Katz's Delicatessen

(212) 254-2246

205 E Houston St (at Ludlow St.)
New York, NY 10002 40.7223 -73.9873

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Neighborhoods: Lower East Side, Downtown

KATZDELI.COM

Years in business

Established in 1888

Hours:

Mon-Tue 8am-9:45pm

Wed-Thu 8am-10:45pm

Fri-Sat 8am-2:45am

Sun 8am-10:45pm

Price:

$

Last updated 8.16.11

Category:

Restaurants, Delis And Delicatessens, Catering

Payment Methods:

American Express, Discover, Visa, MasterCard

Catering Services:

Restaurant Management

Restaurant Special Features:

Local Favorite, Family-Friendly Dining, Late Night Dining, Private Rooms, Lunch Spot, People Watching, Food Delivery, Cheap Eats

General Info:

Open 7 Days

Cuisine:

Eclectic & International, Hot Dogs, Kosher, Traditional American, Comfort Food

What People Are Saying About Katz's Delicatessen

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

Katz's Deli is frequented by regulars who've been coming for decades, as well as tourists and neighborhood newbies; occasionally, you might catch a glimpse of a celebrity. Since its establishment in the 1880s, the deli has changed very little in appearance, retaining a grungy sheen. Grab a ticket on the way in for counter service, or seat yourself at a table to be waited on. Katz's still makes about 5,000 pounds of corned beef, 2,000 pounds of salami and 12,000 hot dogs a week--the old-fashioned way, on the premises--and it shows in the massive portions the deli serves. Excellent pastrami is a…

Editor's Tips

Where to Sit:
The sign hanging above the table made famous in the movie "When Harry Met Sally" should help you find the spot.
ambiance
71.4300012588501% positive
  1. The food is still good but I wish the ambience was what is was 20-25 years ago.
  2. Yes, it has an authentic Old Manhattan atmosphere, which is harder and harder to find these days, and it serves a decent corned beef sandwich.
  3. It never ceases to amaze me when people write negative reviews of excellent, cheap-eats type places and fault them for their spartan decor, surly puryeors, and basic service.
  4. This was once a fun place full of character, now it is a disgusting dirty get them in get them out factory with rude help and the worst food in the city.
  5. Dingy but colorful, great food, huge portions -- and just plain lots of fun.
  6. Fabulous old decor & the best food we had on our recent trip to NYC.
  7. The atmosphere is not for the faint of heart (the lines, the crowded, the bus-your-own-everything, the sawdust on the floor, the nasty bathroom, the don't-lose-your-ticket-or-else).
dessert
100.0% positive
  1. enjoy an egg cream or a cel-ray soda with your meal.
  2. An egg cream should be in a nice soda glass for over $4.
  3. had a chopped liver sandwich and a vanilla egg cream, and my husband enjoyed a pastrami Reuben with a chocolate egg cream.
drinks
0.0% positive
  1. The Pastrami sandwich was like "buttah" and with pickles and an icy cold beer to wash it down, it was a pleasurable experience.
  2. Sandwich & a cold beer and you're all set!
food quality
74.40000057220459% positive
  1. The soup was nice but wasn't too convinced by the Matzoh ball.
  2. The only thing is the food was just awful.
  3. love the quality of the food
  4. The meats (pastrami, corned beef and tongue) are quite good (note: NOT best) but don't have anything else.
  5. The pickles that accompanied the sandwiches were excellent.
  6. If they were actually well managed they would have a happier staff, the place wouldn't look like a dive, which it is, it wouldn't be a riddle to find out how to get service, it wouldn't be a surprise that there is 'waiter' service, there wouldn't be table
  7. Katz's Deli is the most overrated food place I've ever been to, On a recent visit we were served dry tasteless french fries, a plate of pick.
  8. This was not just the worst meal of the year, but perhaps of the decade and century!
  9. Although I didn't enjoy my bill, I did enjoy the sandwiches.
  10. They'll usually give you a sample piece while they make your sandwich, and it's that first bite that always puts a smile on my face and makes me remember why Katz's is so good.
  11. this place is hands down the best pastrami sandwich you'll ever have in your life.
  12. tried the pastrami and corned beef (both warm), and the cold roast beef - all were good, but not quite $10-13 good, for such a small sandwich.
  13. Potato salad - vomitable; one bite and I felt sick.
  14. Only once did I have a piled high sandwich that was not very enjoyable that was more like it was from the Carnegie del.
  15. french fries, Cole Slaw and pickles were all good.
  16. Yes, it has an authentic Old Manhattan atmosphere, which is harder and harder to find these days, and it serves a decent corned beef sandwich.
  17. The pastrami sandwich was outstanding!
  18. Matzoh ball soup should be piping hot, a great chicken broth and the matzoh ball should be flavorful and hot.
  19. The pastrami sandwich overflows with juicy goodness, and I can't get enough of the fresh pickles.
  20. This is not justifiable---the portions are small, the food is disgusting, the staff rude, and the environment filthy.
  21. The turkey's great too and the steak fries are about as good as frozen steak fries can get.
  22. The delicious pastrami, corned beef, salami, tongue, etc. also remain the same.
  23. My friend and I didn't like the corned beef, maybe because we were already full on the pastrami.
  24. the soup is COLD and disgusting.
  25. My matzoh ball soup was very mediocre.
  26. don't see how anyone can think you'll get a better pastrami sandwich anywhere, and the hot dogs are the best around.
  27. had a chopped liver sandwich and a vanilla egg cream, and my husband enjoyed a pastrami Reuben with a chocolate egg cream.
  28. Want abuse and overpriced food?
  29. the pastrami is delicious, and my fave sandwich.
  30. Matzoh ball soup was tasteless, pickles were limp and fries were mostly soggy and greasy.
  31. The corned beef was good too but a bit dry for my taste - maybe because I ordered it lean.
  32. But the food was terrible -- and expensive!
  33. I'll be honest, the sandwich was greasy, heavy, and one of the best pastrami sandwiches I've ever had!
  34. Decent corned beef; deplorable service
  35. Dingy but colorful, great food, huge portions -- and just plain lots of fun.
  36. Katz's is old New York at it's authentic and contemporary best.
  37. their corn beef and the pastrami are the best that money can buy and one sandwich is enough for two
  38. It seemed to me that Katz's attracts a good many tourists but this native New Yorker will still occasionally return to Katz's when I am feeling nostalgia for some tasty, old time deli.
  39. the food is that good!
  40. The corned beef Rueben was terrible --the meat was dry and the sandwich was greasy.
  41. enjoy an egg cream or a cel-ray soda with your meal.
  42. Corned beef is also excellent but by nature it is not as flavorful or moist.
  43. for those who don't like the food.
  44. the prices have obviously gone up since then and now i don't go often, but i know it's the place to go for a nice family meal that we'll all like.
  45. The food is amazingly good and I am thankful for having encountered it.
  46. The Pastrami sandwich was like "buttah" and with pickles and an icy cold beer to wash it down, it was a pleasurable experience.
  47. The food is wonderful it is the best deli.
  48. The sandwich is huge, the pastrami is tender, hand cut, juicy.
  49. As a big meat eater I must recommend the hot Pastrami.
  50. LOVE their pastrami sandwich on rye.
  51. You will not be disappointed with the juicy, crisp outside, tangy meat.
  52. The other food there outside of the Pastrami that is good corned beef.
  53. had a great corned beef sandwich at Katz and that was without tipping beforehand because I only had large-denomination bills in my wallet.
  54. The meat is ok (not good, but not vomitable) on the sandwich, but the radiation cheese and sauerkraut are gross.
  55. Great portions on the sandwiches.
  56. Sometimes I'll go with potato salad or a knish on the side, because you can't go wrong with either of those, and occasionally I'll have one of their delicious hot dogs as a prelude to my pastrami.
  57. While there are plenty of places to go for a good corned beef sandwich, Katz's has a charm about it.
  58. Cool nostalgic vibe to it and I LOVE the sample they give you while you're waiting for your sandwich to be made.
  59. Love the matzo balls and chopped chicken liver.
  60. Thirdly, I just cannot recommend this place because the chaos the ordering system is, the reliance on tickets that can be lost (it also bespeaks of how much they trust the customer - or are hoping they lose their ticket), the bleh non-meat food, the miser
  61. As a native New Yorker, I've been going to delis, including Katz's, my whole life, so I know a thing or two about good corned beef and pastrami.
  62. Wish they would grace their meat with some better bread, but the plain Jane rye provided a nice blank canvas, in a sense.
  63. I'm not a pastrami/corned beef fan so when I got to Katz's, it's for the best hot dogs (mustard, saurkraut) in the city, snappy and fresh, and knishes, kasha-filled and hot and crispy, amazingly comforting with brown mustard.
  64. Overall, great food and good experience.
  65. The food is awful.
  66. would definitely visit again and bring friends from the Philippines over, hopefully to try the famous corned beef and salami next time.
  67. The Pastrami was juicy and delicious with enough meat to feed 2.
  68. Now, the sandwich was extremely good -- but it should have been for $14.95.
  69. Kosher dills are the perfect compliment for your unforgetable sandwich and they give you plenty of them.
  70. This was once a fun place full of character, now it is a disgusting dirty get them in get them out factory with rude help and the worst food in the city.
  71. The meat was warm and thickly sliced - not like the pastrami you buy at the deli that is cold and sliced thin on a machine.
  72. Last night me and my partner REALLY wanted a GOOD pastrami and corned beff sandwich.
  73. The latkes I have to say might be the best I have ever had, thin and crisp with the perfect potato flavor.
  74. The no-frills matzo ball soup is also very good, and never forget to order a side of half-sour pickles!
  75. but i must admit that the pastrami sandwich looked great on TV, so i decided to give Katz Deli a try.
  76. The reuben is an astounding $15.75 complete with tasteless rye bread and sauerkraut with metled cheese direct from the.
  77. An egg cream should be in a nice soda glass for over $4.
  78. If you're hesitant that it's the best kosher deli, just stop in and try a pastrami sandwich.
  79. Heres the thing yeah its a good sandwich but so what for this price $$$$ you can have a very good meal almost anywhere in NYC so save your money.
  80. They will give you a sample while slicing the meat, and the sandwiches are big enough to easily share (no charge either!)
  81. Go to Kennsington Deli in Great Neck for a good tasting Kosher sandwich.
  82. Excellent sandwiches!
  83. Fabulous old decor & the best food we had on our recent trip to NYC.
  84. Dear God without doubt-the best sweet potato knish's and also some of the best pickles you can come by!
  85. The food is still as good now as when I was a kid.
  86. Well maybe its becaue once I did get my sandwich it was very good.
  87. The pastrimi sandwich is simply the BEST in the city.
  88. The food is still good but I wish the ambience was what is was 20-25 years ago.
  89. Pastrami or corned beef are juicy and piled high (ask for extra rye bread).
  90. terrible pastrami and corned beef.
  91. was able to finally visit this legendary deli earlier this year and ordered their famous pastrami sandwich.
  92. If you are in search of the most authentic NYC deli experience look no further than the famous and historic Katz's Deli down on the Lower East Side.
  93. Also do keep in mind that it's probably also going to be one of the most expensive sandwiches you'll ever eat.
  94. While the sandwiches are not the very best I have ever eaten, I found the meat, the pastrami in particular, to be quite tasty.
  95. don't miss out on a plate full of fresh dill pickles.
  96. Before I lay into them I will say that the meat (on the reuben) is 'good' but no better than what you can find at a good BBQ joint where the meat is tender and juicy and about three times less expensive.
  97. The matzoh ball soup is the best i've ever eaten and this includes homemade recipes from my jewish relatives.
overall
75.0% positive
  1. It's the best place i NYC.
  2. am really surprised to see here those great reviews and all those pictures of famous people hanging in the big hall of the restaurant.
  3. If you are a vegetarian, this really isn't a good place to go.
  4. The place is the best place on the East Coast for Pastrami and has been rated by many people.
return potential
50.0% positive
  1. It seemed to me that Katz's attracts a good many tourists but this native New Yorker will still occasionally return to Katz's when I am feeling nostalgia for some tasty, old time deli.
  2. took my family here for the real deli experience, and I'll never go back, the service is deplorable, the staff is rude, and the prices are ridiculous.
service
42.58999824523926% positive
  1. There were other people on my line that were getting really mad, cursing under their breath about our guy and your poor system of service.
  2. The staff is very, very rude.
  3. Service is always a bit mediocre and the seating is not great because its a cafeteria but youre not there for the seating or the service, your there for the legendary pastrami and thats what youll get.
  4. Thirdly, I just cannot recommend this place because the chaos the ordering system is, the reliance on tickets that can be lost (it also bespeaks of how much they trust the customer - or are hoping they lose their ticket), the bleh non-meat food, the miser
  5. the staff was rude, and the area where you could be served by a waitress had people waiting like vultures for the next available table!
  6. Our waiter was rude, and tried to serve me a bagel with lox and creme cheese on a cinnamon raisin bagel.
  7. am really surprised to see here those great reviews and all those pictures of famous people hanging in the big hall of the restaurant.
  8. It never ceases to amaze me when people write negative reviews of excellent, cheap-eats type places and fault them for their spartan decor, surly puryeors, and basic service.
  9. The waitresses are nice--also you can just get counter service & sit.
  10. can only surmise that people have never had decent pastrami to compare this dreck with.
  11. the people were rude and i will never step foot in this "landmark" again.
  12. This was once a fun place full of character, now it is a disgusting dirty get them in get them out factory with rude help and the worst food in the city.
  13. This is not justifiable---the portions are small, the food is disgusting, the staff rude, and the environment filthy.
  14. The service was excellent.
  15. People who work there are good people.
  16. Decent corned beef; deplorable service
  17. The waitress was nice, but the others were indifferent or surly.
  18. you are shuffled around by hang dog bus people who apologize profusely about the rude management who close down sections you are eating in and make you move.
  19. Expensive, dirty, rude.
  20. If you are going to make people wait on the disgusting line, then you should use the same method that banks employ.
  21. These people are rude.
  22. The staff knows their stuff and the owners are professional and on the ball.
  23. If they were actually well managed they would have a happier staff, the place wouldn't look like a dive, which it is, it wouldn't be a riddle to find out how to get service, it wouldn't be a surprise that there is 'waiter' service, there wouldn't be table
  24. took my family here for the real deli experience, and I'll never go back, the service is deplorable, the staff is rude, and the prices are ridiculous.
  25. Please ignore all reviews that say this place is terrible and mark it with one star, it is not meant to be a 5 star restaurant with crisp white linens and impeccable waiter service.
  26. The place is the best place on the East Coast for Pastrami and has been rated by many people.
  27. Dingy w/ yellowed pictures of all the famous people IE President Clinton after 2 hot dogs and a pastami WOW howed he do that, Jerry Lewis, and of coarse Harry & Sally.
value
56.479997634887695% positive
  1. Dingy but colorful, great food, huge portions -- and just plain lots of fun.
  2. It never ceases to amaze me when people write negative reviews of excellent, cheap-eats type places and fault them for their spartan decor, surly puryeors, and basic service.
  3. their corn beef and the pastrami are the best that money can buy and one sandwich is enough for two
  4. took my family here for the real deli experience, and I'll never go back, the service is deplorable, the staff is rude, and the prices are ridiculous.
  5. huge rip-off.
  6. This is not justifiable---the portions are small, the food is disgusting, the staff rude, and the environment filthy.
  7. The pastrami was excellent, and half was enough to fill me but I'm not sure if it's worth $15.
  8. Also do keep in mind that it's probably also going to be one of the most expensive sandwiches you'll ever eat.
  9. Before I lay into them I will say that the meat (on the reuben) is 'good' but no better than what you can find at a good BBQ joint where the meat is tender and juicy and about three times less expensive.
  10. But the food was terrible -- and expensive!
  11. Great portions on the sandwiches.
  12. Want abuse and overpriced food?
  13. WAY too expensive!
  14. Heres the thing yeah its a good sandwich but so what for this price $$$$ you can have a very good meal almost anywhere in NYC so save your money.
  15. the prices have obviously gone up since then and now i don't go often, but i know it's the place to go for a nice family meal that we'll all like.
  16. I've had equally large portions at Carnegie and Stage delis which were painfully dry.
  17. The sandwich is huge, the pastrami is tender, hand cut, juicy.
  18. Thirdly, I just cannot recommend this place because the chaos the ordering system is, the reliance on tickets that can be lost (it also bespeaks of how much they trust the customer - or are hoping they lose their ticket), the bleh non-meat food, the miser
4 Star Rating: Recommended

05/21/12

Decent, but expensive

by Natedog67

I've been to a lot of sandwich places lately, and this one was quite good. I got a Ruben sandwich, and was pretty thick and hearty for what I ordered. The only issue I have is I still feel the prices are a slight be inflated for the food. It's still a good Deli, but don't walk in there with $5. Haha

3 Star Rating: Average

03/15/12

Quality Control is Gone

by Chubby Restaurant Goer

I still give it 3 stars because they do still make one of the best pastrami sandwiches in NYC, but here is a place that has become too popular for its own good that management no longer cares. I do say management because the staff are still hard-working as ever but the quality of the meat has gone down tremendously and that is the manager's responsibility.

There used to be a time when I would easily give this place 5 stars or the highest rating because every time I go there, they serve the best and freshest meats. It don't matter if it's corned beef, franks, or turkey, they are all good. Now, only the pastrami is good and all the rest is crap. I got food poisoning a few times from their not-so-fresh corned beef.

If you're a tourist, everyone will tell you to come here. But I must warn you if you order anything else other than the pastrami sandwich.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

11/08/11

Best pastrami ever

by AnnaK11235

I loved the pastrami in this place.

You do have to wait on line for a while but its worth the wait.

2 Star Rating: Below Average

10/19/11

THICK sliced vs THIN sliced...

by PhillipLisa

Bottom line with this review (forget about how many stars we gave it); you either LOVE THINLY sliced GARGANTUAN sandwiches (pastrami and corn beef ESPECIALLY) as are made at the rival - Carnegie Deli OR you like THICKER and more manageable sandwiches from Katz's. We personally prefer Carnegie Deli, but this is also a top notch quality New York deli of that type genre. It is "expensive" when you compare the size of the sandwich from both places as a Carnegie Deli sandwich can feed 4 people or more and make 4 lunches/dinners. We have only eaten here once because of our preference. MANY of who are coming in as tourist from outside of New York City are just coming because they FINALLY saw the movie that had a scene filmed there in 1989 - "When Harry Met Sally".

Phillip & Lisa

1 Star Rating: Poor

07/21/11

If you like to be abused, go to Katz

by Jprendes

Overpriced, bad service, average food, filthy place. When you search in Google for "bad customer service" a picture of this place should come up

The Details on Katz's Delicatessen

Place Categories:

  • best hot pastrami
  • good corned beef
  • good corned beff sandwich
  • best nyc deli
  • good tangy meat
  • not recommend food place
  • best half sour pickles
  • recommend katz
  • best pastrami sandwich
  • rude people
  • rude staff
  • disgusting matzoh ball soup
  • tasteless plate
  • great deli experience
  • best hot dogs
  • great corned beef sandwich
  • great chicken broth
  • nice family meal
  • all good french fries
  • never decent pastrami
  • worst dining experience
  • overpriced way
  • great food
  • best place
  • soupy warm cole slaw

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