Selma’s Bakery & Deli

Selma’s is truly a special place that must be experienced, and while the bakery items are excellent, the food is truly amazing. We like to stock up on their food to replace home cooked meals when time is limited. The green beans, meatloaf, curry chicken and hummus are just a few of our favorites. Quality food that’s prepared by hand, with quality ingredients that taste amazing, is not easy to find. Let Selma’s do the cooking, and you just enjoy!

Delicious pastries! They had a peanut butter cup that was to die for. The service was great. If you want to satisfy your sweet tooth, this is the place.

A friend and I pick out different restaurants to have lunch at on a regular basis. I chose this one and they have the best wraps I have ever had. I know there is a Mediterranean name for it, but it was the chicken wraps with lettuce, and other veggies. We also treated ourselves to a pastry after lunch, and they were fresh and great. The place is very clean, doesn’t smell like a grungy old diner or that fried food smell. I plan on coming back again in the very near future with my wife as she is gluten free and they have things she can eat.
Not sure why the other review said to go to a place a block away, that place is so dirty, I won’t ever eat there again. But I guess not everyone appreciates good clean places to eat at.
The owners are very nice and take pride in their business. As a small business owner myself, I appreciate that the owners are actually involved in the operations. Way to go folks!!!

Selma’s Bakery brings some culinary diversity to Gresham. It is located in the heart of the downtown commercial district. There is a vast array of baked items, packaged snacks and beverages. Lots of seating is available in this establishment.
I went here after having gone once before. The wedding cake cookie I had during my first visit had a little too much sugar powder on it, but it was mostly delicious. This time I had a Lebanese pastry which was again really complex, an interesting mix of meat and sauce, though it is not as easy as other bakery items to begin diving into. Prices are at par-​level. I’ll probably be back again. The beverages are expensive at being over two dollars for bottled soda, though the Lebanese pastry at four dollars was good since it included meat. Lots of their pastries are under two dollars.
Try Selma’s if you get the chance.

I’m in pure shock that anyone would give this place anything above 1 star. The worst Mediterranean food I ever ate. Nothing is fresh or made to order. They heat the dry food up in a microwave… Even the pastries are so dry. Very confused why their reviews are so good. If you’re looking for real Mediterranean food, Nicholas is a block away. Never coming here again!

Friendly knowledgeable staff, authentic food, and very tasty, have only had the bakery goods, but everything looked good

Great friendly service. My husband had a gyro and loved it. I had the chicken Parmesan wrap which was very yummy as well.

These folks are very nice. Food is pretty good. Well priced but a bit overrated at 4.5 stars.

Really good food. They have a good takeout section in the deli with prepared foods such as hummus, baba ganoush, spanikopita to name a few. Everything is always fresh and that’s just the savory section! They have a great sweet section and bakery as well. Prices are good and the service is so friendly!

Awesome food. Nice staff. First time here, we looked a little confused and the staff offered a full menu and explanation. Very quaint but delicious!

Selma’s is a regular stop for me and my lovely wife. I haven’t had anything that is less than wonderful. My regulars are the tabouli, a green bean dish, chicken and curry rice. But, the several kinds of humus are always wonderful… likely the best humus I’ve ever had.
My kids love her desert case and swear by her baklava. I usually get a macaroon.
The place is also very friendly.
After saying «thank you Selma» and walking back to my office, I find myself thinking «this is how my grandmother would cook if my grandmother was Syrian.» (my grand mother was an Scandinavian cook.)

After three visits, I’m ready to review this wonderful place. However, my reviews are only for take out food, not for eat in.
My sons have therapy in downtown Gresham, and I like to walk the town while they’re in therapy. After passing this place several times and reading their reviews, I decided to give a try. Three visits later, I am SO Pleased.
Like other reviewers say, this place is VERY clean. It is spotless. Even their shelves displaying retail good are scrupulously clean. Another thing – the staff is so friendly. On one visit, I happened to come in to contact with a lady whom I’m assuming is the owner, and she was so pleasant and eager to explain every item I was interested in. My knowledge of Mediterranean cooking is limited, so I appreciated her availability.
What have I tried? The Med salad, the tabbouleh, and the curried chicken and rice. WONDERFUL! All very flavorful and very fresh. The roasted cauli also looked great. Once i’m off my restricted diet, I’m going to dig into the spanikopita, the stuffed grape leaves, and the baklava.
The great thing about offering dishes deli-​style is that you can try a little bit so see if you like them.

Selma’s is a lovely place. I find myself craving the curry chicken, arnibeet (fried cauliflower), spanakopita and garlic humus at least every week. The food is always fresh. The atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming.

This spot is amazing! Can’t believe I haven’t been here sooner. They have home made everything– dishes to desserts!

I’ve been going to Selma’s since 2006 and I never get tired of it! I make a point of going a few times a month. It’s a wonderful family owned and operated business that couldn’t be more friendly or accommodating.
I’ve tried all of the sandwiches/​wraps and you can’t go wrong! There pastries are delicious and I love getting my hummus from them! If you haven’t tried Selma’s you should definitely make the time to do so!

Selma and her family offer top notch customer service, she makes the most excellent homemade food with the freshest ingredients.
And her baked goods, well they are like no other with a ginormous selection to choose from.
Absolutely recommend you stop by to try her mama ghanous she makes herself from scratch. Deliciousiosis!!!

Subpar experience. First, the lights were off except for a few dim lights in the kitchen — presumably to save electricity but it was kinda dark. I ordered a chicken and rice platter based on a yummy lookin photo someone uploaded, and after a long wait my plate finally came but it was a joke! Barely any shredded chicken and nope it wasn’t hiding under the rice.
The whole time there I heard excessive microwave door slams and dings — probably why the few shreds of chicken I had were crunchy on the ends. The lettuce in the included Greek salad was brown too.
Then a lady checked on the table dining next to me, but never me. On the way out, a man held open the door for someone in a wheelchair leaving ahead of me, sending her on her way with pleasantries but looked at me and paused before saying «c’mon»?! Seems that they were nice to regulars but not newbies like me.
At the time of typing this I’m on a nearby bench still hungry, irritated and Unilocaling other places for more food. On the bright side my meal was a biz expense. I love supporting mom n pop type places but Selma’s, «c’mon» you have to do wayyyyy better on multiple levels…

Another victory for Gresham. We went in here today because we wanted gyros, but didn’t want to go all the way to Bonfire for their happy hour. We decided that we’d split a Selma’s gyro instead, and it’s a good thing we did, because their generous portions add up to the same you would get ordering two gyros from Bonfire (we still love Bonfire, but the gyros here are just a bit better in my humble opinion) with the same (or better) price. We also orderd the meat and potato pastry/​pie and it was delicious. Meat pies aren’t my cup of tea usually, but this was absolutely delicious. I wanted to get a taste of the one thing that makes my mind up for me at every mediterranean place– the hummus and pita. The hummus, absolutely delicous. The pita, fantastic. Breaking it down– The food here is amazing. The gyro is one of the best I’ve had anywhere, the pita is great, but I still prefer the pita from Nicholas, and the hummus is just a bit more flavorful than that of Nicholas. Do I prefer one over the other? I’d have to say that Nicholas would be my favorite Gresham date night for the pita and kebabs. But if we’re looking for some fresh delicious items to take home for dinner (Selma’s closes at 6pm) or wanting a delicious lunch, Selma’s would be among our top choices. I cannot wait to go back.
Upon coming into the building the first thought is «wow, it’s extremely clean. Wow, look at those cakes in this case. Wow look at the pastries in THAT case! OMG, all of those salads and goods in that third case. Wow!»… The selection here is wonderful. Not just Gresham wonderful, either. The service is perfect as far as I’m concerned. I don’t need somebody to roll out a red carpet. They’re friendly, not overwhelming, polite, and so very generous. I’m super happy that we know about this place now

Hidden gem alert! This news flash brought to me by, non other than my Gram!
My man and I were up for a visit with her a couple of weeks ago, and she was telling us about this fabu Syrian bakery up in Gresham. Apparently Gram even knows the bakery’s namesake (Selma).
I always forget what a drive it is to Gresham from S.W. Portland, but boy was it worth it! We could hardly contain ourselves: package after package of fresh-​made pitas («Real Middle Eastern, not that those silly Greek ones!» says Gram), dolmas, Turkish coffee (with cardamom!), olives, peppers, kibbi, hummus, spanikopita, unnamed (and new to us) items that were delightful… ah, great lunch/​dinner spot for us.
If you’re in Gresham or just driving by, you should definitely stop. There’s always room for a snack, especially when it’s nice and healthy, served by friendly folks.

I posit were this in Portland there would be a line at the counter. But the eponymous effort of owner Selma Khoury and her family, this Middle Eastern food centric bakery and deli may be Gresham’s best kept secret. Now that we’ve found Selma’s, it will be a destination stop for my husband and me in future trips through Gresham.
AUTHENTIC & FAMILY OWNED
Selma has Syrian heritage which one might intuit from the Middle Eastern delights in both bakery and deli case as well as the small Syrian flags shown above the counter in this brightly lit, sparkling, welcoming space. The aroma of good food greets you as you walk in the door. So did, on our visit, a handsome guy behind the counter who I subsequently learned was one of Selma’s sons. From him I learned his mom is involved in all the baking and cooking for the restaurant This is a true family effort with well earned pride of ownership. Those kinds of «mom and pop» businesses are not so much seen these days and they are delightful to discover.
THE DRILL
There are two sparkling glass cases at back of the store, one filled with bakery items and the other with deli items. There is also a menu for sandwiches and other to order food. Order at the counter, pay at the register.
SEATING
If you’re eating in, you can take a seat at one of the many standard height (yahoo) tables with chairs in the light filled room that has lots of windows at the front of the store. More that is yahoo-​worthy is that the tables have ample space between them. No «sardine can» tight seating here.
EATS
There are options for vegans, vegetarians, omnivores and dairy free and gluten free eaters. Middle Eastern options are the focal point for the food delights served here but there are other choices too. As example, cannoli in the refrigerated take away case and a curried chicken and rice in the deli case that might lean more Indian.
This is a scratch kitchen, everything is cooked and baked in house, with Selma in charge. High quality ingredients are evident in the outcomes of both sweet and savory dishes. We bought some sweet treats to eat in and some to take away, and savory dishes to take home for dinner. Everything was delicious. In particular the Bird’s Nest pastries, a traditional treat of sweetened pistachios in a sweet phllyo shell, which are one of my favorites and these are the best I’ve ever had. We also loved the date filled cookies and the fruitcake (seriously) with dates and walnuts.
We selected jalapeño hummus and mamaghanoush (Selma’s spicy version of eggplant spread babaghanoush) as well muhammra, a red bell pepper and walnut spread that his particularly cumin rich in this version, as well as tabbouleh and karnabeet (called arnibet here I think) which is fried cauliflower served with a bright lemony tahini sauce.
There are also sandwich options available and we heard Selma makes felafel too, although we didn’t try it on this visit. Next time.
COFFEE
What goes better with Middle Eastern sweet treats than coffee? (Maybe mint tea?) The coffee served here in the pump pot at the beverage station was nice and hot, so thumbs up for that, but a bit more subdued a brew than is my preference. Next time I’d opt for a Turkish coffee or an espresso beverage as they have both.
THIS N THAT:
1) PARKING: On street and in a free lot that had ample open space across the street. Try finding ample and free parking in Portland near a great deli /​bakery like this. Just sayin… this is worth the trip for that reason too.
2) ACCESSIBILITY: Level in and throughout. Standard height seating. Ample floor space.
3) CATERING: They do it.
4) NEIGHBORS: Wells Fargo bank next door.