Carnegie Deli - New York, NY

Posted By Michael Stern on July 22, 2008 4:00 PM

The aroma of cured deli meats and sour pickles is a dizzying rush when you walk into the Carnegie Deli. A host will point you to the back; and as you walk towards the tables, you pass a counter full of meats and smoked-fish salads behind which sandwiches are made. Salamis hang like a curtain over the counter, adding their garlicky perfume to the air. At the back of the restaurant, or in the adjoining dining room, you will be directed to a place at a table where you sit elbow-to-elbow with strangers.

Forget privacy, peace and quiet when you come here; a Carnegie meal is a down-to-earth communal experience shared by blasé regulars, wide-eyed tourists, and lots of show-biz celebrities (whose pictures line the walls). This is a genuine New York landmark – the quintessential mid-town deli.

Featured in the Woody Allen movie "Broadway Danny Rose," the Carnegie is best known for immense sandwiches made of corned beef, pastrami, brisket, turkey, chopped liver, and triple-decker combinations of ingredients. Beyond sandwiches, the large menu includes blintzes and potato pancakes, gefilte fish and pickled herring, borscht and kreplach soup.

Our favorite thing to eat is the pastrami sandwich. Although purists gripe that the meat is no longer available hand-sliced, we have no complaints about the Carnegie's machine-sliced pastrami. It is mellow and not too zesty, utterly tender and infused with fatty savor. It is ridiculously large – so tall that the top piece of rye bread appears to be merely an afterthought applied to the tower of meat. In fact, it is difficult to eat the ordinary way, by picking it up in your hands and taking a bite. Many customers go at it by piece-by-shred, directly from the plate. To accompany the monumental sandwiches, the Carnegie supplies perfect puckery accouterments – half-sour and sour dill pickles arrayed in silver bowls along the tables.

Aside from the food, one of the pleasures of dining at the Carnegie is eavesdropping, which you do whether or not you want to because you are seated so close to other people. We remember a visit several years ago when one little old lady sitting near us shouted to her friend across the table, "Today I saw the doctor." The sparrow-sized woman actually had to crane her head high to see over her sandwich – a mountain of pastrami combined with an inch-and-a-half of chopped liver sandwiched in rye. "His office is nearby. I make my appointment in the morning, so I can come here when I am through." She expertly hefted half of the mighty sandwich in her two tiny hands, inhaling steam wafting up from the warm pink meat. Before taking that first delicious bite, she proclaimed loud and clear for all the table to hear: "First I have my treatment … then I have my treat!"

Overall Rating

Matzoh Ball Soup

Pastrami Sandwich

Blintzes

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Posted By Karl Carlson on November 6, 2011 9:48 AM

This place is a rip-off and way overpriced. I'll never eat there again.

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Posted By Patricia Beninato on April 13, 2007 6:31 PM

Even though midtown Manhattan now seems to be a mess of mediocre chain restaurants among the neon signs advertising Broadway shows based on Disney movies, the red canopy of the Carnegie Deli is still a beacon for those who crave the authentic New York deli experience. It had been over a decade since my last visit, but walking in felt cozy and familiar, with the scents of cured meats and pickles hanging in the air and the black and white-clad waitstaff swapping quiet gossip on an early Saturday morning--which is one of the few times the place isn't packed.

Although I have nothing against their justifiably legendary sandwiches and their matzoh ball soup is amazing, my favorite meal at Carnegie Deli has always been breakfast, which thankfully they serve all day. A mixed deli omelet (shreds of delectable pastrami and corned beef), pumpernickel toast, and incredible home fries which are actually brown and crispy... nothing better. Oh--and don't forget the cheese blintzes with applesauce! I normally don't like fish, but the novie at Carnegie Deli is one of my few exceptions. Like everything you get here portions are huge; if you ask for cream cheese or butter they bring you globs big enough to choke the proverbial horse. And if you want a piece of their famous cheesecake to top off your breakfast--that is, if you have room and/or are not planning to eat for the rest of the day--the staff is more than obliging. This is one of those places where if you leave hungry, it's your own fault!

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Posted By Wally Day on February 22, 2004 11:55 AM

We had a late supper at the Carnegie Deli on Sunday February 15th. We arrived about 10.15 PM and the place, while not packed, was pretty busy. I ordered a turkey club sandwich and my wife ordered a plain turkey sandwich. A plate of sour and dill (?) pickles soon appeared, followed shortly by our "sandwiches". Mine contained at least a pound of sliced turkey and 8 or 10 strips of bacon. With considerable effort I was able to finish 1/2 of the sandwich. My wife ate about 1/2 of hers. You just can't imagine the size of these sandwiches. Would we go there again? Sure.

I was surprised that they don't accept plastic for payment. I get to NY about once a year and have gotten in the habit of carrying a minimal amount of cash in my wallet. With ATM machines everywhere, cash is never a problem. Luckily though, I had enough $$ with me. Other than that, a very positive experience.

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