Harry & Ida's Meat & Supply Co | Alphabet City | Manhattan - ᴏᴍɢɪᴛꜱʙᴏᴍʙ 💣

While few places in the city resonate in my heart, you'll be happy to hear that Harry & Ida's is one of them- They hit the nail on the head with a resounding, satisfactory bang! You'll also be hard pressed to hear me use the word best, because "best" is subjective nearly impossible to achieve. However, they do collect a 4.9/5.0 and here's why...

Rustic & artisanal permeates from just about every corner

Rest assured, Will and Julie Horowitz's Alphabet City (East Village) smoked meats deli store won't supplant Katz's anytime soon, and they're not meant to. They are different. Known to smoke everything under the sun, including pastrami, once you step into the store, it smells absolutely wonderful. Visiting it is an experience all to itself, and I'm sure it was intended that way. Rustic and artisanal permeates from just about every corner, especially their product as we discovered this place with DipsDines one afternoon. If you didn't get a chance to try their pastrami while dining at nearby Ducks Eatery before, a visit here makes a ton of sense as this is where it belongs.

Pictures, from just about any angle do it justice - Pop's Pastrami via Fyuse App

They have a number of fascinating items on the menu like eel, bluefish, (vegetarian-friendly) mushroom, and hot ham but the smoky, flavorful, $17.50 Pop's Pastrami is the stuff dreams are made of. A smaller version Ida's Pastrami can be had for less ($11). Pictures, from just about any angle do it justice. It's still nothing to sneeze at but worth the experience. Thick cut, with a feather of dill and sliced cucumbers along with a generous slab of mustard within a roll... heavenly is about as close to the best description I can give you for it. Drawing comparisons to other pastrami sandwiches, makes little sense- It's just different.

It's Just Different.

There's not much seating to speak of, save three stools and a countertop. It's also meant to be consumed rather quickly. The bread itself will go mushy on you if you let it sit too long. The crew behind the counter are friendly and answer just about every question you can throw at them. For a few dollars more, you can add chips and soda with your sandwich, and they're good in-house choices too.

4.9/5.0