Harold’s tower of meat
If you can’t tell already, I really love Jewish deli. But I don’t love huuuuuge sandwiches, a la Carnegie or Stage heights. To me it’s simply a waste, and unless you’re participating in some sort of competitive eating binge, I just don’t see the sense in devouring a massive column of pastrami. If I had the ability to dislocate my jaw like a snake and digest it over the course of months…well, maybe I’d love it. But I’d rather just have one or two Schwartz’s smoked meat sandwiches, which, though just a 1/3 of a Carnegie sandwich, taste infinitely better.
But still, I have to respect someone who will ingest this sandwich that appeared in the New York Times today:
Photo: Sylwia Kapuscinski for The New York Times
It comes from a New Jersey deli called Harold’s, and it is a veritable temple of deli excess. This hefty baby is 26 ounces of meat, which is almost two goddamn pounds. It’s sick, obscene, and utterly coma inducing, but if someone is going to pony up and eat that, my hat goes off to them.
Harold’s Famous Deli
www.haroldsfamousdeli.com
3050 WOODBRIDGE AVENUE, EDISON, NJ 08837
TELEPHONE: 732-661-9100 FAX:732-661-1605
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March 28th, 2008 at 10:39 am
I am -so- glad to hear you say this. Anyone who has savored the nice medium smoked meat Sandwiches at Schwartz’ knows they’re at the top of the heap, if you’ll indulge me.
Having said that, though, I think for the price some delicatessen’s don’t deliver enough bang for the buck. You always feel a bit ripped off - so although sick excess which makes you sick is worthless, a nice “ungashtapt” sandwich makes the gluttons among us GOOD and happy. It’s particularly fun to be compelled to remove some of the layers of meat and much on those separately to make the sandwich size such that you can even bite into it!
And thanks for recognizing Schwartz’, btw. There are still a lot of ill-informed Americans who think of smoked meat as “American Pastrami” - which it most assuredly is not.
March 28th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
You order that sandwhich and SHARE! Harolds is awsome..go there for breakfast and get a blueberry pancake — that is A - single pancake and you’ll have enough for the next day!
April 1st, 2008 at 12:03 pm
I am a good friend of Harold and his food is as delicious as it is big. By far he has the bigest portion than any deli in the world.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
the quality at Harold’s is as outstanding as the quantity; the trick is not to eat too much…..In adition to the fleishich; the potato pancakes and blintzes are also outstanding… the best I’ve every had… and they accomodatingly wrap everything for a second or third meal……shmuelik
February 5th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Harold Jaffe, owner of Harold’s is the best thing to happen to Pastrami, ever! His heart is as big as his sandwiches and he always greets me with a smile a handshake and some Rugelach! The food is tip top, the service is sharp and the pickle bar is heaven on a tray. The workers at Carnegie, Katz’s, 3rd Ave Deli, they all go to Harold’s when they want good deli! You should too. And say Hi to Harold as you gaze at the monster cakes in the cooler.
long Live Harold’s! The ones in Edison and East Brunswick, anyway. The one on Rt 46 is an impostor using the name.
February 18th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
I doubt if any of the workers at Carnegie, Katz’s or 3rd avenue would ever go to Harold’s.
I do understand the rudeness of deli workers, but Harold himself takes it one step further & because of this his East Brunswick N.J. location is now closed..
Long live Good Deli’s!!!
March 27th, 2010 at 5:11 am
Interesting article, thank you. It’s good to read something related to digest it that makes sense. I’m going to bookmark your site and come back to it.