Deli Deficient, But Pity Me Not

Laugh if you must (SJG) but I feel no shame! A little disappointment perhaps...

I have to be forgiven: I live at least an hour away from anything that comes even close to deserving the title, "Deli." I'm not an expert but I've had good deli. Juniors, both Brooklyn and West LA, Sherman's, Nate 'N Al, even Rose's in Portland used to be okay. Good grief, Miracle Mile in white-bread protestant Phoenix wasn't too bad. In a deli emergency, that is.

While there are hundreds of great restaurants with all types of delicious food, sometimes there can be no substitute for deli. And while there are many good delis and, perhaps arguably, a handful of great, there are none of any ilk close at hand from where I sit perched this weekend.

There lies my predicament: when I get the urge, there is no local option. Add to that I rarely eat meat and it get's pretty hard to scratch that itch for corned beef or pastrami on rye. So, forgive me, but I am sometimes forced to make do. If I could walk into Sherman's in Palm Springs at lunch today I'd sidestep my dietary boundaries and have that Studio Special-- pastrami with cole slaw and swiss on rye. But I'm not. If I had even a legitimate deli counter here with good salty robust thin sliced pastrami I might bring home a quarter pound. But I don't. I'm here, smack dab in the middle of Michigan where 4 inches of fresh powder arrived last night-- and I'm not talking drugs-- deli deficient.

So forgive me but I was forced to improvise, to do what others would reject out of hand, turn from in disgust. But, like the man lost at sea and forced to drink his own urine to survive, by god it worked. You may laugh, you may talk in hushed tones and shake your head in pity or disbelief, but I don't care. When the craving hit I did what I had to and I scratched that itch: 2 slices of delicious fragrant Jewish rye, Russian dressing (home made), sauerkraut, swiss cheese, and a veggie dog fried and sliced thin. Piled high and pan grilled-- voila! Deli served up in my mid-Michigan kitchen on a cold winter day.

Yes, it does get better than that. Much better. But not under the circumstances.