This isn't quite a man-bites-dog story: It's more like a man-can-longer-bite-into-a-pastrami-sandwich story.
In a move that seems incongruous with everything a good Jewish deli stands for, Saul's Restaurant and Deli has pulled the plug on serving pastrami. That's right - no more pastrami on rye with hot mustard at Saul's in Berkeley.
At least for the time being.
"It's only for three weeks," Saul's co-owner Peter Levitt said Thursday night after sitting on the panel of a deli summit at the JCC East Bay in Berkeley.
Here's the situation: Saul's can no longer get pastrami from its supplier, Niman Ranch. Without its founder Bill Niman for some three years, Niman Ranch has moved its operation to Nebraska, and operators there recently informed Saul's "that they no longer wanted to guarantee a supply of meat for pastrami," according to a letter from Saul's.
"This week it was established that they have cut off the supply altogether," the letter continued. "At this moment, the supply of this cut of beef (with no antibiotics or hormones) cannot be arranged. As of now, without Niman Ranch, there are no other suppliers that can provide the quality we require or the volume a restaurant of this size demands."
Levitt said he has located two or three other suppliers, so by next week, some of that meat will be headed to Saul's smoker, for its infusion with garlic, paprika and coriander. And it should be between slices of rye (or your choice of bread) by the second or third week in June.
"When the pastrami comes back, it will be hand rubbed with our spice mix, and wood smoked here at Saul's," the letter said. "The supplies might be intermittent at first, but we will hopefully build to a full and continuous supply in months to come."
The pastrami blackout has been in effect since this week, and Levitt said there hasn't been too much kvetching, along the lines of: "What!? You don't have pastrami?!"
"There's been a little of that," Levitt said. "I think people are OK with this for a week or two. They can expand their sandwich horizons, maybe try the corned beef or something else. But if this lasted more than a few weeks, then we would really hear it."
Search
Archives
Subscribe