After standing in the doorway for a bewildering second, we followed the masses to the counter. A handsome fellow offered a slice of pastrami on a plate as a sample. (Pastrami is cured meat, usually beef, that has been brined, dried, seasoned, spiced, smoked, and steamed. I did not know this.) I had never tasted pastrami before and Katz's was probably not the best place for this. Undoubtedly, their pastrami has ruined me forever.
The meat was perfectly prepared; it was moist and full of flavor but not over spiced. The bread was fairly standard sandwich bread and it was slathered in mustard. Katz's also serves soups and salads, in addition to a variety of other sandwiches. Their food is a little expensive, especially for a ravenous and snobbish college student. Each sandwich is about $16, but it can be easily split between two people and leave each person feeling satisfied. If you tip the sandwich-maker, he'll give you even more meat, too. I had one whole sandwich to myself and you better believe I finished it.
Katz's Delicatessen prides itself on being one of the few remaining and real delicatessens left because "they continue a tradition of meat preparation and preservation predating refrigeration". It is also the location of this famous scene from When Harry Met Sally:
In other words, Katz's is a place of historical, gastronomical, and cultural import! Which completely justifies the three hours and $20 I devoted to eating there!
