As Houstonians prepare to welcome Houston Restaurant Weeks this August, another food-centric event is taking place August 1 through August 31 across not only the city but the whole U.S.A. and even Toronto, Canada. The 9th Annual Delicatessen Month, founded in 2016 by Houston’s own Deli Man, David ‘Ziggy’ Gruber, is a collaboration between Gruber and Jay Parker, owner of the now-closed Ben’s Best Deli in Rego Park, New York.
The delicatessen is an American institution, its history stretching back to the mid-1800s when German immigrants opened food shops similar to the delikatessens of their home country. With these storefronts, Americans were introduced to frankfurters, sausages and cured meats. Eventually, Jewish immigrants began to open delicatessens in New York City in the 1880s, providing traditional Jewish foods to the community and special ingredients for celebratory and religious gatherings.
In the 21st century, these mainstays of primarily urban neighborhoods, have fallen victim to chain grocery stores and the evolution of the American lifestyle. No longer is bubbe standing in line for the day’s supply of ingredients and gossip. Locals no longer gather for coffee and conversation. In 2015, the documentary Deli Man, chronicled the history of the delicatessen and its fragile existence in today’s society.
Gruber was the unexpected star of the film having been an enthusiastic advocate for the Jewish deli for years. The documentary showcased delis across the country including Gruber’s own Houston institution, Kenny & Ziggy’s New York Delicatessen and Restaurant. The Cordon Bleu-trained chef was born into the deli business. His grandfather, Max Gruber, founded The Rialto in New York in 1927 with his brothers-in-law.
Though Gruber’s career took him to Michelin-starred establishments, his true passion was continuing the legacy of the Jewish deli. After taking over his family’s deli in New York and then opening his own in Hollywood, he eventually landed in Houston, opening Kenny & Ziggy’s with Kenny Friedman in 1999.
It was the release of the documentary in 2016 that made up Gruber’s mind to start National Deli Month to encourage people to get back to delis. He said in an email, “But it was years before that, just when I was back in New York after training to be a professional chef in London. I was in my father’s deli. I looked at the room and there was just 60- and 70-year-old people.”
He added, “Sadly so many of the delis I worked with to start National Deli Month aren’t around anymore. It’s a tough business and communities have changed…We’re not working overnight miracles but we are making progress. And a lot of the deli folks who have signed up are young, some third and fourth generation. It makes me very hopeful.”
In May 2023, Holocaust Museum of Houston hosted an exhibit extolling the contributions of the delicatessen to American culture. Titled ” I’ll Have What She’s Having: The Jewish Deli, ” it featured much of Gruber’s own deli memorabilia including posters, menus and matchbook’s from famous delis in New York, Chicago, Miami and even Canada, a country on which some Holocaust survivors took refuge after World War II, many of them children. The exhibit is currently showing at Capital Jewish Museum in Washington D.C.
While Deli Month is a national event with more than 45 delis across the country and one in Canada participating, Kenny & Ziggy’s is the only Houston deli offering a special multi-course menu for the month of August. However, there are a few other Texas delis doing Deli Month including Zeitman’s Grocery Store in Bryan and The Hayden in San Antonio.
Kenny & Ziggy’s National Deli Month Prix-Fixe Menu is available August 1 though August 31 for lunch and dinner. The cost is $45 per person. Tax, gratuity and beverages are not included. The first course (forschpice) offers a choice of chopped liver appetizer, matzo ball soup, stuffed kishka with gravy or a knish of choice. There are six entrees from which to choose including brisket dinner, slow-roasted spring chicken, 16-ounce prime Roumanian steak, Hungarian goulash, glazed wild salmon and Kiev-style wild mushroom steak au poivre. There are a variety of sides as well.
The dessert course offers a choice of plain, blueberry or strawberry cheesecake, 7-layer cake or assorted rugelach.
The restaurant will donate 10 percent of each meal sold to Holocaust Museum Houston. In addition to the special menu, Kenny & Ziggy’s will host a private luncheon for local Holocaust survivors August 7. Gruber will serve traditional Jewish dishes that aren’t found as readily on menus as they used to be. Unfortunately, the number of survivors diminishes as time goes on but the luncheon is expected to host 20 to 30 people, many of whom were small children when the Holocaust destroyed families and uprooted others.
Gruber relishes the opportunity to provide a traditional Jewish deli meal to the Holocaust survivors, “It is so amazing, after what all of them went through during the Holocaust, to find them the most kind, laughing and compassionate people you will ever meet.”
He added, “The Holocaust Museum is just a natural for us to team up with. Not only are the people there so much fun to work with, but the concept is preserving Jewish stories, the culture and traditions that in another way, is exactly what Jewish American Delis do…It’s a perfect blend, like Mish Mosh in soup.”
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
