Get to Know a Serious Eater.

hellskitchenguy's Profile

Website:

Location:

About:

Favorite foods:

Last bite on earth:

The Ten Most Recent Comments By hellskitchenguy

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

I lived through the horrific 70s and I get a little tired of people bemoaning the old NYC. It never was like a Woody Allen movie or a Molly Goldberg comedy. The city is much pleasanter now than it ever was. There's still plenty of room for middle- and even lower-class families. yes, Manhattan has gotten expensive. So what's new? I'm a freelance writer who managed on no salary to buy a nice apartment, and I resent when people ask for a crash to "return" the city to its "quaint" past.

Then again, I'm a vegetarian, so what do I know from delis?

hellskitchenguy at 12:13PM on 08/06/07

Responses to Comments by hellskitchenguy

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

Reading about all these delis is making me hungry. But for me delis are about something more than food: they're about nostalgia. Normally, I find all nostalgia corrosive and to be avoided, but nostalia for the deli is irresistable and not all that bad for you--like a pastrami sandwich once every other month: it won't kill you. So, to indulge... Ed's recent musings about delis past reminded me of the Strathmore Deli on Northern Blvd (I think) in Manhasset on Long Island. My parents liked it because they knew the owner who had worked (or partly owned?) the Turnpike Deli in Forrest Hills (which was a GREAT deli). The owner (I wish I could remember his name) was married to the woman who worked the cash register. There were numbers on her arms. "From the camps," my parents informed me quietly. At the time, it didn't seem out-of-the-ordinary for me to meet a Holocaust survivor. This was the Sixties and WWII was more recent history for my teenage self than the War in Vietnam is for today's young people. ...These are odd images to indulge when discussing delis, but my memories do point to the uniquely Jewish (and perhaps vanishing) sense of community one felt in a local deli when I was growing up. Everything felt famliar and family-like...in the good and bad sense of those phrases. I loved the food, of course, but the experience of going to the deli, was about much more than food. But honestly, I could go on for hours (or paragraphs)...so intense are the memories evoked by Ed's piece.

Mickey at 1:00PM on 10/27/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

As all the old, modest buildings are replaced with shining towers and the people who have been here for generations and who defined this place are priced out of their neighborhoods, pretty soon there will be nothing left of the NY we know.

Those "modest" buildings replace other buildings and the people who have been here for generations replaced other people who had been there for generations.

People who lament for economic hardship and crime to preserve some silly ideal, that very likely never existed, are just as bad, if not worse, than the "white elites" who "prey" on the culture. You'd rather people suffer so you can enjoy some kitsch culture.

SAMiller at 9:36PM on 10/23/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

If you want good rye bread go to:

Moishe's

It is on Second Avenue and 6th Street.

It makes real Jewish Rye.
And it is Kosher as opposed to the fake delis (like Arties, Sarge's, Stage, Carnegie, Katz) that people keep talking about. People who think Carnegie and Katz's are real deli probably also think that a McDonald's bacon and egg bagel is a real bagel.

nycdawg at 3:00PM on 10/23/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

Why isn't Sables Smoked Salmon included in the list of appetizing stores? The place is awesome.

1489 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10075
(212) 249-6177

arstein at 4:42PM on 10/22/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

CapeCodBob: Rolled beef is still available at Sarge's, the only place i beleive you can find it now. it is always fantastic

markcohen at 8:11PM on 08/15/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

I recommend all true deli fiends to check out my site http://www.savethedeli.com which is specifically dedicated to this most important cause. Ess Gezunt!

mutant4 at 9:26AM on 08/07/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

"The city is much pleasanter now than it ever was."

yes, as pleasanter [sic] as a lobotomy.

seyo at 4:04PM on 08/06/07

From Serious Eats

The Future of the Jewish Deli

As newlyweds, we moved to the edge of Morningside Heights (100th and Amsterdam) in the mid-70's. I have no nostalgia at all for that era...the near collapse of the city's economy, crime, garbage strikes, etc. That all said, it's a very different place now and like seyo and others, I mourn the loss of much of what made NYC great.

On the other hand, I recently ate at Sammy's for the first time in years. It was expensive and I could hear my veins clogging with every bite...but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Finally, I still love Sarge's at 36th and 3rd. It's a treat I save for a couple of times per year...just don't tell my internist :)

Scottzel at 1:58PM on 08/06/07