Jewish deli

Last updated
Katz's Delicatessen, a popular Jewish deli on the Lower East Side in New York City, has featured prominently in American popular culture and films such as "When Harry Met Sally"'. Katz's Delicatessen 2004.jpg
Katz's Delicatessen, a popular Jewish deli on the Lower East Side in New York City, has featured prominently in American popular culture and films such as "When Harry Met Sally"'.

A Jewish deli, also known as a Jewish delicatessen, is a delicatessen establishment that serves various traditional dishes in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine, and are typically known for their sandwiches such as pastrami on rye, as well as their soups such as matzo ball soup, among other dishes. Most of these establishments are traditionally considered Ashkenazi. Like much of the Jewish cuisine stemming from the period of the Jewish diaspora, the emergence of the Jewish deli developed in accordance with local culture. These days, Jewish delicatessens serve a variety of Jewish dishes. While some delis have full kosher-certification, others operate in a kosher-style, refraining from mixing meat and dairy in the same dish, despite potentially using non-certified ingredients. [1] There are also delis that serve food without adhering to any traditional Jewish dietary restrictions, offering non-Kosher dishes such as the Reuben sandwich.

Contents

Jewish delis feature prominently in Jewish culture, as well as in general American popular culture, particularly in the cities of New York, Chicago and Los Angeles as well as in Canada, especially in Montreal and Toronto. The United Kingdom has also historically been a home to many Jewish delis, especially in the London area. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

In the United States

The origins of the American Jewish delicatessen can be traced back to the wave of German immigration to the United States in the mid 1800s. In the decade spanning from 1850 to 1860 nearly one million Germans immigrated to America, both Jews and non-Jews, with 215,000 Germans arriving in the United States in 1854 alone. [7] Some of these immigrants opened storefronts to make a living, and to offer culturally familiar food to other immigrants. Many of the original establishments were inspired by German Delikatessens, selling beef frankfurters, sauerkraut, cold cuts, dill pickles and liverwurst. [8]

According to American author and professor Ted Merwin, the deli experienced its most significant growth not during the initial wave of immigration, as commonly assumed, but rather during the Interbellum Period. It was during this time that the offspring of Jewish immigrants marked their achievements in America by frequenting delis in the theater district, where they indulged in sandwiches and cheesecake. It was the kosher deli that trailed the Jewish community as they dispersed into the city's outer boroughs, serving as a tangible emblem of their enduring commitment to their cultural heritage. [9]

After the Holocaust, a new Jewish population within the United States would facilitate the reintroduction of these community staples. While upon their arrival many of the post-war Jewish immigrants would work in the meat industry, some business owners would transform their butcher shops into operational delicatessens, something that modern Americans are likely to be familiar with. [10]

As Jewish delis rose in popularity within New York, they became a bridge between second generation Jewish immigrants and their origins. They served as a cultural gathering place for the community. Merwin suggests that the Jewish deli became a secular equivalent of the Synagogue for a generation of Jews who were no longer as interested in attending religious services. [11] The second generation's increased access to deli meats was a sign of growing success, something their parents would not have been able to afford when first arriving to the United States. [10]

Pastrami Sandwich from Katz's Delicatessan, New York City Pastrami-Sandwich.JPG
Pastrami Sandwich from Katz's Delicatessan, New York City

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delicatessen</span> Shop selling cured meats and sausages, expensive cheeses, caviar, or luxury confectionery

Traditionally, a delicatessen or deli is a retail establishment that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessens originated in Germany during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the mid-19th century. European immigrants to the United States, especially Ashkenazi Jews, popularized the delicatessen in U.S. culture beginning in the late 19th century. Today, many large retail stores like supermarkets have deli sections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pastrami</span> Meat preserved by partial drying, seasoning, smoking, and steaming

Pastrami is a food originating from Romania usually made from beef brisket. Later recipes use lamb, pork, chicken or turkey. The raw meat is brined, partially dried, seasoned with herbs and spices, then smoked and steamed. Like corned beef, pastrami was originally created as a way to preserve meat before the invention of refrigeration. One of the iconic meats of Eastern European cuisine as well as American Jewish cuisine and New York City cuisine, hot pastrami is typically served at delicatessen restaurants on sandwiches such as the pastrami on rye.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuisine of New York City</span> Culinary traditions of New York, New York (USA)

The cuisine of New York City comprises many cuisines belonging to various ethnic groups that have entered the United States through the city. Almost all ethnic cuisines are well represented in New York, both within and outside the various ethnic neighborhoods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schmaltz</span> Cooking fat

Schmaltz is rendered (clarified) chicken or goose fat. It is an integral part of traditional Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine, where it has been used for centuries in a wide array of dishes, such as chicken soup, latkes, matzah brei, chopped liver, matzah balls, fried chicken, and many others, either as a cooking fat, spread, or flavor enhancer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canter's</span> Delicatessen in Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Canter's Deli is a Jewish-style delicatessen, opened in 1931 in Boyle Heights, and later moved to the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, California, near the border of West Hollywood, where it is now. It has been frequented by many notable movie stars and celebrities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of Jewish communities around the world

Jewish cuisine refers to the worldwide cooking traditions of the Jewish people. During its evolution over the course of many centuries, it has been shaped by Jewish dietary laws (kashrut), Jewish festivals and holidays, and traditions centred around Shabbat. Jewish cuisine is influenced by the economics, agriculture, and culinary traditions of the many countries where Jewish communities have settled and varies widely throughout the entire world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kosher style</span>

Kosher style refers to foods commonly associated with Jewish cuisine but which may or may not actually be kosher. It is a stylistic designation rather than one based on the laws of kashrut. Generally, kosher-style food does not include meat from forbidden animals, such as pigs and shellfish, and does not contain both meat and milk in the same dish; however if such dish includes meat, it might not be kosher slaughtered. In some U.S. states, the use of this term in advertising is illegal as a misleading term under consumer protection laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kosher restaurant</span> Restaurant serving food permissible in Jewish dietary law

A kosher restaurant or kosher deli is an establishment that serves food that complies with Jewish dietary laws (kashrut). These businesses, which also include diners, cafés, pizzerias, fast food, and cafeterias, and are frequently in listings together with kosher bakeries, butchers, caterers, and other similar places, differ from kosher-style businesses in that they operate under rabbinical supervision, which requires that the laws of kashrut, as well as certain other Jewish laws, including the separation of meat and dairy must be observed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roast beef sandwich</span> Sandwich made from roast beef

The roast beef sandwich is a sandwich that is made out of sliced roast beef or sometimes beef loaf. It is sold at many diners in the United States, as well as fast food chains, such as Arby's, Rax Roast Beef, and Roy Rogers Restaurants. This style of sandwich often comes on a hamburger bun and may be topped with barbecue sauce and/or melted American cheese. The roast beef sandwich also commonly comprises bread, cold roast beef, lettuce, tomatoes, and mustard, although it would not be uncommon to find cheese, horseradish, fresh/powdered chili pepper and even in some cases red onion. Roast beef sandwiches may be served hot or cold, and are sometimes served open faced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montreal-style smoked meat</span> Style of smoked meat corned beef created by Jewish immigrants in Montreal, Quebec

Montreal-style smoked meat, Montreal smoked meat or simply smoked meat in Quebec is a type of kosher-style deli meat product made by salting and curing beef brisket with spices. The brisket is allowed to absorb the flavours over a week. It is then hot smoked to cook through, and finally is steamed to completion. This is a variation on corned beef and is similar to pastrami.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuisine of the Mid-Atlantic states</span>

The cuisine of the Mid-Atlantic states encompasses the cuisines of the states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, as well as Washington, D.C. The influences on cuisine in this region of the United States are extremely eclectic owing to the fact that it has been and continues to be a gateway for international culture as well as a gateway for new immigrants.

The Jewish-American patronage of Chinese restaurants became prominent in the 20th century, especially among Jewish New Yorkers. It has received attention as a paradoxical form of assimilation by embracing an unfamiliar cuisine that eased the consumption of non-kosher foods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pastrami on rye</span> Classic American deli sandwich

Pastrami on rye is a sandwich that was popularized in the Jewish kosher delicatessens of New York City. It was first created in 1888 by Sussman Volk, who served it at his deli on Delancey Street in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Jewish cuisine</span> Food, cooking, and dining customs associated with American Jews

American Jewish cuisine comprises the food, cooking, and dining customs associated with American Jews. It was heavily influenced by the cuisine of Jewish immigrants who came to the United States from Eastern Europe around the turn of the 20th century. It was further developed in unique ways by the immigrants and their descendants, especially in New York City and other large metropolitan areas of the northeastern U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish rye bread</span> Bread commonly used in Jewish deli sandwiches

Jewish rye bread is a type of rye bread commonly made in Jewish communities. Due to the diaspora of the Jews, there are several geographical variations of the bread. The bread is sometimes called sissel bread or cissel bread, as sissel means caraway seed in Yiddish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brisket (Jewish dish)</span> Ashkenazi Jewish dish

Brisket is a popular Ashkenazi Jewish dish of braised beef brisket, served hot and traditionally accompanied by potato kugel, latkes, and/or matzo ball soup. It is commonly served for Jewish holidays such as Hanukkah, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, and Shabbat. It is commonly found in Jewish communities worldwide, though it is most commonly associated with Jews in the United States, where it has been considered the most important and iconic Jewish main course since the early 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine</span> Cooking traditions among Ashkenazi Jews

Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine is an assortment of cooking traditions that was developed by the Ashkenazi Jews of Central, Eastern and Northern Europe, and their descendants, particularly in the United States and other Western countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Attman's Delicatessen</span> Jewish deli in Maryland

Attman's Delicatessen is a Jewish delicatessen in Maryland with branches in Baltimore and Potomac. The deli serves Ashkenazi staples including corned beef, pastrami, brisket, Reuben sandwiches, knishes, latkes, pickles, kugel, and whitefish salad.

References

  1. "What is Kosher Style?". My Jewish Learning.
  2. "Montreal's Jewish Food Traditions, Mapped". 27 February 2017.
  3. Solomonov, Michael. Israeli Soul.
  4. Marks, Rabbi Gil. The Encyclopedia of Jewish Food.
  5. The Ratner's Cookbook.
  6. "In St John's Wood, a 79-year-old Jewish Deli has become a culinary status symbol". 13 October 2022.
  7. "The Germans in America". Library of Congress . Retrieved 2023-10-17.
  8. Lalomia, Felicia (2022-11-02). "The Jewish Deli Is An NYC Icon. Here's How It's Changed". Delish.
  9. "The history of an iconic food in Jewish American culture". NYU Press.
  10. 1 2 "1. According to the Customer's Desire", Pastrami on Rye, New York University Press, pp. 17–52, 2020-12-31, ISBN   978-0-8147-6274-5 , retrieved 2023-05-08
  11. Merwin, Ted (July 28, 2022). "Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli" (video). youtube.com. Morristown Library.