Chicago Blooms, NY Leftovers, BI Mazel
Tuesday, August 7th, 2007
Brad Rubin at the 11 City Diner in Chicago
Lots of little things to talk about after the weekend.
First off, I got a very exicted call from Brad Rubin over at the 11 City Diner in Chicago. Apparently the city is on the cusp of a serious deli revivial. In the next year, 11 City Diner will open two more locations. One will be a large restaurant on the Magnificant Mile of Michigan Ave, with a smaller express location just blocks away. And rest assured that the original at Wabash and 11th isn’t going anywhere. As you’ll read in my post here on Chicago, 11 City is one of the best deli additions to the Chicago landscape in years. Rubin says he’s “Ready to Feed the People”. Bravo.
But wait, there’s more. Rubin has informed me that more Chicago delis are on the march. Max’s Delicatessen of Highland Park, will be expanding their brand by opening three more locations in the suburbs around the city.
But wait, it doesn’t end. Steve’s Deli of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan is going to be opening a Chicago location. The upscale deli, which has a takeout section to rival Dean and Deluca, is going to open accross from the ritzy East Bank Club at this location.
In addition, the diminuative Eppy’s Deli is going to be opening a second location supposedly near Randolph and Franklin.
Finally, the legendary Manny’s Coffee Shop and Deli will be extending their hours into dinner and will open on Sundays! Let’s just hope Danny and Ken Raskin and the legendary slicer Gino won’t loose too much sleep for this gift of extra hours.
So yes kids, the times may be tough for deli lovers, but Chicago’s turnaround offers us a glimmer of hope. Perhaps if it works in the Windy City, it can salvage the deli elsewhere….like New York. Check out two more articles on the deli talk that went down in New York two weeks back:
From Ed Levine’s Serious Eats
From Time Out
Also, the cause of saving the deli in New York is just a subset of saving historic New York in general. Check out Vanishing New York if you really love the Big Apple of yesterday and today…before they auction off parts of Central Park.
Finally, I want to wish a Mazel Tov to my good friends Erica Richler and Bryan Icyk, who got married this past sunday. Mr. and Mrs. Icyk are true deli fans. Brian’s father Henry eats at Centre Street Deli every single day and is their accountant. For his bachelor party we ate an inordinate amount of karnatzel and meats. So there was no surprise that they had carving tables of Montreal smoked meat, corned beef, and roasted salami at their reception. The lineups went around the synagogue, which is more than I can say for the sushi stand. Jewish food at a Jewish wedding…revolutionary! Mazel kids, you’ve blessed your union in nitrates and mustard. May the meats set you free.
New York Times: Summary of the Deli Conference
Thursday, August 2nd, 2007As I previously mentioned here, a conference went on this past weekend in which a selection of New York delicatessen experts met at the Museum of the City of New York to discuss the past, present and future of the Jewish delicatessen. While I wasn’t able to attend, I was sent the great summary of the talk done by the New York Times, thanks to my friend and journalist Steve Viuker.
Something to Nosh On: Here’s the Skinny on Jewish Delis
by Sewell Chan
Every aspect of the Jewish delicatessen — from the declining popularity of kishka to the rise of online sales to the gentrification of the Lower East Side — was touched upon at a panel discussion before a standing-room-only crowd Tuesday night at the Museum of the City of New York. References to pitcha (calf’s foot jelly, an old delicacy) and the long-gone Garden Cafeteria drew knowing and nostalgic sighs. The owners of three legendary Jewish eateries spoke.
Matthew Goodman, the author of “Jewish Food: The World at Table,” moderated the panel, held in conjunction with the exhibition “The Jewish Daily Forward: Embracing an Immigrant Community,” on view through Nov. 25. Despite talk of a revival, the number of Jewish delis has fallen precipitously in the post-World War II era, a theme that dominated the discussion.
The food historian Joel Denker began his presentation by invoking Richard F. Shepard, a New York Times reporter who has since died and who once said, “I love Jewish food, but when you eat, 72 hours later, you’re hungry again.”
…CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE ENTRY…
An Empire in Brooklyn: Empire National Meats
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007
Few people know this, but smack dab in the middle of hipster haven Williamsburg, Brooklyn is one of New York’s finest makers of Kosher delicatessen products. Empire National is a family operation, run by Eddie Weinberg and his wife Karen, and in a city that is increasingly manufacturing its deli further and further afield, Empire National is a blessed relic…just over the river from Manhattan, blocks from the L train, right in the midst of the city’s most exciting neighborhood. For those of you New Yorkers that love Kosher deli, it is nothing short of a blessing.
Eddie’s grandfather Hugo Weinberg moved to New York from Germany shortly before the war, and used his skills as a butcher to open his own kosher butcher and saussage making operation in the Bronx. For three decades it served the vast Jewish communities there, until a fire eventually destroyed the place and forced Empire National to move to the then desolate and industrial Williamsburg section of Brooklyn.
Now, the Bronx is the downtrodden area while Williamsburg has become one of the hottest hoods in New York…one with a huge population of Jews, ranging from younger photographers and artists to some of the largest Hassidic communities in the world. Amidst this…the vintage stores and tiny synagogues, Eddie and Karen and their employees turn out incredible barrel cured pastrami, gorgeous corned beef, and some of the finest tongue anywhere. They supply deli meats to some of the finest delicatessens in New York, including Liebman’s in the Bronx, the former 2nd Ave Deli (and likely the new incarnation as well), and Ben’s Best in Queens. They also make great hot dogs, which you may have eaten from a pushcart somewhere in the steaming city. In a nation where delis have been forced to choose between ultra-orthodox and ultra-expensive glatt kosher meat (which many find inferior), and non-kosher meat, the niche that an old fashioned kosher producer like Empire National has is crucial.
Best of all, you can buy direct from the factory . So if you’re out reading VICE magazine while listening to the Bloc Party, be sure to swing on over to the corner of Grand and Berry and pick up some Empire National hot dogs, tongue or salami from Eddie or Karen…seriously, what could be more ironic than that?
123 Grand St
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 384-7400
1-800-339-6566
www.empirenational.com
