New York is known for its small spaces. For lots and lots of money, you can get a tiny cupboard of an apartment. And if you have ingenuity and some design talent, you can figure out a way to squeeze out as much space as possible. That’s how skyscrapers eventually grew in this city. We ran out of land mass so we had to build up!
Most of the restaurants (and delicatessens) I frequent in the city are not 75 stories high so they’re often difficult to maneuver through either thanks to crowds, poor spacing, or just lack of space.
So it’s always amazing to me when I stumble upon a huge dim sum palace in Chinatown or a big IMAX movie theater hidden above the streets. Or a giant kosher deli in the middle of midtown.
Ben’s Kosher Delicatessen is a palace in the hinterlands of the west 30’s. If it didn’t say kosher cuisine on the marquee, you’d think you were entering a casino. It’s below the lights of the Theater District and just above the rundown Fashion District and not a whole lot happens here except people moving from one part of town to the next. So I find it surprising yet encouraging that Ben’s is still in business. And it’s huge (bigger than Katz’s) and I can only imagine what they pay for rent.
Most of the tables were empty when I arrived on a Sunday afternoon, but there were a few parties dining and were this a smaller more compact dining room, this place would have seemed positively crowded. Their very cute slogan proclaims: “We cure our own corned beef. Our chicken soup cures everything else.” What’s really great about this (besides the obvious double play on the word “cure”) is that they make their own corned beef. And this place is actually a chain. From what I’ve read, every single Ben’s across the country (there are only seven) have barrels and cure their own meat.
That’s right, Ben’s is a chain. Normally, I would stay away from operations like this. I didn’t try Sbarro when I searched for the best pizza. But Ben’s is a smaller chain and really seems to thrive on the importance of freshly homemade dishes. Plus, their other locations are in Long Island and South Florida. They may as well all be in Jewish Manhattan.
You’d think this wold be a tourist spot, but it’s off the beaten path and not in many of the tourist brochures. Which I guess leaves all this empty space for local New Yorkers. And maybe the daytrippers visiting from Long Island. They’d feel right at home.
The service was disappointing, but it seemed like the waitress was trying her best. Somehow it felt like the cavernous room just swallowed her up. She just couldn’t get to places fast enough and would often disappear for long stretches. Maybe she was in another room of the restaurant. It really was that big. But she made it over to me and I ordered the Double Dip, which is half a sandwich and half soup. This is my favorite option at these delis because I can have a good taste of the sandwich without killing myself and I won’t have to deal with leftovers. I mean, as much as I love them, I don’t need to eat a corned beef sandwich on my days home away from this project.
The matzo ball soup (is there any other option?) was decent. The balls themselves were soft (never thought I’d say that) but rather bland. The noodles and broth may have come from a can. The pickles were also bland, which is kind of tough to do. Maybe they focus too much on curing their corned beef.
The sandwich arrived and the meat was just lukewarm. Not sure if it had been sitting around for a while. The pastrami was rather dry, but the corned beef (that homemade corned beef) was great. The flavors were much richer and the meat much more tender. I got some deep garlic flavors and it fell apart in my mouth. Both were sliced a little too thin for my tastes, but the sandwich ended up being good enough, especially for a chain trying to make a consistent product.
Ben’s is a decent option in this neighborhood and definitely feels like a quiet, but huge spot. Is it possible to have a big neighborhood joint? But then again, who really lives or comes to this neighborhood? Maybe if you’re a tourist and you took a wrong turn. Not that it’s unsafe, it’s just unusually big in a very small neighborhood.
Is Ben’s Kosher Delicatessen the best corned beef/pastrami in NY? The homemade corned beef is impressive, but the dry pastrami and the overwhelmed waitress subtracted some points, giving their meat a 6 out of 10.
