Elephants Delicatessen
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| Elephants Delicatessen | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Exterior of the flagship store in Portland, Oregon's Northwest District, 2022 | |
  Location within Portland, Oregon | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | April 1979 |
| Location | 700 Southeast Clay Street[1], Portland, Oregon, United States |
| Coordinates | 45°30′41″N 122°39′31″W / 45.5113466°N 122.65851°W |
| Reservations | No |
| Website | elephantsdeli |
Elephants Delicatessen is a local delicatessen and catering chain based in Portland, Oregon, in the United States, established in 1979.[2] There are seven store locations as of March 2026.[3]
Elaine and Jake Tanzer founded the company in April 1979.[4][5][6]
Co-owner[7][8] Anne Weaver was the chief executive officer for 40 years and was replaced by Martin McClanan in June 2025.[9] Scott Weaver is executive chef, as of 2019.[10] For the first 21 years after opening, it operated from a single location.[7]
Elephants had 439 employees, as of 2019.[11]
Kim Stafford has a writing shed with a wall made of boards from the original Elephants.[12]
Reception
Elephants was included in The Oregonian's 2019 "Top Workplaces" list of "99 great places to work" in Oregon and Southwest Washington.[11] The company ranked number 24 in Oregon Business's 2021 list of "100 Best Green Workplaces in Oregon".[13]
Elephants won in the Best Catering Service category of Willamette Week's annual 'Best of Portland' readers' poll in 2020,[14] 2022,[15] and 2024.[16] It ranked second in the same category and won in the Best Deli category in 2025.[17]
