Why hundreds are queueing down this quiet suburban backstreet every morning in the middle of lockdown
- A residential street in suburban Melbourne is lined with queues every weekend
- Customers are waiting for sandwiches from the renowned Hector’s Deli
- The hole-in-the-wall cafe has become a cult favourite during the city’s lockdown
- It recently advertised a head chef’s position with a salary of up to $145,000
- That figure is more than the average income of dentists, solicitors and lecturers
A winding queue snakes its way along a quiet backstreet in suburban Melbourne without fail every weekend morning.
Those graced with patience are waiting for sandwiches from Hector’s Deli, a hole-in-the-wall haunt in Richmond that has become a cult favourite over the course of six Covid lockdowns.
Since opening its doors in 2017, the tucked-away cafe has risen to fame for its experimental creations packed with premium ingredients, which have cemented its reputation as one of the city’s top spots for a freshly-made sanga.
Demand surged so sharply at the start of Melbourne’s current shutdown that the cafe scrapped toasted options altogether, switching to fresh-made only in a bid to reduce the sheer volume of customers blocking the street.
A winding queue snakes its way along a quiet backstreet in suburban Melbourne on weekend mornings as scores of locals wait for sandwiches from Hector’s Deli in Richmond
The hole-in-the-wall haunt has become a cult favourite over the course of six Covid lockdowns
Demand surged so sharply at the start of Melbourne’s current shutdown that the cafe scrapped toasted options altogether, switching to fresh-made only in a bid to reduce the sheer volume of customers blocking the street
The deli’s extraordinary success is best illustrated by its recent advertisement for a new ‘Head of Food and Beverage’, with a salary offering of $110,000 to $149,000 depending on experience.
The upper end of the pay scale is more than the average income of dentists, lecturers, and solicitors – some of the highest-paid professions in Australia.
Hector’s is perhaps all the more enchanting because on paper, it should have never taken off.
As co-founder Dom Wilton told Urban List: ‘Hector’s Deli is in itself a f*****g anomaly. It shouldn’t work, there’s no foot traffic, there’s no public transport. It’s in the backstreets of Richmond, it shouldn’t work.’
The menu features five long-standing favourites, including a chicken schnitzel inside a steamed potato bun with tarragon butter, iceberg lettuce and house-made pickle mayo, and an indulgent rare roast beef laced with horseradish sauce.
The deli’s extraordinary success is best illustrated by its recent advertisement for a new ‘Head of Food and Beverage’, with a salary offering of up to $149,000 depending on experience
The menu features five long-standing favourites, including a chicken schnitzel inside a steamed potato bun (left) with tarragon butter, iceberg lettuce and house-made pickle mayo, and an indulgent rare roast beef laced with horseradish sauce (right)
The deli’s official Instagram account has attracted a loyal audience of 37,700 followers, who keep watch for news of new flavours and post gushing reviews about its ‘unrivalled’ excellence.
‘Hector’s is Melbourne,’ one person wrote, while others called the sandwiches the best they have ever eaten.
In August, the much-loved landmark threw open new doors with the launch of a second shop in South Melbourne, which has more space for customers to dine-in once restrictions are lifted.
It also has a pop-up in the pipeline for Sydney towards the end of 2021, as well as plans for a third store somewhere in north Melbourne that could rival Fitzroy’s iconic Nico’s sandwich joint.