Soon to be on the road again
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010Hey friends.
Just when you thought you missed out on your chance to hear me speak, meet me, and have your book signed during the tour…despair not.
I’m heading back out on the road in a few weeks, hitting up some spots East and a few out West.
It’s all on the Calendar Page
Jan 24th: Congregation Neve Shalom. Metuchen, NJ 10:00 AM
Jan 26th: Gershman Y, Philadelphia, PA. 7:00 PM (with spread by Famous 4th Street Deli)
Jan 28th: San Francisco JCC. San Francisco, CA 8:00 PM
Feb 2nd: Kenny and Zuke’s. Portland, OR 6:00 PM
Feb 3rd: I Love New York Deli. Seattle, WA
RIP: Sid Starkman
Monday, January 11th, 2010Sad news from Toronto a few weeks back that I’ve just heard now. Sid Starkman, the past President of the Chicago 58 provisions company, has passed away after a battle with Cancer.
He died on December 29th.
If you’re a deli lover in Toronto, it’s impossible to even state the place that Chicago 58’s meats have in your life. I grew up eating their salamis, their corned beef, their pickled tongue. It is a family run, family owned deli company, and that’s sadly rare in this day and age. Sid will be missed.
Online donations in his honor can be made to the Sid Starkman Memorial Fund
or c/o The Benjamin Foundation
3429 Bathurst Street, Toronto
M6A 2C3 (416) 780-0324
You can sign the online guestbook here
Katz runs for LT Gov and Washgal’s Brisket in DC
Thursday, January 7th, 2010Two cool pieces from news reports that are damn interesting today:
Photo credit: Ricardo B. Brazziell/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
First, Marc Katz’s, the brass, bald owner of Katz’s Deli in Austin, Texas, is running for Lieutenant Governor of the Lone Star State.
Seriously.
Says the Austin Statesman:
Austin deli king Marc Katz said Wednesday that his family would pour millions of its own money into his campaign for lieutenant governor.
How many millions? That detail Katz will announce Friday, he said before filing the paperwork with the Texas Democratic Party to run for the party’s nomination.
So far, the only other Democrat to file for the statewide seat is former Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle, who Katz complimented as a top-notch candidate.
The eventual nominee will likely face Republican incumbent David Dewhurst in November.
Katz directed his harshest criticism at Dewhurst, rather than his primary foe, and jokingly unveiled a new sandwich named after the incumbent.
“The Davey Dewhurst sandwich is very starched, very white bread stuffed with baloney,” Katz quipped.
Yep, that’s Texas for you. Too bad this came two years after writer and “Texas Jewboy” Kinky Friedman ran for Governor.
Photo credit: James M. Thresher For The Washington Post
And in the political capital of the nation, a seriously interesting sandwich is available at Washgal’s, based, apparently, on Montreal Smoked Meat, though braised in wine! (more…)
I’m back and ready for a fight
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
Hey everyone!
Happy New Year. Mexico was awesome. The surf was up. And tacos remain tasty.
Now I’m back in NYC and ready to rumble. Tomorrow night is debate night, and I’m taking on filmmaker Yura Dashevsky at Lolita Bar at 8pm.
The topic: Is Katz’s the best deli? Yura says yes. I say no.
Yura should know. He’s chronicled Katz’s for his upcoming documentary Katz’s That’s All.
But I’m no slouch either, having eaten at more delis than most men. So it should be a fun little food fight. And after, the whole crew is heading to Katz’s to taste for themselves.
The event is organized by Todd Seavey and moderated by Michael Evanchik.
Should be a lot of screaming Jews and pastrami jokes. Come on out.
Also, tomorrow AM, check out East Village Radio’s Hella Fabulous Show at 9am. I’ll be on and taking calls. If you happen to walk on 1st Ave at 1st, knock on the glass and wave to me.
One last interview and then I’m Surfin’
Friday, December 18th, 2009Hola Amigos
It’s been an amazing year, what with the book, the book tour, and all the great press.
But now it’s time for a break. I’m off to Mexico tomorrow for some sun, sand, surf, and fish tacos. See you in the New Year, and if you celebrate Christmas, may it be a merry one.
Wait…one final interview though. A great podcast with former Torontonian Mary Ambrose, who talked with me in my deluxe hotel room in San Francisco at the start of my tour. It’s on the New America Now program, and it’s a delight. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE MP3
And now…for the surfing.
Amazon’s #4 Best Food Lit Book of 2009, plus a view of Michigan’s Onion Roll Deli
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009
Thank you Amazon’s editors. You’ve blessed Save the Deli as the #4 best Food Lit Book of 2009. Gracias.
Check out the Amazon page to see how it stacks up against the rest.
Also, check out this great audio/photo essay from the Onion Roll deli in Royal Oak, Michigan. Owner Alex Yushkovsky seems like a great guy.
27302 Woodward Avenue
Royal Oak, MI 48067-0927
(248) 545-9804
A Blintz I’ll Mourn, plus a dirty podcast with Carolla
Monday, December 14th, 2009
photo courtesy Midtown Lunch
Oh what I’d do for a Channukah miracle. I just found out some tragic news from last week. The Diamond Dairy, a much beloved glatt kosher dairy restaurant in New York’s Diamond District, has closed. Most of you have probably never heard of or been to this ‘gem’. That’s because it’s found in the rear of a diamond exchange, perched above the stone traders on a glassed in balcony, a haven of gefilte fish and pea soup amidst the tummult of capitalism.
I only went once. Back in June, soon after I got engaged, I went with my fiancee’s best friend Rebecca to pick out a ring. We spend the better part of the morning haggling over stones and settings, our heads filled with karat sizes and clarity numbers…until we ran away to the Diamond Dairy to ponder our choices. I had no idea what I was doing, but everything came together over a trio of the finest cheese blintzes I’ve ever eaten. Most blintzes are fat and burst out their farmer’s cheese upon the first touch. The blintzes at Diamond Dairy were long and thin, like rolled crepes, and the ratio of cheese to crisp blintz was just sublime. I really regret not trying the homemade gefilte fish. It was supposedly amazing.
I normally don’t write about dairy places here. It’s a fleishig (meat based) space. But this is special and will be sorely missed. Alef ha Sholem Diamond Dairy.
Now, for something completely different, feel free to download my podcast interview on the Adam Carolla show. Just a warning. It’s got a lot of pretty crude language and is NSFW (not safe for work). Here’s another link.
Also, let’s not forget that Channukah is still on and Christmas is rapidly approaching. Click here or on the banner above to buy someone you love a copy (copies???) of Save the Deli.
Fresser’s Pastrami Truck hits LA’s streets
Thursday, December 10th, 2009Very cool news coming out of LA. A pastrami truck is hitting the streets of that pastrami and motor vehicle loving city! What a perfect shidduch. I’ve been waiting for a pastrami truck for ages. Thought it would happen in NYC, but LA got the scoop on this. Young deli fanatics: if you want a way into the business on the cheap, this is the future.
It’s called Fresser’s, and it looks pretty basic. The headline item is pastrami, the rest is made up of sandwiches and protein bowls with mashed potatoes. Not much info besides this. The menu’s below. The blog is here. You can follow on twitter here (more…)
Passing of a great deli man: Arnold Dworkin
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009
Sad news today. Arnold Dworkin, the gregarious deli man who headed up Kaufman’s Bakery and Deli in Skokie, Il, passed away yesterday.
Arnold had been ill for the past several years, and the deli was (and remians) in the hands of his daughter Bette and wife Judy.
He will be missed.
The funeral will be on Thursday, at 11:00 a.m. at Am Yisrael Congregation, 4 Happ Road, Northfield, IL.
For the shiva, please call 847-835-2081
Alef Ha Sholem Arnold. You brought joy and corned beef on rye into the lives of many.
As always, the best tribute to the man is through his deli. Please pass by for a visit.
Artie’s is changing hands
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
According to Crain’s New York Business, Artie’s delicatessen, on the Upper West Side, is changing ownership.
Says Crain’s:
Alicart Restaurant Group, which owned Artie’s, as well as six other restaurants, including four Carmine’s, sold the deli to Tuzia Feldman, who signed a 15-year lease at the deli’s current 2290 Broadway location.
It quotes Mr. Feldman as wanting to open three or four more Artie’s in New York. So there could be more deli on its way New Yorkers!
I’d welcome it. Artie’s is a pretty darn tasty place. Especially the baked goods and the brisket Reuben.
www.arties.com
2290 Broadway (at 83rd)
New York, NY 10024
