Corned Beef Death Match: Noshville, Meet (Meat?) Jack's Deli
When it comes to corned beef, that Jewish deli staple, I've found Noshville sorely lacking. In cities that have large Jewish populations (and thus more Jewish delis), Noshville's CB would be laughed right off the slicer.
Don't get me wrong. Noshville has its time and place. When I've got a cold, I head straight for their matzo ball soup, one of the best restaurant-made versions I've had. (And I've had quite a few.) And I've enjoyed many a delightful breakfast there. But it's a shonda they can't make a decent corned beef sandwich.
To prove my point, I brought back a pound of corned beef from my hometown fave, Cleveland, Ohio's Jack's Deli. Incidentally, Oh Boy Records head (and John Prine manager) Al Bunetta told the Scene that Jack's—co-owned by Gary Lebowitz and Alvie Markowitz, whose late father Jack was the restaurant's co-founder—is the best in the country, and I'm inclined to agree.
We got out the rye bread, mustard and slaw and put Jack's beef up against Noshville's in a head-to-head death match. The results after the jump...
If this were a WBA bout, let's just say Jack's knocked out Noshville about 30 seconds into Round 1. Ten lucky Scene employees sampled both products, and the final tally was 10-0 in favor of Jack's. Comments included "No comparison," "Not even close" and "They're not even in the same league."
In the above photo, Noshville's beef is on the left, Jack's on the right. As one taster put accurately it, "Noshville's looks like pressed Subway meat." Jack's, meanwhile, is flaky and marbled like a good steak, and almost melts in your mouth. Does Jack's product have more fat? Sure, but corned beef is like bacon...if you want it lean, why bother? (And Jack's does offer lean corned beef, which is still pretty damn good.) And the briny flavor is out of this world.
Oh, and the kicker? Noshville's regular-size sandwich is $11.99, while Jack's is $9.25.
Mr. Pink summed up Jack's superiority succinctly: "I want my Jewish deli to be owned by someone named Alvie Markowitz."
Comments
and i'll be there is 3 weeks! it's on the list...
jack, any other MUST go to's?
Posted 09/04/2008 at 11:03:41 AMby the way - i have found noshville's matzoh ball soup to be painfully salty... but i love the balls themselves and have bought just them and added them to my own soup.
i loved that you used the word shonda. i never hear it in these parts... and it regards to food i could be using it quite a lot around here...
Posted 09/04/2008 at 11:06:47 AMi meant to say "in regards to food..."
Posted 09/04/2008 at 11:08:02 AMTom Loventhal is a partner in Noshville, but part owner must not be enough.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 12:23:29 PMClaudia...I do agree that the Noshville matzo ball soup is sometimes too salty. It seems to vary a lot from batch to batch.
Hmmm...I assume you've already got Michael Simon's place on your list. You might want to check out the Little Italy neighborhood. Don't know what's good there these days, but maybe someone can tip you off...it's a real, old-school Little Italy.
There's a place called Bo Loong where I used to get dim sum. Can't remember if they do dim sum daily or just on weekends.
Otherwise, I'm not too up to date on the current scene.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 12:54:06 PMTo be fair, I said the quote above as a general comment, not proof of Jack's superiority. No, the proof of Jack's superiority is in that buttery, finely marbled, not-at-all-stringy corned beef, which made my eyes roll back in my head at the first bite. This place must be Reuben heaven, if that's not a paradox.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 01:11:00 PMOver the years the sandwiches at Noshville have gotten smaller and the prices have gotten bigger. And can they do something about those mushy pickles?
Posted 09/04/2008 at 01:13:04 PMsymon's lola is front and center. symon will be there and i'll be there with michael ruhlman, liz symon and my friend carol from "french laundry at home". and i have a tour of the rock hall set-up with the director, who i met here once and he always said, "if ever you're in cleveland...". i am really excited about that...
and there will be lots of food and i'll be sure to take notes.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 01:36:57 PMClaudia, Symon would be the perfect guy to ask about other restaurants. See if he knows if there are any standout places in Little Italy, and if there's good dim sum anywhere. Also, ask him about Polish/Hungarian/Slovakian places. There's a ton of great Eastern European food there, but I'm not sure what's the best.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 01:44:46 PMAnd if you want to bring back a trunkload of corned beef...
Actually, that would be my plotline for the Smokey and the Bandit remake.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:06:51 PMby the way. even though i grew up on the very best deli in the land, i would have to say that it's not something i crave. i like it when i eat it but i rarely seek it out. i loved reading about your corned beef off. but i meant to say this...
there are two types of people in this world: those that love pastrami and those that have no soul.
jack? pink?
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:09:33 PMdiscuss...
I was one of the lucky samplers and to me, the two meats weren't even the same kind of food. It was like comparing hand-dipped swiss chocolate with graham crackers from a box. They're both dessert but the commonalty is so small as to defy comparison. The omelette's at Nosh are pretty good, if kinda greasy.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:31:12 PMi made the big mistake of taking my mother to noshville years ago when she was visiting me...
when she asked for the manager i kicked her under the table and told her "mom, i live here". (like she cared) she proceeded to tell the manager that the white fish salad was horrible....
it went downhill from there.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:37:14 PMI just have to pipe in on this....Corned beef should be made from the brisket to truly be corned beef. True kosher corned beef can only be brisket, as it is a cut from the front quarter. No hind quarter meat can ever be considered kosher. Many places make or buy the hind quarter round for corned beef due to the price difference. Most grocery stores and deli's sell round corned beef as opposed to brisket. Round is three times cheaper than brisket. A relativey new deli on the east side who shall remain nameless, known for their sandwiches(i still cannot figure out why, but I digress) uses round on their "reuben" and I despise it. The difference is truly in the taste. With brisket you get all the marvelous fat and marbeling that comes with a deckeled piece of meat. The round has virtually no fat, is very lean, and for the most part, rubbery when "corned". I suspect Jack's used brisket,point cut(the whole brisket vs. first cut, where the deckel is cut in two). MMMM, think I'll go make a reuben.I make one mean reuben btw... All this talk has made me hungry.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:39:08 PMthereoncewasachef - i think i love you...
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:45:26 PMand btw, speaking of brisket...
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:47:00 PMI am not a fan of chains. AT ALL. Just ask Kay West :o)
However, a friend brought me some angus brisket from Nick and Jim's BBQ...Wow. Really great quality, the right amount of smokiness(IMO), the meat was not too lean, not too fatty,just lucious, savory, smokey meat and a lovely vinegary/tomatoed bbq sauce on the side. I am hooked on that stuff. Try it, it rocks.
Well Claudia, the feeling is mutual. I love your blog cook eat FRET. Kuddos.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 02:52:01 PMClaudia, if you go to Jack's Deli, be sure to ask if Gary is there, and tell him I sent you.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 05:52:42 PMI believe Jack's proves once and for all that, despite vigorous protestations from the Irish, the Jews make the superior corned beef.
Claudia, if you're going to Cleveland, you have to -- absolutely have to - go to the West Side Market, at W. 25th and Lorain (not far from Symon's joint). It's an old-time market dating back to about the 1840s, filled with hundreds of vendors selling everything from Slovenian sausage to Syrian pastries to fruits and veggies. All for a fraction of the price of the grocery stores. Though it's gotten a little yuppified -- there's now a gourmet coffee stand, for chrissakes -- it still carries that vibe as official market to the Babushka ladies. You have to go in the morning, and it's only open Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, I believe, but it's hands-down the coolest place in Cleveland. Also home to the world's greatest gyro at Steve's Gyros. Just don't get the large. You'll need to hire some Swedish weightlifters to carry it for you.
Posted 09/04/2008 at 06:16:52 PMClaudia, I second the West Side Market. I haven't been in over 10 years, but it truly is old-school in the best possible way, and a real salt-of-the-earth kind of place.
Posted 09/05/2008 at 10:50:23 AMWe've had good luck with Jim-n-Nick's brisket as well, though you get the occasional bad batch (maybe 5% of the time)...
Posted 09/05/2008 at 10:55:33 AMClaudia -- then my soul must be "extra-juicy"...
Posted 09/05/2008 at 10:56:52 AMTry Goldies.
Posted 09/05/2008 at 11:38:00 AMTitani has a point. We didn't give Goldie's a chance. I've had mixed experiences there, but I do recall that their corned beef is better than Noshville's. Which can only mean one thing:
Corned Beef Death Match The Sequel: Jack's Deli vs. Goldie's!
Next time I go to Cleveland, it's on!
Posted 09/05/2008 at 11:52:31 AMSadly Noshville doesn't have much to offer the true jewish deli'er. The best I can say for them is their pastrami is decent. I recently had a roast beef sandwich and it had such a large amount of grizzle in it that I had to deconstruct and reassemble, leaving a pile of grizzle and vein on the plate. I think the main problem besides ingredients is they don't have sandwich pros at Noshville. There is little pride in the construction and they don't know how to toast. Since my girl Gina is gone, not much reason to visit....
Posted 09/05/2008 at 11:59:28 AMjack, my cleveland sources tell me that if you're willing to go take-out, Mr. Brisket kicks Jack's Deli's ass...
this could get ugly
Posted 09/05/2008 at 02:34:11 PMWell my family always gets our hanukkah brisket from Mr. Brisket, so I wouldn't be surprised. Bring some back!!!
Posted 09/08/2008 at 11:03:26 AMOK, whoever goes next to Cleveland, here is your order:
Slovenian sausage from West Side Market
Corned beef from Jack's Deli
Brisket from Mr. Brisket
World's greatest gyro (large!) from Steve's Gyros
Pastrami from any/all of the above
That about cover it? Tasting in the conference room!
Posted 09/08/2008 at 11:12:12 AMthe last time i saw round cheaper than brisket, it was being sold out of a trunk on 8th ave. this is a true story btw.
Posted 09/09/2008 at 10:09:08 AM