It’s a question that’s plagued the East Side for what seems like ages, Oy ve, would it kill anybody to have some decent pastrami around here? For an area so rich with Jewish culture, the East Side is tragically devoid of a good, New York-style Jewish deli. I mean, even Framingham, MA has a Jewish deli – but on the East Side of Providence, bupkis.
We’re happy to report, however, that things have just changed for the better. The all new Dok’s Deli on Ives Street (in the former home of United BBQ), while not a full-on Jewish deli, is certainly modeling itself very much in the mold of New York institutions like Katz’s and 2nd Ave Deli. Chef Tyler Doktor is a Boston native, but he grew up on family trips to the classic New York delis and has experience with kosher catering, and he’s intent on solving the Great East Side Pastrami Problem. “I see it as a combination of a gourmet sandwich shop mixed with a New York-style deli,” he explains of his vision, noting that in order to succeed, “You have to have good corned beef and pastrami.”
Doktor, a former Johnson & Wales student who was most recently head chef of Leona’s in North Attleboro, believes he’s got a product that can stack up with the best of them. “My sandwiches aren’t quite as big as Katz’s, but I think the quality of the meat will rival anything this side of New York,” he maintains. A lot of work goes into backing up that tough talk: his house-made pastrami takes roughly three weeks, from brining (two weeks) to desalination to five hours in the smoker he inherited from United BBQ to resting for a week to being steamed and sliced; it’s a “labor of love,” he says.
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sml100
Sorry, but this is NOT a NY-style deli. Nor does Doktor hold Dok's out to be. The sandwiches are on Rainbow's version of rye bread, which is not a traditional "NY" rye bread. Nor will one find soudough bread in a NY-style deli. And after I received my order, I learned that my straight forward "corned beef on rye with brown mustard" was toasted. I suggested that they should let customers know that they toast their sandwiches because the menu doesn't indicate that. I've never had a toasted meat sandwich at Katz's, the Carnegie or any other NY delicatessen. Also, the meats have a much more smokey flavor than one will find in a NY-style deli. And I think that is what Doktor intends. Also, the cole slaw would not be apple cider, again this is an intentional direction Doktor has chosen. Finally, a NY-style deli would have a selection of Dr. Brown's sodas (at least cream, black cherry, and maybe even celery). None here.
So call it what you will, but not New York-style or a "Jewish" deli as someone else wrote, ignoring the Italian meats and the hand carved ham and other reasons it's also wrong to call many New York deli's "Jewish" delis.
I would certainly like to see a successful New York-style deli return to Providence. Until then, I'll have to "do-it myself" with meats and bread from either Davis' or Eastside Mktplace or travel to Zaftig's in Brookline or Natick or to NYC for the real thing. Otherwise, I will enjoy Dok's Deli for what it is, not for what I wish it would be.
Monday, November 19, 2012 Report this