For George Montero Jr., Monday’s lunch break at Juneau’s J&J Deli marked the end of an era.
“Forty-three years of being a customer,” he said. “I knew this day was coming, so I’m here.”
The deli, a Juneau staple, closed for good on Monday. Montero said the place has remained much the same since his time as a high school student at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé down the road.
“I’d grab my Bubblicious bubble gum from right over here. Walk around, grab my Coca Cola, grab my corn chips, order my sandwich,” Montero said. “And then I’d head out the door with the rest of the teenagers.”
During Monday’s nostalgia-fueled lunch rush, the shelves were picked over. There was no Bubbalicious or Coca Cola left, but owners Neil and Alma Doogan served up sandwiches all day long.
“We went up until we started running out of food,” Neil Doogan said. “We ran out of lettuce, tomatoes and bread.”
The Doogans ran the store for 13 years, with Alma Doogan manning the counter solo on most days. They decided to shut down so they could focus on Alma’s health.
“But it’s not a relief,” she said. “For me, it’s a sad and a happy thing.”
The Doogans started looking for a new owner back in 2019, but the pandemic deterred potential buyers. Up until last year, they were committed to finding someone who would maintain the deli counter.
It’s not clear yet what the new owners — who will take over in September — have planned for the place. But they will put an end to the classic sandwiches. That will be the first significant menu change since the shop’s original owners, Susan and Jack Woods, introduced their line up of sandwiches back in 1978.
The Woods sold the shop to the Doogans about 13 years ago.
“Susan wouldn’t just sell to anybody. You had to come in and work with her,” Neil said. “But her and Alma hit it off pretty good. And you know, we ended up with the store.”
Shortly after, they started stocking Asian groceries too.
For Alma, Monday was a reminder of her longstanding commitment to the community.
“I’m so thankful,” she said. “Some of the old folks here, too, they stopped by to give me some cards and flowers.”
But Neil thinks the high school kids that visited each day are perhaps the biggest loss for Alma. He said her relationships with those students kept her going, despite her health challenges.
“She becomes like their mother at times. So she has a real attachment to the kids,” he said. “Alma recognizes them even when they’re out of high school, when they come back from college.”
She tends to remember their sandwich orders too.
For Montero, it was the number 8 — roast beef with the works. He says he’ll find a new place for lunch, but it won’t be the same.
“There’s nothing like that sandwich,” he said.
Alma’s favorite — a turkey sandwich — is the most popular order. It’s so good that construction worker Travis See waited more than 40 minutes to get his last one.
“It’s going to be sad,” he said. “I’ll just try not to eat it too fast, and I’ll savor every bite.”
After Monday’s closure, Alma said she plans to sell the remaining grocery stock to her regular customers on a case-by-case basis.