Rock the Kasbah…

By special agreement, a new food quest has been launched. “The Hunt for Deli December” (“the Hunt” for short) has begun.

From Wikipedia: “Delicatessen” is a term meaning "delicacies" or "fine foods”.
The term delicatessen has a secondary meaning in some countries, referring to stores that sell delicatessen, hence a shortened term for delicatessen store, sometimes additionally shorted to the informal term “deli”.

I suppose around here “deli” is NOT synonymous with “fine foods”, but perhaps delicacies- pickled tongue, chopped liver and kishke (stuffed intestine, for the uninformed)? A deli meal is an interesting experience, made even more adventurous by the aforementioned foods.

One thing that I have observed over the years is the differing ideas of what really make a “deli”. To me, with my heritage, I expect a massive menu of over-stuffed sandwiches, as well as other traditional sides (such as knishes, kasha, and kishke). The ambiance is completed by pickles in jars, salamis and other netted meats hanging from the ceiling, and sweaty old men in filthy, formerly white aprons, cutting the meat and swearing under their breath in Yiddish. To others, a sandwich shop like D’Angelo’s or Subway/Quizno’s is a deli…what is wrong with these people? Fine foods…delicacies???

So, for you, my consuming public, I am on the hunt…I am going to sample the best, and likely some of the worst, of local delis. If you have any suggestions, bring them on.

So far, I’ve eaten at the Deli Kasbah in NYC, sampled the wares of Noah’s Ark, also in NYC, Rein’s Deli in Vernon, CT, Zaftig’s in Brookline, MA, Kugels’s in Framingham, MA, Joan and Ed’s in Natick, MA and S & S Restaurant in Cambridge, MA. Plenty more to come, culminating with a deli discussion on WBZ 1030AM on Saturday night, January 30, 2010. Tune in, here, and there, to talk about the best, and worst, of deli.