Took the kids to Manny's for lunch yesterday and had a wonderful meal and good time. I am sure that many here know Manny's and for those that do, consider this an update, for those that dont, consider it a recommendation. My daughter had the noodle and cheese cassrole and a fruit salad. My son and I split a brisket sandwich and potato pancake. He also had a bowl of chicken soup with kreplach. Everything was great. Portions enormous. The sandwich was huge, at least a half-pound of warm, thin-sliced, lean brisket between the bread and all over the plate. Potato pancake was crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside and not at all greasy. The noodle-cheese casserole was very good, cheesy and a little sweet. Pickle was huge, crisp and quite flavorful. Kreplachs were quite thick and meaty. My son devoured them and I didnt have the heart to tell him there might be liver in it (no?) The kids especially liked the old-fashioned hourglass-shaped cup holders that you put the big paper cone water cups in. For those who have not been, it is cafeteria-style. Lots of interesting things at the steam tables like roast turkey, stuffed cabbage rolls slightly smaller than footballs, chicken and spaghetti, short ribs and beef stew. That day they didnt have corned beef hash, darnit. Of course, the people watching was fabulous. Totally crowded. A mixture of old Jewish men, working class folks, cops, judges, lawyers, mobsters, (or so I would imagine). Characters were behind the counters too. When I ordered the brisket sandwich, the guy yelled at me, "what kinda bread"? I yelled back, "what kind do ya think?, who orders brisket on anything but rye?" He actually cracked a smile and said he would have really let me have it had I ordered brisket on white, then proceeded to charm my 6 year old daughter and tell me about his kids! Manny's is just south of Roosevelt on Jefferson.
Chicago, IL
Report: Manny's Coffee Shop and Deli
Someone wrote: >Everything was great. Portions enormous. The sandwich was huge, at least a >half-pound of warm, thin-sliced, lean brisket between the bread and all over the >plate. Potato pancake was crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside and not at >all greasy. Manny's is a classic, for the (a) food, (b) servers, (c) clientelle (sp?). The sandwiches are big, but as big as the sandwiches are, the plated meals are almost obscene: I don't know how anyone could eat all of that food that they pile on your plate and still function at work. Things like the short ribs, stew-type dishes, etc. The only problem with the place is that there isn't much that is even close to being heart-healthy: I'm reminded of Oscar Madison's line in Odd Couple: "I'll have a pastrami sandwich - all fat!!!"