Gary and Lenny’s New York Delicatessen, 3331 Brunswick Pike (Rt 1 South), Lawrenceville
(Directions) (Website) Open 7 days: 7AM-9PM Su-Th; 7AM-10PM F-Sa

NY-style deli’s used to be something you could find all over NYC, and never in the suburbs. Growing up during the 1960’s, I would sometimes be taken to a real NYC deli for lunch. I remember the tubs of pickles (which I loved) and pickled green tomatoes (which scared me). Pastrami sandwiches with hand-carved slices of meat stacked seemingly to the ceiling.

As a young man living in NYC in the 1970s and 80s, I’d frequent Katz’s (which in those days was inexpensive), or, if I was feeling flush, the Second Avenue Deli.

But today, it’s hard to find real Jewish deli food, even in NYC. The Second Avenue Deli is gone. Landmarks like the Carnegie Deli or Katz’s are still around, but are almost caricatures of themselves, and cost a fortune. In NJ, other than Lakewood, I don’t know where else to find a real deli.

So it was with real delight that we stumbled onto Gary and Lenny’s New York Delicatessen today, and discovered a place, not far from Trenton, where we can get great pastrami and other deli specialties without spending a fortune.  On the date of this posting, it has been open about a two weeks. It’s in the Mercer Mall fronting Rt. 1 South, in a building that used to be a Denny’s. Some of you might fondly remember the New York Diner, which was replaced by a Houlihans a few years ago, just a few yards north of the current location. But this is a different ownership, and the food here is, if anything, better.

When we were seated, the young man who led us to the table asked if we wanted pickles. “Of course”, we said; and a few moments later he returned with a side-salad bowl filled with two half-sour and two full-sour pickles, plus a pickled green tomato (I was tempted to try it, but somehow couldn’t bring myself to do so), and a big glob of sauerkraut. The pickles were great.

We ordered our favorite deli breakfast: a Pastrami omelet (no cheese of course, though the menu is not kosher, and you could certainly order your omelet that way). Despite the fact that the restaurant was quite busy (we had to wait 10 minutes to be seated), our food came fairly quickly and was hot. The home fries were perhaps the BEST I’VE EVER HAD, sliced thin and grilled to a crispy golden brown. The Pastrami was appropriately pungent and quite lean.

My wife ordered rye toast, but I ordered a bagel, and it was the BEST BAGEL I’VE EVER HAD OUTSIDE OF NYC OR MONTREAL. I mean, this was a first-class, NY-style bagel! In Lawrence, no less.  The customers near us included an older Jewish couple who clearly knew their deli food, and commented loudly to whomever would listen about the quality of their food (almost all of it positive).

We subsequently returned for a dinner recently.  The food was good, but the kitchen was a shambles, mixing up orders on the waitresses’ trays and generally creating havoc.  We were also brought the wrong check.  Our waitress was overwhelmed.  To his credit, the owner recognized the problem and volunteered a $25 gift card as compensation (we never id ourselves as Hidden Trenton, and we hadn’t even complained).  Such teething problems can be forgiven when a restaurant is new.

For the quality of the food, and considering this is targeting a Princeton crowd, the prices are reasonable. The menu is huge, breakfast is served all day. And if you’re looking for real deli food, there’s really no other option so close by.

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