UKRAINIAN VILLAGE — An Italian deli has landed in West Town's Ukrainian Village neighborhood.

A traditional deli counter with space for about 20 diners, Rosie's West Town Deli opened Thursday at 1021 N. Western Ave. in a former laundromat just south of the Empty Bottle music club.

The newest eatery to enter the area since Hash, a brunch spot at 1357 N. Western Ave., Rosie's West Town Deli joins neighbors The Lockdown Bar & Grill at 1024 N. Western Ave., Amish Healthy Foods at 1023 N. Western Ave. and Bite Cafe at 1039 N. Western Ave.

Owned by friends Jeremy Hegg, 25, and Fred Pecoraro, 39, and named for Pecoraro's mother, Rosie, the deli offers several varieties of local and imported cheeses and deli meats priced by the pound, as well as pizza, sandwiches, soups, salads, fresh bread and desserts.

Take-home grocery items include crackers, jams, hot sauces, dried pastas and gluten-free bread.

Pecaroro's family has long operated Sicilia Bakery, at 5939 W. Lawrence Ave. in Portage Park, where Rosie's West Town Deli gets its homemade desserts and bread, Pecaroro said.

Initially having hoped to open in May, the space took almost a year to build out and was chosen because "it's a great location in an up-and-coming area," Hegg said.

The extensive menu offers 10 varieties of sandwiches and paninis as well as eight salads, which incorporate "mamma Rosie's recipes," as well as desserts such as tiramisu, cannoli and biscotti.

Menu highlights include Sicilian and Italian versions of Muffuletta, a hearty sandwich served on a round, somewhat flattened loaf of bread and stuffed with Italian sausage cold cuts (mortadella), ham, salami. Cheeses include canestrato, a Sicilian sheep milk hard cheese, or coppa, a head cheese.

Other menu items include a fried egg sandwich with mozzarella cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and peppers and a Cuban sandwich containing rosemary-cured ham, pulled pork, Swiss cheese, dill pickles and garlic mayo.

Four varieties of Focaccia-style square pizzas (cheese, sausage, pepperoni, spinach and ricotta) are available by the square or as a personal pan pizza.

To wash everything down, there's coffee and espresso as well as a range of beverages available in a cooler including Italian soda brands Stappj and Cedrata, and Classic Coke and Sprite in glass bottles.

While prices aren't set yet on the online menu (or on the chalkboard menu, which hangs behind the counter), Pecoraro said most sandwiches will cost $6.99 while a 12-inch muffuletta, for instance, is $12.

For those who'd like to extend their visit, the deli's website boasts free Wi-Fi and electrical outlets as well as a back patio, which is expected to open soon.

Rosie's West Town Deli, 1021 N. Western Ave. Hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Sunday. For updates, visit the deli's Facebook page.