There were lines along the sidewalk in Midtown Tuesday morning, though it wasn’t for the latest iPhone or sneaker drop — but for classic pastrami and corned beef on rye and matzoh ball soup at the reopening of the legendary Carnegie Deli.
After a 10-year hiatus, the iconic eatery has opened its door at a new NYC flagship location on Seventh Ave. and 54th St., just a block from its longtime former home and right near the heart of the Theater District. The restaurant teased the reopening on social media just a month ago.
Evan Sung
The new Carnegie Deli in Midtown Manhattan. (Photo by Evan Sung)
Along with the lines, there was a contest — for best photos and memories of Carnegie Deli. It was won by delicatessen fans who drove in from Pittsburgh, Penn., just for the gustatory occasion. They got a free lunch, plus the honor of having their photo added to the Carnegie Deli Wall of Fame, alongside the giant hanging pickle and the likes of the restaurant’s many famous fans, from Jerry Seinfeld, Stanley Tucci, Rihanna and The Rock to Taylor Swift, Sylvester Stallone and Aerosmith.
The space formerly housed the Stage Deli — Carnegie Deli’s bitter, or make that half-sour, rival during New York’s hot “pastrami wars” — and more recently Roxy Delicatessen.
“We always knew the timing and the opportunity had to be right,” said Sarri Harper, the business’s third-generation CEO. “When the former Stage Deli space became available, it felt incredibly fitting. There’s so much New York deli history in this space, and the opportunity to continue that legacy on Seventh Avenue made this feel like the right next chapter for Carnegie Deli.”
Evan Sung
Carnegie Deli third generation and CEO Sarri Harper at the new Carnegie Deli in Midtown Manhattan. (Photo by Evan Sung)
The revived restaurant boasts an extensive menu. Naturally, there are the classics, including piled-high pastrami and corned-beef sandwiches on rye with Düsseldorf mustard and half-sour and sour pickles, along with homemade chicken soup, knishes and all-beef footlong franks.
A new temptation is the Carnegie Deli Colossus, “the tallest stack on the menu,” heaped with pastrami, corned beef, turkey, Swiss cheese, coleslaw and Russian dressing on rye.
There will also be a breakfast menu, including omelettes — with a choice of pastrami, corned beef, salami or turkey — plus bagels and lox and latkes, or fried potato pancakes.
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The full spread. Matzoh ball soup, corned beef sandwich, the “Lunch-Before-Lunch” footlong hot dog, Broadway Danny Rose pastrami sandwich, the Carnegie Deli Colossus corned beef Reuben, french fries, and the “Full Lee Loaded Reuben Fries” will be available at the newly reopened Carnegie Deli in Midtown Manhattan. (Photo by Evan Sung)
Other new tantalizers include babka French toast, fried deli pickle chips, which the menu describes as “crispy, briny, impossible to stop eating,” and the Full Lee Loaded Reuben Fries, “a mountain of fries buried under pastrami, melted Swiss, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing.”
Topping it all off is Carnegie Deli’s award-winning classic New York cheesecake, along with fresh strawberry cheesecake, black-and-white cheesecake and classic black-and-white cookies. Hours will be 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.