Katz's Delicatessen


Katz's Delicatessen, also known as Katz's of New York City, is a kosher-style delicatessen located at 205 East Houston Street, on the southwest corner of Houston and Ludlow Streets on the Lower East Side in Manhattan, New York City.
Since its founding in 1888, it has been popular among locals and tourists alike for its pastrami on rye, which is considered among New York's best. Each week, Katz's serves of pastrami, of corned beef, of salami and 4,000 hot dogs.
In 2016, Zagat gave Katz's a food rating of 4.5 out of 5, and ranked it as the number one deli in New York City.

History

In 1888, the Iceland brothers established what is now known as Katz's Delicatessen on Ludlow Street in New York's Lower East Side. Upon the arrival of Willy Katz in 1903, the establishment's name was changed from Iceland Brothers to Iceland & Katz. Willy's cousin Benny joined him in 1910, buying out the Iceland brothers to form Katz's delicatessen. Their landlord Harry Tarowsky bought into the partnership in April 1917.
The construction of the subway system required the deli to move to the present side of the street, although the entrance remained on Ludlow Street. The vacant lot on Houston Street was home to barrels of meat and pickles until the storefront facade was added in the period 1946–1949.
In the early part of the twentieth century, the Lower East Side was home to millions of newly immigrated families. This, along with the lack of public and private transportation, forged a solid community such that Katz's became a focal point for congregating. On Fridays, the neighborhood turned out for franks and beans, a long time Katz tradition.
During the peak of the Yiddish theater, the restaurant was frequently full of actors, singers and comedians from the many theaters on Second Avenue as well as the National Theater on Houston Street. During World War II, the two sons of the owners – Lenny Katz and Izzy Tarowsky – were both serving their country in the armed forces, and the family tradition of sending food to their sons became sealed as the company slogan "Send A Salami To Your Boy In The Army". The slogan was coined by Izzy's mother Rose Tarowsky, whose son served in the South Pacific as a bomber pilot.
The next change in ownership took place with the death of Willy Katz, as his son Lenny took over. In 1980, both Lenny Katz and Harry Tarowsky died, leaving the store to Lenny's son-in-law Artie Makstein and Harry's son Izzy. In 1988, on the 100th anniversary of its establishment, with no offspring of their own to leave the business to, Lenny, Izzy and Arthur sold it to long-time restaurateur Martin Dell, his son Alan – who was a chef and a manager at a neighboring deli – and Martin's son-in-law Fred Austin. Alan’s son Jake joined the business in late 2009 and is in charge of major operations.
The restaurant celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2013. In connection with that celebration, the restaurant opened a pop-up art gallery next door. The gallery featured original art by local New York City artists with Baron Von Fancy and Ricky Powell among the first displayed and others rotated on a monthly basis.
In 2017, Katz's opened its first auxiliary location, in the City Point development's DeKalb Market Hall in Downtown Brooklyn.

Catch phrases

During World War II, Katz's encouraged parents to "Send a salami to your boy in the army" which became one of the deli's noted catch phrases. It is part of the lyrics of a song in the Martin and Lewis 1950 film At War with the Army. It is referenced in the Tom Lehrer song "So Long Mom ", in the lyric: "Remember Mommy, I'm off to get a Commie, so send me a salami, and try to smile somehow". Katz's continues to support American troops today: the deli has arranged special international shipping for U.S. military addresses only and has been a source of gift packages to the troops stationed in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Another of the deli's catch phrases is "Katz's, that's all!", which came about when a sign maker asked Harry Tarowsky what to say on the deli's sign, and Harry replied "Katz's, that's all". This was misinterpreted by the sign maker who painted the sign as it stands today on the side of the building.

Tickets

As each customer enters Katz's, a door attendant hands them a printed, numbered ticket. As they receive their food from various stations/areas throughout the deli, employees compute a running total of the pre-tax bill. If several people's orders are combined on a single ticket, a cashier collects the blank tickets.
Katz's has instituted a "lost ticket fee". If a customer loses a ticket, an additional $50 surcharge is added to the bill. The fee's purpose, as stated by the management, is to encourage patrons to go back and find the lost ticket in the hopes of preventing theft.

In popular culture

Film