We’ve already documented the pastrami-making process at Katz’s, New York’s pastrami top dog. It’s similar to the process at Schwartz’s but with some subtle differences. Katz’s uses navel for pastrami and brisket for corned beef. Both meats are cured, or corned, for about three weeks before the navels are wood-smoked for 48 to 72 hours at very low heat. The rub, which consists of garlic, salt, pepper, and coriander, goes on right before smoking. Afterwards the smoked navels are boiled for several hours, steamed for 30 minutes, and sliced by hand.
Joel Tietolman and Noah Bernamoff of Mile End, posing together.
Joel Tietolman and Noah Bernamoff of Mile End.
Mile End shook up New York’s deli scene in 2010 when Canadian expat Noah Bernamoff and his wife Rae Cohen brought the Montreal deli tradition to Brooklyn. Since then, Mile End’s modern take on traditional Jewish cooking has been a resounding success, the introductory deli to a new generation of New Yorkers. That includes their Montreal-style smoked meat, which is part of a menu that managing partner Joel Tietolman describes as a way “to bring about, in a new way, the old traditions that have kind of faded.”
