Katz's Delicatessen in the Lower East Side of Manhattan opened in 1888 and is New York's oldest deli. Business Insider met with Jake Dell, the fifth-generation owner of the iconic deli to find out how Katz's has kept running for 129 years. Following is a transcript of the video.
Jake Dell (Owner, Katz's Deli): This is the best pastrami, best corned beef, best hot dogs, best matzo ball soup that you’re going to find anywhere in the city or in the world. My name is Jake Dell, I’m the fifth-generation owner here at Katz’s Deli. Katz’s Deli has been here since 1888, 129-year-old deli here in the Lower East Side in Manhattan.
I would say there’s a couple things that really have kept Katz’s going for these last 129 years and the first is definitely the food. My favorite is pastrami on rye with a little bit of mustard. Can’t go wrong. We go through about 15,000 pounds of pastrami every week. The other thing is just that nostalgia component, you know, you look at the walls, you look at the neons, the sights, the smells, the sounds. These are classic, and you don’t find this anywhere else. And finally, of course, it’s the atmosphere. It’s loud, it’s bustling, it’s chaotic, it’s fun.
Lower East Side has gone through a lot of changes, both in looks and feel and what it does and who lives here and the one thing that’s stayed constant is Katz’s.