22 October 2021

Published October 20, 2021 by rochellewisoff

Apologies for the tardiness of this post. As most know, I schedule ahead. It turns out I scheduled for the wrong day. Again my humble apologies for the error.

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The next photo is the PROMPT. Remember, all photos are property of the photographer, donated for use in Friday Fictioneers only. They shouldn’t be used for any other purpose without express permission. It is proper etiquette to give the contributor credit.

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields.
The ever so clever Keith Hillman designed this one and I had to snag it! CLICK TO JOIN

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Word Count: 100

I’LL HAVE WHAT SHE’S HAVING

“You can’t beat us Jews for food.” Rochelle bit into a thick pastrami on rye and savored the salty meat, slathered with mustard. She wiped the dribbled juices from her chin. “It’s almost a religious experience.”

            “Where’s the mayo?”

            She slapped Jan’s hand. “Don’t you dare, Goy Wonder.”

“May I, at least, have ketchup on the fries?”

“Katz’s Delicatessen was established in 1888 by Eastern European immigrants Morris and Hyman Iceland. Their cousin Sam Katz joined them in 1903. Eventually, they shortened the name from Iceland and Katz to the present one.

            “Do you charge extra for the history lesson?”  

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You’ll find Katz’s Deli on Houston Street (that’s pronounced HOWston). Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal shared lunch there in the movie “When Harry Met Sally.” CLICK to watch.

I’m here to tell you, the pastrami is amazing! If you’re ever in New York City, you owe it to yourself. Don’t forget the pickled tomatoes and seltzer. 😉 Remember to leave a tip.

And if you have an extra 8 minutes or so go to the following link and experience a little of what we’re talking about. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLt5cKJelis

87 comments on “22 October 2021”

  • Lovely story told in so few words. I felt I was sitting at the table with them. Yes

    And get this, I’ve been there. Only once but I have.
    Of course I had the famous pastrami on rye. Unbelievable.
    And I do not like Mayo on sandwiches. Don’t like that stuff. That’s just me. 🥪 👏
    The video. So cool. Thanks. 👏 💕

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Dear Selma,

      I’ve been there more than once and it’s always a festival for the mouth. I love their pickled tomatoes as well as the pastrami sandwich. Truly too much for one person. My son and I shared the last time we went. Mayo on pastrami is an anathema. I don’t like it on anything either. Worse would be eating it on white bread. 😉 (my husband has done both. UGH!)
      I’m glad you enjoyed the video. Thank you re my story.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

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  • Only mustard for me, even though I’m probably one of the world’s biggest fans of ketchup. Such sophisticated taste buds. Thanks for the history lesson there. We have a major food outlet called Iceland here in the UK. Loved ‘goy wonder’.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Dear Sandra,

      Personally I detest mayonnaise…although it’s good in some things when mixed with other ingredients. I gave up ketchup when I gave up sugar. Although I recently found one that’s made with veggies, spices and no sugar. Glad you caught ‘goy wonder.’ 😉 Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

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  • Well that sounds lovely! Humourous tale — I don’t dare say there are pretty good Deli’s in London, and one in Liverpool, cause somehow I think we’re talking about one of the very best here!

    Liked by 1 person

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      • Yes there is a district in London with a lovely atmosphere including deli’s. Liverpool too, though I think really none have the tradition of Katz as I understand it. I am not exactly sure why. It certainly seems like things change. Liverpool is something of a transistory city is some ways, with its big port.

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  • Good history lesson. Pastrami sandwich is one of my all time favorites. So, you weaned me off the Mayo on pastrami, but still like it on most other sandwiches. Ketchup on fries? A must. Your watercolor picture “condiments” is a great one.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Dear Jan,

      You’ve saved yourself a hand slapping. 😉 I realize I can’t stop the Mayo travesty everywhere, but that’s one victory for sandwich-kind. Ketchup does go on fries. And now that I have my sugar free version I can enjoy it again. Note: it’s one of my favorite paintings, too. Thanks, m’luv.

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  • Rochelle! I had to exclaim as I’ve been craving a Montreal Smoked Meat sandwich — the Canadian must have in Jewish delis, especially in Montreal.

    “The smoked meat is prepared similarly to New York pastrami but with different seasonings. The recipe for Montreal Steak Seasoning is based on the seasoning mixture for Montreal smoked meat.”

    And, while you’ve in Montreal, check out:. “The Montreal-style bagel or Montreal bagel, is a distinctive variety of handmade and wood-fired baked bagel. In contrast to the New York-style bagel, which also contains sourdough, the Montreal bagel is smaller, thinner, sweeter and denser, with a larger hole, and is always baked in a wood-fired oven. It contains malt, egg, and no salt, and is boiled in honey-sweetened water before being baked.” (from Wikipedia).

    When we would drive from Ontario to Nova Scotia, and back, we’d brave Montreal traffic to stop at a particular bagel shop and buy a bag still warm bagels. Bliss!

    So my 25 cents worth of food, rather than history, this time. I also have a hankering for a good Rubem sandwich. Hubby has some days off coming, and we live in New Jersey, so I forsee a trip to the City, and a date with a pastrimi sandwhich.

    I shall report back. With a smear of mustard, and no mayo on my face.

    Liked by 1 person

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  • Dear Rochelle,

    Well now… you and Goy Wonder have inspired exackery what I am going to write for my FF now… I was going for something else but now, I feel otherwise inspired 😉

    Love the history lesson and honestly, can you believe I’ve not been to Katz’s yet?

    Shalom and lotsa deli (ghtful) love,

    Dale

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Dear Dale,

      You must put Katz’s on your bucket list. Make sure you leave a tip in the jar. They really do give you better service and more meat if you do. 😉 And always pronounce it Howston street so the natives won’t know you’re an out of towner.
      If there’s a history lesson to be found I’ll sniff it out. And this one is sooooooo fragrant. Thank you.

      Shalom and lotsa savory hugs from the Goy Wonder and me,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Na’ama Y’karah,

      My tastebuds have fond memories of Katz. Of course I had to have seltzer with it. I used to get funny looks here in Missouri when I’d ask for plain seltzer. I think it’s finally caught on our here. But my Dad was born and raised in Brooklyn so seltzer or 2 cents plain as he grew up with, was normal to me. We used to have a Deli here called New York Bakery that had wonderful corned beef and pastrami. I have fond memories of half-done Kosher pickles and Mrs. Wilner, one of the owners saying mit a thick Yiddish accent, “Here, Honey, hava cookie.” 😉
      Thank you. 😀

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

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      • I’m nodding to all. Half-sour pickles are THE BEST!!! (oh, and a good deli sandwich. With seltzer or a Cherry soda that I won’t normally touch otherwise. Some things just have’ta go togethah! 🙂 )

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  • Hey Rochelle,

    And so now, FF means “food fight” (Dale & Rochelle & more). I miss the ethnic foods of my youth. The homogenization of America is ruining (or has ruined) all that. But honestly, I am sitting here at 8 in the morning and my mouth is watering.

    Peace,

    Bill

    PS: Goy Wonder….:-)….indeed.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Dear Bill,

      What’s life without a good food fight once in a while? There is an awful lot of fusion going on, isn’t there? Of course I grew up with Jewish cuisine and the alternate Jewish cuisine — Chinese. 😉 Happy to make your mouth water. Mine certainly does at the memory. Sigh. Thank you for coming by. Don’t forget to tip your server.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

  • I love deli food but live in a part of the country where they’ve very few and far between and where the Arby’s Reuben sandwich is enjoyed by many. It’s a dream to live in an area with real delis and lots of them. And “Goy Wonder” LOL! Great story and a greater history lesson.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

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