So, who are the people behind The Little Deli?
We're Ian & Jenny Huckstep, proud owners of The Little Deli — the people cooking your food, serving the drinks and generally looking after you while you’re here.
Ian began his professional career in 2005, training at the Michelin-starred Aubergine restaurant and working on to lead the kitchens of many prestigious & award-winning restaurants throughout London & Hertfordshire.
After moving to Hitchin in 2012, Ian & Jenny established a successful catering firm, Appetite Catering Ltd, working as a team delivering high quality private dining in people’s homes - or "fine dining in your slippers" as Jenny calls it. You may also remember us for amazing afternoon teas and home cooked meals deliveries during 2020-2021.
The Little Deli was founded in 2017 in its tiny, perfectly formed home on Hermitage Road. Lovely Lady Louise ran the shop with passion until April 2024, when we took over the keys and brought to it our own special flair. Following an extensive refurbishment ("the door is still in the same place" says Ian) in Spring 2026, we’ve at last made it our own.
The cheese and charcuterie are still very much at the centre of what we do at the Deli, alongside shelves packed with deli-cious discoveries. But now there’s a beating heart to it all: the kitchen, where Ian gets to do what he does best.
Ian cooks. A lot.
Toasties and Reubens for lunch, seasonal plates and sharing boards in the evening, our monthly Tasting Table, and bespoke menus for private dinners and celebrations. And somewhere amongst all that, we still find time for Scotch eggs, quiches, pork pies, cheese scones and whatever else we fancy making that week.
We work with brilliant producers — local wherever we can, British wherever it makes sense, and from further afield when something is simply too good to leave behind.
Most importantly, we want The Little Deli to feel like somewhere you can simply pop in. For cheese, for lunch, for a glass of wine, for dinner — or just to see what’s new.
Ian cooks. Jenny pours the wine. Together, we’ll make you feel right at home.
