TBR, The Brutal Review, an eat-and-tell about a really good deli whose soups I can't wait to try.6/14/2022: First visit. I only bought some nice, soft, big, doughy, pleasingly mild-flavored onion and garlic bagels. They were very-very-good enough for a return. Staff was genuinely great: polite, honest in their recommendations, and overall nice people. Quip: printed catering menu was available but regular menu was only displayed (a) on the chalkboard behind the workers and (b) the website, via pdf. Staff apologized for not having hard copies out.6/16/2022: Second visit. The following were ordered: Hot lean corned beef on a pumpernickel bagel and Hot turkey pastrami on rye, each NY style, specifically with mustard packets but sans slaw, salad and pickle; Breakfast sandwich with egg, ham, bacon and the default American "cheese" (I forgot to ask for cheddar, or Swiss, or Muenster, or...); Potato pancakes which came with a side of applesauce; and Cajun curly fries. Service just as excellent as the prior visit. Quips: mustard packets were missing. But s'alright: we have our own mustard at home, and I'm the only one who ever wants it. So that leaves the menu, which was still only available on the chalkboard and pdf. Wattayagonnado. I planned my order from a laptop on the 15th, anyway.The NY sandwiches were truly NY style, packed tightly and very thick with loads of meat. Those and everything else tasted very good, especially the rye bread, which had a wonderfully robust flavor. N.B. not all rye is created equal and this rye definitely makes the cut. That rye was pretty soft due to sweating during the drive home. As for the meats, we prefer lean beef despite the extra fatty flavor one gets from regular. And the turkey pastrami was a bit dry but maybe its seasoning made it seem that way. Maybe it was just more genuine turkey than what Hillshire Farm offers because it's from a deli, and more genuine turkey is dryer. All of us preferred that turkey to even the corned beef because we like our meats light and its flavor was best, which is funny considering that fattier corned beef is /supposed/ to offer more flavor. S'all personal preference.The Cajun curlies were well but not really Cajun seasoned, which is what I would expect if I were ordering something like that from the Carnegie in the aughts. That was a nice, '70s-style joint. It had apple juice!The potato pancake was what I truly enjoyed. It's the thickest I have encountered in my lifetime. And it's crispy on the outside and smooth and fluffy(!) without potato chunks on the inside. I just never had it like this before. I'm used to thinner items from the grocery freezer or pancake houses, in each case with tiny, chunky potato cubes inside a crusty exterior. That makes them more like hash browns, but hey, fooling in advertising.... I got used to this real version real fast and thoroughly enjoyed it.Leftovers, i.e., how does the 6/16/2022 order hold up after the fridge:6/17/2022 day and eve: just as good. Microwaved those Cajun curly fries with our home mustard - putting the mustard on top before, not after, microwaving - and they were better with than without. Tip: by adding the mustard I did away with the need to re-fry or -bake these curlies. The last of the sandwiches was a bit of the corned beef, which was also good and went great with that mustard which no one in my household likes but me. (So to the ketchup cage for you, Boo.)6/18/2022 breakfast: last of the order, one potato pancake with a side of applesauce. Placed two fried over-medium eggs over that last pancake, which I had microwaved. Great and maybe even better if I fried or baked the pancake. This was not a cooking show; I just wanted to eat. The applesauce was pretty sweet. It complimented the pancake's flavor nicely.
Great service, will return again.
I’ve been a happy customer coming here for many years and never had anything I didn’t enjoy. The food here has always been served fresh and delicious! I particularly would recommend their soft bagels and many cream cheeses as well as the Matzo Ball Soup (pictured) and the Gourmet Everything Flatbread Matzos. The Mish Mosh soup is also delicious! My go-to for authentic Jewish cuisine! They’ve earned my highest recommendation and so glad they survived the pandemic.
Excellent Corned Beef Sandwich!!!!!!!
This is really a grab-your-order-and-leave kinda place. There's a window counter with five very-closely packed chairs and two tables on the sidewalk outside. Believe me, you'll be happier eating in your kitchen....or possibly even your car. They feature bakery goods from next-door Leonard's. The bagels are $1.15 each, but if you get there during happy hour -- Tuesday - Friday, from 3 to 6 -- then a baker's dozen is only $7.98, which is roughly half off. Wait. What? You can't finish 13 bagels? The bagel queen is here to help. Just slice the extra bagels in half; tightly wrap both halves (you're doing this to avoid the dreaded freezer burn); and put them in a sealable freezer bag. REALLY press the air out before you zip it up. Freeze. When you're ready, thaw it/them on your kitchen counter for about half an hour. Enjoy. To create the perfect authentic deli experience, don't miss the refrigerated case to your left as you enter. Check out that shelf with all the cans of Dr. Brown's pop. Perhaps you come from an area where it's called (incorrectly) soda. Yes, the fine folks at Dr. Brown's are wrong, too. It's pop....... cans of pop.) You can also grab a container of cookies from the back display. They are all good --pick your favourite.
I picked up a beautiful fish tray today. Have you had them on the tray was delicious. It was a ton of food, and all of the salads bagels and everything we got from there was perfect. I know where I’m going in the future whenever I want to host a brunch!
Completely ridiculous!! The pastrami and corned beef is off the scale great. The combo Reuben is literally one of the best sandwiches you’ll ever have anywhere.
The service here doesn’t seem to be up to par compared to Once Upon a Bagel in Highland Park. Food and sandwiches are great.
First time visiting very nice
As a member of the local Fire Department we want to thank you for your food donation! The sandwiches were AMAZING! Thank you for making our day in these tough times!