Heritage Eats In NYC

We mostly self-catered in our weeks in NYC. There was a full if small kitchen in our apartment, and the Lidl we shopped at in Harlem was really quite good and--for New York--quite affordable. We did indulge in a few restaurant splurges, twice at Katz's Deli (alas, the Carnegie is no more) and once at Peter Luger's in Brooklyn. Both qualify as heritage eats in our book, both having been around for ages and of continuing fame and popularity.

Always a line to get in at Katz's

And once you're in, there are 8 more lines to choose from; we
quickly surmised that, once in, you fan out: some of the cutters'
lines move quickly, some pretty slowly...

Inside...the Where Harry Met Sally sign marks the spot from which

Estelle Reiner uttered the very famous "I'll have what she's having" 

line...#33 among Hollywood's most  famous...

In line for one of the 8 cutters

More ambience

A  $29 Reuben coming up

Cutter cutting

Finding a table wasn't as hard as we'd imagined; the variety of pickles
comes with the sandwich...Vicki's favorite is the pastrami, mine the
Reuben

More ambience

Evidently it took them 10 years to become known as
the best

Also in the neighborhood

Attitude

At Peter Luger's

Past glories; I'd never thought of Luger's as a Michelin
sort of place...just where we'd had the best steak ever, way
back when; the Times ripped Luger's several years ago, but,
judging from the lines and crowds, it's as popular as ever

Our steak...very, very good flavor, texture, cooked just
as ordered (though we now prefer the bifstecca fiorentino);
the frites were OK; creamed spinach no longer comes
with the steak

Key lime pie and schlage; we look forward to having
the steak again

Mama's Too was a block or so from our apartment...always
a line there, too...here's a slice of Vicki's inch-thick peperoni
pizza; I'm more a Neapolitan type; we also visited Absolute
Bagels more than once, also nearby, said to be NYC's best
bagel shop; now permanently closed by the health department;
hmmm...