iamaneviltaco

This came up at random on my forum, so I figured I'd make a little post about it. I grew up in New York. We, arguably, have the best delis on the planet. An argument could probably be made about the nouveau delis that are emerging nationwide, but I find the experience of eating at an authentic jewish style ny deli to be one of the most unique culinary experiences you can have while not breaking the bank. The hallmarks of this style of deli are high quality meats and cheeses on enormous sandwiches. for a decently low price. To be sure the deli you're at is authentic, here are a few things to look for.

-Halva

It's a type of mediterranean candy that's usually vaguely hard to find outside of traditional delis and the occasional grocery store. Rather tasty, and with a totally unique texture.

-Nova Lox

Screw smoked salmon. I know that's technically what it is, but a real deli will call it by it's traditional name. A bagel with lox and cream cheese is a new york classic, and a deli that calls it what it is will most likely make it better than other places. Nova, in particular, is higher quality than most of the traditional smoked salmon you can find at lower quality delis. Bonus points if they cut their own.

-Reubens/Rachels

A real classic deli will pride themselves on this sandwich. Either corned beef or pastrami, swiss cheese, thousand island dressing, and either sauerkraut (reuben) or cole slaw (rachel) on rye bread. The whole is greater than the sum of it's parts, and a real quality deli will make this sandwich better than anywhere else, and brag about it. I'm a firm believer that every style of food has a hallmark that you can use to guage the quality of the rest of the food. chinese have their dumplings, indian has it's curry, italian has it's marinara. You can always trust that if these are done well, the rest of the food will be as well.

-Sassy Counter Help


I don't know what it is, but I find if the people behind the counter are sassy and not afraid to mess with the customers, the food as a rule is usually better. Especially for this type of deli, there's a certain type of attitude that you expect from the people behind the bar. Part of the full experience of a ny style deli is going in, being confused as hell about what to order, and giving/getting a decent ribbing from the people behind the counter. Sassy staff builds a stronger rapport, in my opinion, and if the staff isn't afraid to mess with the customers it brings the feel of the ny deli to life.

-Tongue

Bear with me on this. You don't have to eat it, but a good deli *always* offers grilled beef tongue. It's a hallmark of the genre of cuisine. I've personally never eaten it, but I've never eaten at a deli that carried it and not thoroughly enjoyed the food.

That's basically it. If you find a deli that contains most of these traits, chances are you're at a pretty good deli. If you manage to luck into finding all of them, frequent the hell out of that place. The classic deli is starting to be replaced by some of the more modernized nouveau delis, and while they are a decent experience at times, the traditional deli is a slice of americana that's in real danger of going extinct.