menu of loaded turkey, meatball, Italian and ham sandwiches, New Orleans-style fare like po’boys and muffulettas, hearty pasta dishes, salads, soups and entrees like spinach artichoke casseroles and Sicilian-style roasted chicken. Its Wild Turkey sammy with sautéed mushrooms, melted pepper jack cheese, and mayo on toasted white bread was a particularly popular menu item—and even made Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s 50 Best Sandwiches list in 2017. Photo via mottandhesterdeli/Facebook Credit: mottandhesterdeli/Facebook
A sandwich hotspot with a popular catering service has quickly closed its doors after almost 42 years at its original location.

Mott & Hester Deli at 1155 S Dale Mabry Hwy. took to social media last Tuesday to announce its closure, stating its ownership “has been honored to serve the Tampa community for 41+ years.”

While the deli didn’t explain why it chose to close its doors for good, comments under the announcement allude to the well-deserved retirement of owners Ted and Gina Kelly.

Since the closing announcement caused a very busy day yesterday, Mott & Hester served its last customers a day earlier than expected.

Ted and Gina Kelly opened the deli in December of 1982 and Mott & Hester has remained at the same strip mall location in South Tampa for the last four decades.

The popular, no frills deli with under a dozen seats offered a menu of loaded turkey, meatball, Italian and ham sandwiches, New Orleans-style fare like po’boys and muffulettas, hearty pasta dishes, salads, soups and entrees like spinach artichoke casseroles and Sicilian-style roasted chicken. Its Wild Turkey sammy with sautéed mushrooms, melted pepper jack cheese, and mayo on toasted white bread was a particularly popular menu item—and even made Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s 50 Best Sandwiches list in 2017.

In addition to providing dine in service, Mott & Hester also offered a variety of pre-made dinners and classic grab-and-go items.

According to a Tampa Bay Times article from 2007, the Kellys named the business Mott & Hester after a bustling street corner in New York City’s Little Italy neighborhood.

Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.

Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

Related Stories

This article appears in Feb 29 – Mar 6, 2024.

Kyla Fields is the food critic and former managing editor of Creative Loafing Tampa Bay who started their journey at CL as summer 2019 intern. They are the proud owner of a charming, sausage-shaped, eight-year-old...