VOA标准英语2010-New York Delis are in a Pickle

Faced with high costs and increased competition, traditional delicatessens are a vanishing breed.

Adam Phillips | New York City 06 April 2010

The dinnertime crowd gathers for a meal at the 2nd Avenue Deli.

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It's 6 p.m., and the dinner crowd is filling up the pleasantly cramped¹ dining room of the 2nd Avenue Deli in Midtown Manhattan.

That’s where self-styled “delicatatologist,” David Sax, chomps² down on a huge homemade pickle³, leans back in the sort of rickety wooden chair that is “deli de rigeur” and breathes in the atmosphere.

“You know you are in a deli when you walk in and you suddenly feel this warm embrace, like you’ve walked into the largest kitchen of some relative you’ve never met,” he says.

'Delicatologist' David Sax, the author of 'Save the Deli,' is about to enjoy a pastrami sandwich in Times Square.

A vanishing breed

But the deli family is shrinking.

Less than a century ago, there were about 4,000 Jewish delicatessen restaurants in New York, all serving the smoked and pickled meats and “shmears” of chopped chicken liver beloved by Eastern European Jewish immigrants.

And while traditional delis continue to operate in the Big Apple, their numbers have declined to a few dozen or so.

Facing more competition, traditional delicatessens are also getting more expensive to operate, making them a vanishing breed.

Several factors are at play. Cost is a major consideration for delis that serve kosher meat, which requires strict rabbinical supervision⁴, and is more expensive than non-kosher meats.

 

The cover of 'Save the Deli,' by author David Sax.

Also, in a city with an endless choice of good ethnic⁵ eateries, delis are no longer the everyday destinations they once were.

Author David Sax, author of “Save the Deli,” surveys the merry scene at the 2nd Avenue Deli. Its chaotic⁶ energy is reminiscent of a family holiday dinner. “People are just running around and kind of shouting at you,‘What do you want?’,‘What do you need?’,‘Come on in’,‘Have a bite’ And in that craziness, that madness, there is just love, sheer love.”

Family atmosphere

Indeed, Lynn, a longtime waitress, says many of her customers see her more as a grandmother figure than a food server.

”They’re walking back in time and they want comfort and care, and I love being that for these people.” Lynn says she’s happy if her customers leave happy, even when they leave a crummy tip.

Chopped chicken liver is a traditional deli favorite. This tub won't last long.

Lynn places a platter of blintzes and a bowl of steaming chicken soup at a table where 10-year-old Jonas Plaut, his parents and some family friends are sharing a meal.

”I like this restaurant because it’s like my family – food, laughter, fun, noise and lots of other stuff,” Jonas says between bites.

His father, Jeremy Plaut, enjoys the Yiddish words for the foods delis serve, “Kreplach,” he says, savoring⁷ the harsh consonant⁸ at the end of the word for dumplings.

He then takes a forkful of “gribenes,” an Old World specialty⁹ made of chicken skin and onions fried in “schmaltz” – chicken fat.

Sign of abundance

But whatever food one orders at a New York deli, portions are expected to be big. In his book, Sax explains that that tradition dates to the late 19th century, when Eastern European Jewish immigrants associated America with an abundance they never knew back home.

“These people were ‘the tired, the hungry,’ the Statue of Liberty was calling for. And the idea you would have a meal like we have here, with giant piles of gefilte fish and chopped liver, and to be able to just order a pound of corned beef on a whim¹⁰. The people went nuts.”

But New York delis are a popular destination for non-Jews as well.

Sax interviewed dozens of African Americans, Arabs, Chinese and people from other lands who have either visited or worked in delis. “And they carry that passion [for delis] wherever they go,” he says.

 

2nd Avenue Deli owner Jeremy Liebewohl behind the counter surveying his domain¹¹.

'Save the Deli'

That passion is certainly shared by loyal employees like Dave.

He stands behind the deli’s gleaming glass counter six days a week, slicing the restaurant’s steaming meats like corned beef and pastrami while offering sample tastes to customers waiting for a table. “If [at first they order] a quarter pound, after I give them a taste, bingo, they make it a pound.”

Dave started working at the 2nd Avenue Delicatessen in 1976, when he was 17 years old. “I am still working with the same items. Deli is deli. Chopped liver is chopped liver. It never changes. It just gets better.”

“It’s definitely a labor¹² of love,” says 2nd Avenue Deli owner Jeremy Liebewohl. “As a businessman, I am always striving to make my business as profitable as possible and successful as possible. But if you don’t love it, there is no way to make it work.”

The Plaut family and friends give a hearty¹³ 'L'chaim' toast with some deli chocolate soda¹⁴.

Survival with pleasure is definitely the theme at a nearby table, where young Jonas' family hoists¹⁵ glasses overflowing¹⁶ with deli-style chocolate soda to make the traditional Jewish toast to life.

“L’chaim,” they say, infusing the deli itself with continued life.
 

1 cramped   

a.狭窄的

参考例句：

• The house was terribly small and cramped, but the agent described it as a bijou residence. 房子十分狭小拥挤，但经纪人却把它说成是小巧别致的住宅。
• working in cramped conditions 在拥挤的环境里工作

2 chomps   

v.切齿，格格地咬牙，咬响牙齿( chomp的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• If you notice, she TOTALLY sides with Mark as she chomps on her bacon. 如果你留心，就会发现Cristina完全同意Mark的观点，因为她非常使劲儿地咬她嘴里的培根。 来自互联网

3 pickle   

n.腌汁，泡菜；v.腌，泡

参考例句：

• Mother used to pickle onions.妈妈过去常腌制洋葱。
• Meat can be preserved in pickle.肉可以保存在卤水里。

4 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

5 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

6 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

7 savoring   

v.意味，带有…的性质( savor的现在分词 )；给…加调味品；使有风味；品尝

参考例句：

• Cooking was fine but it was the savoring that he enjoyed most. 烹饪当然很好，但他最享受的是闻到的各种味道。 来自互联网
• She sat there for a moment, savoring the smell of the food. 她在那儿坐了一会儿，品尝这些食物的香味。 来自互联网

8 consonant   

n.辅音；adj.[音]符合的

参考例句：

• The quality of this suit isn't quite consonant with its price.这套衣服的质量和价钱不相称。
• These are common consonant clusters at the beginning of words.这些单词的开头有相同辅音组合。

9 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

10 whim   

n.一时的兴致，突然的念头；奇想，幻想

参考例句：

• I bought the encyclopedia on a whim.我凭一时的兴致买了这本百科全书。
• He had a sudden whim to go sailing today.今天他突然想要去航海。

11 domain   

n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围

参考例句：

• This information should be in the public domain.这一消息应该为公众所知。
• This question comes into the domain of philosophy.这一问题属于哲学范畴。

12 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

13 hearty   

adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的

参考例句：

• After work they made a hearty meal in the worker's canteen.工作完了，他们在工人食堂饱餐了一顿。
• We accorded him a hearty welcome.我们给他热忱的欢迎。

14 soda   

n.苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• She doesn't enjoy drinking chocolate soda.她不喜欢喝巧克力汽水。
• I will freshen your drink with more soda and ice cubes.我给你的饮料重加一些苏打水和冰块。

15 hoists   

把…吊起，升起( hoist的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Mine hoists are usually operated by the counterbalance of an ascending and a descending car. 矿井升降机通常用一个升车一个落车互相平衡的方法进行操作。
• Sam understands tacitly. He hoists his cup saying. 山姆心领神会，举起酒杯。

16 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。