This cavernous cafeteria is a repository of New York history—glossies of celebs spanning the past century crowd the walls, and the classic Jewish deli offerings are nonpareil. Start with a crisp-skinned, all-beef hot dog. Then flag down a meat cutter and order a legendary sandwich. The brisket sings with horseradish, and the thick-cut pastrami stacked high between slices of rye is the stuff of dreams. Everything tastes better with a glass of the hoppy house lager; if you’re on the wagon, make it a Dr. Brown’s.
New York lost its famed Carnegie Deli in 2016, but that doesn’t mean Gotham has lost its pastrami bona fides—just take a look at the best pastrami sandwiches in NYC for proof. Of course, we’ve got the old guard of New York delis—your Katz’s, your Ben’s Best—but we’re also heralding a new school of pastrami-slicing operations, from Greenpoint restaurants like Frankel’s to newer East Village restaurants like Harry & Ida’s. Here’s where to find the best pastrami sandwiches in NYC.