The owners of the former Full Belly Deli are opening a similar restaurant on Main Street in Westbrook.

According to owner David Rosen, who closed the original Portland location earlier this year, Rosen’s Deli will open in mid-May at the former home of Blue Burrito, 652 Main St.

Rosen, who operated the Portland deli for 28 years, said Monday that reopening as Rosen’s Deli is his wife Arren’s venture, but that the restaurant will offer all the famous menu items of Full Belly Deli: pastrami, corned beef, homemade knishes, potato salad, cole slaw and more.

“It is not my deli, it is my wife’s deli,” he said about the new restaurant. “But I’ll be there with all my recipes.”

Rosen’s will also feature a bakery section with homemade goods from Arren Rosen.

Rosen said the couple looked into moving to downtown Portland, as well as other locations in Portland, but ultimately decided on the Westbrook location. When Full Belly Deli closed in January, Rosen said the restaurant’s rent and other expenses continued to rise in the Pine Tree Shopping Center location.

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Bill Baker, Westbrook’s assistant city administrator for business and community relations, said Monday that he had been chasing Full Belly Deli in order to push a potential move to Westbrook, but that the Rosens found the Blue Burrito spot on their own.

“It was great,” Baker said about getting in contact with the Rosens.

The Rosens have also lived in Westbrook for roughly 10 years.

An expanded story will appear in this week’s American Journal, April 17.

This handmade sign at the former home of Blue Burrito, 652 Main St., Westbrook, announced the impending opening of Rosen’s Deli. Staff photo by Andrew Rice 


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