Peasant Glory!
 

Just putting it together for tomorrow, almost all soups are better after a day, but even fresh it is just what I wanted. Strangely and wonderfully sweet and spicy, warm spice and probably ground up raisins infuse the bright reddish orange broth which is also enriched with slices of cured meat and peppered with the cabbage. Certainly a soup to kvell over.

Except for the noticeable absence of Rose, the rest remains the same. Corned beef deep enough to require less between the rye to make a statement in the Reuben, which is excellent overall. The eye of round pastrami is incredibly lean but rich with pepper and cure. The turkey is luscious and miles from the spongy stuff you can find in plastic bags. Sammitches, check. Straight forward potato and macaroni salads, sharp garlicky pickles…deli, check.

Really Good Sandwiches, Be They Reuben...
 

...Pastrami...
 

...Turkey
 

Honest And Straightforward, Top To Bottom
 

Rare Cookie Treats
 

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Stuffed With Cheese Or Nuts
 

More Dried Rasberries
 

Then You Can Shake A Fork At
 

Kravitz's Deli  Updated
 Youngstown, Ohio              Date of Visit: 08/01/10                 http://www.kravitzdeli.com/

On Belmont Avenue stands a long time purveyor of Kosher offerings. I never had many opportunities to dine there as a kid but have enjoyed a number of meals on previous occasions since. This is not a pretty place. It shows its age, has way less than comfortable seating unless you can sneak into the back room, and you are likely to go unwelcomed in most cases on your way through the joint. This lack of time spent in maintenance and service is probably mitigated as you walk first past the case of baked treats and then past the deli counter where the family does spend their time.

The Pastrami Classic Breakfast
 

The presence of the matriarch who started the restaurant long ago is still palpable and she seems to almost always be there at a point in life other folks would have long chosen to coast. I mean she has been at this since 1939. Her son runs the place and after a foray into marketing and distribution their bagels all over has (to me at least) found keeping the quality everyone expects easier in house.

My understanding is they cure their own meats and still make their own bagels and several other items. At Kravitz’s there are a couple of things to which I always look forward. Every now and again they will have sweet and sour cabbage soup on the menu. I think I first tried it as a joke long ago. It looks like a red mess but it is delicious. Unfortunately, not on the menu today. Instead I tried the stuffed pepper soup which was good but not as unique or flavorful as the cabbage.

The other thing that is hard to not order at Kravitz’s is the corned beef. They don’t pile it on like some places do to set themselves apart, they really don’t have to. Their process for their corned beef results in a more intense “corned or brine cured” flavor.

Today I noticed the Tom and Jeff who had a sandwich named after them at Kravitz’s. It’s essentially a Reuben with corned beef, grilled kraut, and swiss served on a grilled everything bagel. Knowing how good the bagels are from breakfast trips I gave it a try. I think I might actually prefer it to the rye. We also had a standard Reuben, always good. Mom had her standard classic breakfast with a wonderfully peppery pastrami, cheese and egg on a bagel. On the way out we snatched a cookie, usually we’ll try one of the varieties of kipfle or other more traditional baked good, but today the apple and caramel cookie joined us to eat on the way home. It’s a good thing we didn’t try it in the store or we would have left with a bag.

As far as the service is concerned, once you sit you are often tended to by young ladies with haphazard training but a good attitude for hospitality. There really isn’t too much to add about Kravitz’s, think deli, order deli, enjoy deli, especially the corned beef and if you happen to see sweet and sour cabbage soup, its worth the leap.

Tasty Road Treat
 

Turning to Kravitz's for breakfast is a pleasant surprise. We weren't really making an "official" visit but given my order I just had to stop and take a picture. Typically for breakfast I would order a sandwich with some of the deli's house done meats on one of their fabulous bagels. Today there was just something about the corned beef hash that caught my eye. I like corned beef and I like when the cook "makes a hash of it" so I couldn't be deterred. It was not what I expected at all. First off, this thing is enormous! I barely got half of it down and didn't eat anything until dinner. Secondly, the ingredients are perfect. Freshly shaved superior corned beef is crusted alongside seasoned redskins and everything is topped with a runny egg. Heaven. I also had an onion bagel on the side and the onions are toasted to a dark bitteresque brown which completed the whole stupendous breakfast outing. I have been trying to watch what I eat more as of late and it pains me to know that this thing is on the menu. I might have to avoid Kravitz's in the mornings for a while. But this plate is already wearing down my endurance. Just looking at the pictures is making me hungry again. Oh, by the by...still no cabbage soup!  Auuugghhhhhhh!