CARNEGIE DELI Returns Home to 7th Avenue on 9/15
The legendary dining institution will once again be serving guests in the midtown neighborhood with their legendary and delicious fare
By: Marina Kennedy
Carnegie Deli at 834 Seventh Avenue is one of New York’s most legendary dining institutions and one of the world’s most famous delicatessens, returns to Seventh Avenue on September 15th.
First opened in 1937, Carnegie Deli became a defining part of New York dining culture, famous for its gargantuan sandwiches, award-winning cheesecake and legendary Wall of Fame. When Milton Parker and partners took over the deli in 1976, they ushered in the era that cemented its legendary status. Parker, famously known as “CPM: Corned Beef and Pastrami Maven,” became synonymous with Carnegie Deli’s larger-than-life approach, while its location near Carnegie Hall and the Broadway theater district made the deli a gathering place for generations of performers, comedians, musicians, actors, politicians and athletes.
After a decade, Carnegie Deli will return just blocks from where its story began, to an address steeped in New York deli history. The space was once home to Stage Deli, Carnegie Deli’s longtime rival during New York’s famed “pastrami wars,” and later Roxy Delicatessen - extending a decades-long deli tradition on Seventh Avenue.
Today, Carnegie Deli brand is owned by Parker’s granddaughter, Sarri Harper, third-generation and CEO. Under Harper, the family legacy has remained a fixture through nationwide shipping, Madison Square Garden, the U.S Open, Saratoga Race Course, Belmont Stakes and special collaborations, including its immersive The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel pop-up.
“We always knew the timing and the opportunity had to be right,” said Harper. “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.”
At the center of Carnegie Deli’s famously gargantuan sandwiches are the pastrami and corned beef that helped make the deli famous. Prepared with Carnegie Deli’s family recipes, the meats undergo a process that takes roughly two weeks from start to finish. Pastrami begins with beef navel and corned beef with brisket, each cured in Carnegie Deli’s proprietary brine for approximately a week. The pastrami is then seasoned and slow-smoked, while the corned beef is simmered low and slow. Whole cuts arrive unsliced, then are steamed, hand-trimmed and sliced fresh behind the counter.
Sandwiches will be piled up high, served on old-fashioned rye with Düsseldorf mustard and half-sour and sour pickles. Returning favorites include The Reuben, matzo ball soup, chopped liver, tongue, latkes and knishes. Carnegie Deli’s famous hot dog also returns - an all-beef, footlong frank served with their classic sauerkraut and a favorite of Milton Parker, who started each workday with one and called it “The-Lunch-Before-Lunch.” New to the lineup is The Carnegie Deli Colossus, the tallest stack on the menu, layered with pastrami, corned beef, turkey, Swiss, coleslaw and Russian dressing on rye.
Carnegie Deli’s longstanding tradition of sandwich naming after Broadway stars, New York icons and cultural figures will also return. Longtime favorites include The Broadway Danny Rose, a towering mix of pastrami and corned beef inspired by the 1984 namesake film, which famously featured Carnegie Deli. New names will join the classics over time.
The menu will also bring deli and appetizing together under one roof, an increasingly rare New York tradition, with smoked fish and bagels alongside Lox & Latkes, Corned Beef or Pastrami Hash and the classic Carnegie Deli Omelette, with a choice of pastrami, corned beef, salami or turkey served with home fries and toast. New additions include Babka French Toast, Full Lee Loaded Reuben Fries and Fried Deli Pickle Chips. And no visit to Carnegie Deli is complete without cheesecake. The award-winning Classic New York Cheesecake, served since 1937 on its signature cookie crust, returns alongside Fresh Strawberry Cheesecake and Black & White Cheesecake, plus Carnegie’s classic Black & White Cookies.
Much of the menu will be available all day, with additional dishes offered for lunch and dinner. Seating will be walk-in only, with traditional waiter service, closely set tables and a visible deli counter bringing back the bustle of a classic New York deli. Beer, wine and soft drinks will also be available.
Designed by Garrett Singer Architecture + Design, the approximately 2,500-square-foot, 110-seat restaurant will restore the intimacy and visual language of the original. An illuminated Carnegie Deli sign will mark the exterior, while inside, wood-paneled walls, closely set tables, a front-facing dessert case and bustling deli counter will recreate the familiar backdrop generations remember. The giant pickle will also make its return. Carnegie Deli merchandise will also be available for purchase.
Carnegie Deli’s legendary Wall of Fame will return, with original photographs and original frames from the former restaurant. The walls will once again feature generations of famous guests, including Mel Brooks, Robin Williams, Stevie Wonder, Steven Spielberg, Conan O’Brien, Sarah Jessica Parker, Adam Sandler, Stanley Tucci and Jerry Seinfeld, Taylor Swift and Jonas Brothers along with a young Venus Williams famously holding her own signature sandwich in 1998. New notable guests will be added over time, continuing the Wall of Fame as a living record of the people who pass through Carnegie Deli’s doors.
“Carnegie Deli has always been about more than the food - it’s about the memories people have here,” said Harper. “We want the people who grew up with Carnegie Deli to walk in and immediately recognize it, while giving a whole new generation the chance to make those same memories of their own.”
For more information, visit www.carnegiedeli.com and call 212.757.2245. You can follow on social media @carnegiedeli.
Photo Credit: Evan Sung
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