‘Letterman’s’ beloved Hello Deli bids farewell

Say goodbye to Hello Deli.

The beloved West 53rd Street sandwich shop made famous by the “Late Show with David Letterman,” is closing its doors after 31 years.

“It has been a heck of an adventure,” owner Rupert Jee — who appeared on the show over 400 times — told The Post on Thursday.

“The office workers were extremely loyal, the ‘Late Show’ fans were amazing. We got the best of both worlds.”

Jee, 66, and his business partner May Chin, announced the news on social media on March 18 and are waiting to find the right buyer. There is no asking price, but the pair is accepting offers.

“We’re going to pick and choose. I want someone who really has an appreciation for that area and sees that potential,” he said

Letterman moved his show into the Ed Sullivan Theater, which is located in the same building as the deli, in 1993, two years after Jee purchased the store, for less than $50,000.

The next month, Letterman featured the deli on its “Let’s Meet the Neighbors” segment.

“I told the writers, ‘Please don’t come in. I’m deathly afraid of being on television,’” Jee recalled.

That same night, Letterman invited him on the show, where Jee received a standing ovation.

About a year later, he was asked to start playing pranks on unsuspecting New Yorkers with an earpiece so Letterman could tell him what to say and do.

“After I think my third or fourth appearance, they had me join the union, probably the first deli owner ever to join the acting union,” he said.

The Upper West Side native quickly became a fan favorite and was given his own segment, “Fun with Rupert.”

“Dave always joked that whenever they were out of ideas, they’d come to the deli,” he said.

In one of his infamous practical jokes, he worked as a waiter at a restaurant on the corner of Seventh Avenue and 53rd Street.

He made faux paus like asking a customer if she wanted fresh ground pepper on her sandwich and serving water with his finger in the glass.

“That one was what really put me on the map,” he said. “That was a classic. People love that one.”

Jee was even flown first class to cities such as Los Angeles and Miami to film his skits.

The cops were called on him “many times,” including once in Beverly Hills.

“We went to one of these posh stores and they obviously didn’t think I was funny and panicked because they thought I was a nut,” he said.

Even after the “Late Show” crew explained it was a joke, the officers were not understanding.

“They pretty much said, ‘You don’t ‘f’ in this area,’” Jee recalled. “And so we drove off and we bothered people from another area.”

“Fun with Rupert” lasted for four years “until this rent-a-car manager [a few blocks away from the deli] got pissed at us and came out with a knife to threaten my security guy.”

But there was also a lot of love directed at Jee. Although he wasn’t interested in pursuing them —  the deli man has had plenty of dating opportunities.

“For lack of a better word. I’ve been hit on many times,” he confessed.

Women showed up at the deli to ask him out, while others sent emails.

“Those are the scary ones,” he said. “One person wrote something like, ‘I would like to know more about you. Actually, I really want to know a lot more about you.’”

Although the curtain closed on the “Late Show” in 2015, one of Jee’s bestselling sandwiches remained the “Letterman” — made with ham, turkey, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sweet pepper and oil and vinegar — which Dave ordered on whole wheat.

But Letterman wasn’t always a fan of his eponymous menu item.

When he first heard its ingredients, “He said, ‘I would not touch it in million years,’” Jee said.

Jee doesn’t keep in touch with Letterman and assumed he’d have no interest in purchasing the deli.

“I wish. I doubt it,” he said. “He’s too busy with Netflix.”