A NEW in-demand delicatessen is serving up a winning recipe after a rocky start.

Atit Kumar, 35, runs the Fox and Herb deli in Halstead High Street with his wife, Balwinder, 37.

The couple bought the old Wisebuy store building back in July 2019 and had hoped to open by Christmas.

However, they discovered the building was “half derelict” and required extensive work.

Balwinder used to be an architect and led the work to revamp the old building.

In the meantime the pair opened a downsized "pop-up" gourmet food shop at the building for residents to get a taste of what was to come.

The Fox and Herb was then scheduled to open by Easter but plans stalled again with the sudden arrival of Covid-19.

The deli source their produce from authentic villages in Italy but the pandemic put the couples plans in to lockdown.

The food and drink they imported for opening and could have still used was given away to to NHS staff.

They didn’t open, despite serving food, as they didn’t see themselves as an essential business.

The couple were forced to remortgage their home before finally opening this month.

The deli has now opened and is already proving to be a major hit with customers keen to enjoy the high quality Italian food and drink.

The deli, which has both a seated restaurant and café area and a shop to buy products, is also taking part in the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

As a result, the deli's owners say they are being flooded by customers eager to try out their food, which they say is unique to the area and attracts customers from all over north Essex.

Mr Kumar said: "We had positive feed back from day one - they loved us. We had the MP come down as well the mayor and everyone welcomed us.

"This is exactly the customer base we wanted and Halstead know their taste.

"Other companies have also been welcoming us. The stuff we're selling is nowhere else to be found and people are still shopping elsewhere but were just attracting new faces to the town.

"The whole process has been very expensive. To have a sit down area we needed extra staff and all the prices have quadrupled.

"Absolutely, it's been a rocky road and very draining, nerve-wrecking and the guidelines are always changing.

"I have to say though, we picked the best town."

Despite the hardship, Atit, who also goes by AJ, says it has been "worth it".

The deli are also planning to serve alcohol in the coming months but are currently unable to.