SARGES DELI ... My favorite memory of NYC was eating at the famous Sarges Deli. It's open 24 hours and was within walking distance to the hotel. What made it really special was after eating there for lunch and upon returning to the hotel later that night it was shown on an episode of Law and Order. How conincidental. The deli sandwiches were to die for along with the slaw, pickles and potato salad. Todd (Brad's guest).

Some history of the deli . . .
John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, England, is credited with inventing the sandwich, i.e., two slices of bread covering a filling of meat, fish, cheese, or some combination of ingredients. Though this honor may well be of doubtful authenticity, the term sandwich continues to find favor among English-speaking persons and other peoples. The sandwich, in one form or another, appears on the menu of virtually every restaurant and eating establishment in America, with the exception of certain Oriental restaurants where breads are simply and unfortunately, not part of the particular culture.

What is pizza, but an open sandwich of dough, cheese, tomato sauce, and condiments? What is a hot dog, but a split roll containing a tubular portion of meat? What is the pillar of the fast-food industry, but the almighty hamburger sandwich? There is little doubt that the sandwich is an object of near universal popularity. And among the most popular, in terms of how often they are consumed by Americans and visitors to America - according to the Food Marketing Institute - are the hamburger, and, in second place, the tuna fish salad sandwich. But, as Gertrude Stein may have remarked, "A hamburger is a hamburger, and a tuna on rye is a tuna on rye, but a sandwich is not a sandwich."

One sandwich in particular is the most venerated, the object of gastronomic love, the subject of contests to determine whose sandwich is best in a given year, and the standard by which New York style delis (delicatessens) are judged: The Hot Pastrami Sandwich. And the crown for the very best pastrami sandwich you can find in New York or anywhere else, rests in a place called SARGE's.

For more than 25 years, Abe Katz was a police sergeant attached to the Murray Hill precinct in New York City. Known throughout the neighborhood as "Sarge", he would frequently work the late shift until midnite, then look for somewhere to have dinner. Trouble was, few eating places remained open at that hour and those that did were of the short-order variety, rather than offering a complete meal.

After one too many fried egg sandwiches, Sarge decided on what to do after he retired from the force. he would open an all-night restaurant that provided good food and a friendly atmosphere, regardless of when people might enter. His own precinct, which was experiencing a boom in office and residential construction, seemed ideal for such a venture. And so, SARGE's Deli-Restaurant was established, in 1964, on New York's Third Avenue, between 36th and 37th Streets. It quickly became an East Side institution, noted for outstanding Jewish-style cooking and the fact that its doors were always open. Abe, his wife Rose, and his children Joyce and Lenny, ran the place. Today, Abe's grandson, Michael, is on hand to supervise the deli/restaurant, along with his mom Joyce and Uncle Lenny. All of them will treat you like family.