Hot pastrami on rye at 2nd Avenue Deli
You walk in, you join the queue, you get offered chopped liver. You get a table, you get schmaltz, rye bread, new green pickles, a mouthy server. You eat. You order matzo ball soup because you don't have a Jewish grandmother of your own.
You miss Abe Lebewohl, the original owner, who was gunned down during a robbery in 1996. You are thankful his nephew Jeremy reopened this much-loved certified kosher deli in Murray Hill earlier this year even if it is now on 3rd Avenue.
You go for pastrami, the meat thinly sliced, spice-edged, gently smoked; or corned beef, or brisket, or the centre cut of tongue. You avoid the Instant Heart Attack (two large potato pancakes sandwiching the meat of your choice) by going for the wussy Half A Sandwich and Soup (US$14.95), so you can live to eat another day. You pay, you go.
2nd Avenue Deli 162 East 33rd Street, New York. Tel: 00 1 212 689 9000
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