Katz's Delicatessen

Profile

Just stepping into what Milton Glaser and Jerome Snyder, New York's original Underground Gourmets, described some 50 years ago as a living, breathing Brueghel painting is still a great, odoriferous, slightly harrowing thrill. An ecstasy of chaos and clinking plates. No serious student of deli has not been to Katz's. Nothing else like it in the world. Yes, the pastrami and corned beef are hand-sliced and usually terrific, and that's why you go. But truth be told, it's the snappy hot dogs (natural-casing all-beef Sabrett's) we can't resist. Chalk it up to expert technique and what must be the flavor-enhancing mojo of a well-seasoned, decades-old griddle. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

Check out the photos and testimonials on the walls and windows: You'll find that Katz's counts among its faithful not just Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan but also Bill Clinton and a long line of other world leaders past and present.

Delivery Charge
Varies by location, check website for details.

Pastrami on rye, $19.95;  knockwurst with beans, $13.95

Related Stories

Featured In

• The Best Places to Live in NYC: Our Critics’ Favorite Comestibles in Selected Neighborhoods (4/19/10)
• Cheap Eats 2008: How Food Prices Have Risen This Year (7/28/08)
• Cheap Eats Guide 2006 (8/7/06)