There is no pastrami in Saipan. There is stuff called pastrami, but it is far from the real thing. If you are foolish enough to order a pastrami sandwich in Saipan, you will get three slices of pastrami — in New York you get three inches of pastrami.
If you have never had it, Pastrami is a bit like hot corned beef; but pastrami has been smoked for hours, and then soaked in brine with peppercorns. The taste is amazing; complex, juicy, tangy, beefy, soft, moist and flavorful. It is served plain on rye bread, sometimes with a little mustard, but nothing else. No lettuce, no mayo, no onion, no white bread, no ketchup. Just lovely hot pastrami, rye bread and mustard. It is heaven.
The best pastrami in New York is from Katz’s Delicatessen on East Houston Street, the Lower East Side, where Jews lived for a hundred years. Most of the Jews have moved out but Katz’s, established in 1888, still does a thriving business. The Carnegie Deli, located in midtown Manhattan also serves great pastrami, but getting a table is impossible. The 2nd Avenue Deli has, next to Katz’s, the best pastrami in the world. But they use a slicing machine; Katz’s skilled chefs slice by hand and each sandwich is a work of art. They have a tradition to uphold, and they do it, my friend.
When I say a pound of meat, I mean it. A pastrami sandwich is bigger than a softball, and one person really can’t eat one, especially if there is a pickle. My wife and I shared one sandwich and it was just right. It cost $15.75 and was worth every penny. Look at it this way: on Saipan you’ll pay $8-$9 for a sandwich that has ¼ the meat. Is Katz’s pastrami a deal or what?
In the Jewish deli’s there are certain beverages that accompany a pastrami sandwich. Top of the list is Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray Tonic. It’s celery-flavored soda, and is a light, sparkly contrast to the dark and smoky flavor of the pastrami. At the time Dr. Brown’s Tonic was becoming popular, Coca-Cola had not been declared Kosher. This meant that orthodox Jews weren’t supposed to drink it. But Dr. Brown’s was Kosher and, oy!, it was great with sandwiches! You should drink some!
But the pastrami purists drink selzer. Selzer is Club Soda without the salt. Unlike Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray, there is no taste to seltzer; it’s just carbonated water. The customers like this stuff because they don’t want anything to take away from the flavor of the pastrami.
That’s another thing I miss from my days in New York City, the Deli atmosphere. Everybody shouts — the waiters, the owner, sometimes the customers. I remember going into the 2nd Avenue Deli for lunch one day. The waiter, a big guy with dark hair and glasses, came over to my table, looked me up and down and shouted, “You better be hungry!” He was joking, but he was serious too.
There are a lot more food offerings at Katz’s Deli; all kinds of meats, cheeses, soups, even burgers for the Goyim (non-Jews); bagels with cream cheese, lox (salmon) , chicken soup (Jewish penicillin), potato latkes, and a wide variety of cold cuts, including salami.
Before we left the Deli, my wife and I bought Katz Deli T-shirts. On the front is a picture of the Katz Deli on East Houston. On the back it says, “Send a Salami to Your Boy in the Army!” If you want to see the menus, visit http://katzsdelicatessen.com/ As Mrs. Katz used to say, “It wouldn’t hurt!”
