It looks like Saul’s, Berkeley’s beloved Jewish delicatessen, may soon be on the market is searching for the next generation of owners to take over.

According to Northern California-focused Jewish news website, jweekly.com, owners Peter Levitt and Karen Adelman, who bought the deli in 1996, are looking to retire — but not until they can find the perfect someone to take it over.

The space that houses Saul’s has been a delicatessen in one form or another since the 1950s, first as the Pantry Shelf, followed by Rosenthal’s, then Saul’s, which originally opened in 1986. Levitt and Adelman took over the deli in 1996, and stealthily tweaked the classic Jewish deli model by adding sustainable and locally-sourced meats and other ingredients to reflect a more Northern California sensibility.

Despite the new Jewish deli revival that’s taken place in recent years thanks to places like Wise Sons, Shorty Goldstein’s and the Rye Project, Levitt and Adelman are concerned by the dwindling number of longtime Jewish delis in recent years, like the 75-year-old Stage Deli in New York and San Francisco’s Moishe’s Pippic, which closed in 2013 after 26 years in business, so they are passionate that the restaurant continue as intended.

Adelman told jweekly.com:

“The plan is to find somebody in the community who would step in and, over time, take over,” Adelman said. “We would mentor them, rather than just handing it over to a total stranger or letting someone buy it and turn it into another kind of restaurant.”

No word yet on who that someone might be, though the owners say they have considered a number of people, including Wise Son’s owners Leo Beckerman and Evan Bloom, as well as Michael Siegel of Shorty Goldstein’s.

Inside Scoop has reached out to Levitt and Adelman and will update this post as more details become available.

UPDATE (3/11/16):

Fans of Saul’s Deli can rest easy, co-owner Karen Adelman assures Inside Scoop that she and co-owner Peter Levitt aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

“We’ve always looked to the future, so it seemed like a natural thing to think about,” says Adelman.

Since neither Adelman or Levitt have children to pass the business onto the next generation, and really do want to see the space continue to thrive as a Jewish deli, it’s important to them to find the right person to pass along the business to.

“It makes us sad to think of it not existing,’ says Adelman, “(we’d) rather have it stay a deli for sure.”

A few years back, they even stealthily listed a handful of other deli owners in their wills to take over the restaurant. (They have since changed their wills because they didn’t think it would be fair to drop such a bomb out of the blue on the unsuspecting people.)

They are currently exploring options and entertaining inquiries. Adelman says that in a perfect world, they’d find the right person, spend a good deal of time grooming them and then eventually step back.

As far as what criteria the “right person” should have:

Adelman says that they should have experience in both back-of-the-house cooking, as well as front-of-house skills. A strong understanding of Jewish culture and deli is a must, though the person doesn’t have to be Jewish, notes Adelman. It should also be someone young enough and excited enough to handle such a rigorous high-volume restaurant.

And if they can’t find the right fit, Adelman says she and Levitt may just continue to stick around.

“Luckily there’s a good long tradition of crabby deli owners; we’ll work our way into that role if we have to.”

For now, the owners are focusing on celebrating Saul’s 30th anniversary this coming September, but if you think you meet the above qualifications and are interested in learning more about the deli business, Adelman says to stop by and introduce yourself.

Saul’s Restaurant and Delicatessen, 1475 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. (510) 848-DELI. saulsdeli.com