This Pastrami Is Better than Katz's

These barbecue joints are serving the best pastrami you'll ever try.

This week’s guest article is written by John Tanner, founder of John Tanner’s Barbecue Blog. John is based in Washington, D.C., and has been writing about barbecue joints, events, and notable people in BBQ since 2015.

Everyone has heard of Katz’s. This NYC-based institution is widely (and fervently) considered to serve the best pastrami in the United States, and thus the world. Setting aside the claims of Langer’s and other noble delis, there is better out there. Consider this video and this report from Sean at The Smoke Sheet.

The pastrami at Hometown Barbecue in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)

Hometown Barbecue in Brooklyn is judged to surpass Katz’s. And indeed, you can find superior pastrami in other places you would never suspect.

I have combed the Washington, D.C., area for both traditional pastrami and “barbecue” pastrami, and the very best pastrami sandwich is at 2fifty, followed by other greats like Silver and Sons, HammerDown, Buckets, and Monks.

That’s right, the best pastrami comes from barbecue places. And most seem to be in an area not usually associated with pastrami — the South. There are places like ZZQ and Redemption in Richmond, Prime in Raleigh, Dampf Good BBQ in Cary, Lewis Barbecue in Charleston and Greenville, City Limits in Columbia, and Lord knows how many places in Texas and Florida. Outside the South, I hear that Little Miss Barbecue, Eric’s, and Frasher’s in Phoenix, and at least some locations of Bear’s Smokehouse in Connecticut offer it. Bark in Stevensville, Maryland, is working on it. Where else?

It should be no surprise the pastrami at acclaimed 2Fifty in the Washington D.C. area is excellent. (Photo by John Tanner)

What makes these places better? The secret to the very best pastrami is in the smoking. Traditionally, pastrami is cold-smoked. Katz’s pastrami is smoked at a very low temperature for, as I understand, two or three days. The temperature is so low that even after days of “smoking” the meat still isn’t cooked. The pastrami next is boiled until it’s cooked through, and then finished by steaming to tenderize the meat. By that point, the smoke flavor is at best a faint background whisper.

The marvelous pastrami at ZZQ in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by John Tanner)

The barbecue places hot-smoke the pastrami after curing, smoke it, and cook it through at the same time. And this is cooking with wood, rather than gas or electricity, with constant attention.

Gas- or electricity-fired set-and-forget systems just don’t do the trick. The hot smoke, with the attendant care and attention, permeates the brisket. Well, it’s usually brisket. Silver and Sons cures and hot smokes short ribs for their pastrami. The best of the Texas-style barbecue places, run by devoted followers of Aaron Franklin, cook exclusively with wood, craft, and care that renders meat as tender and succulent as you can find.

Simply put, the hot smoking adds a beautiful layer of flavor and also deepens the taste.

The pastrami at HammerDown Barbecue in Aldie, Virginia. (Photo by John Tanner)

I hasten to note that pastrami is often offered once a week at barbecue places, but it’s well worth a schedule adjustment to enjoy a new and improved pastrami. And I acknowledge that there’s a regrettable tendency of barbecue places to tart up the pastrami with inappropriate substances, like Russian dressing (mayonnaise in ketchup’s clothing, neither of which has any business near pastrami), cheese, and sauerkraut.

Even in such combinations, however, the Reuben pastrami at Buckets, for example, surpasses cold-smoked pastrami Reubens. Actually, Jewish-style delis do the same thing, and indeed offer myriad combinations.

But I’m focusing on the pastrami. You can, or should be able to order the pastrami the way God intended it to be eaten, with mustard on rye. Anything else goes on the side. You also may find that the mustard is not standard deli mustard, and it’s good to ask. Ballpark mustard goes better with hot-smoked pastrami than cold-smoked pastrami, in my experience. At HammerDown, they use Pommery, which works beautifully, but beware of a real sinus-clearing Dijon. It dominates.

The kosher pastrami at Pastrami Queen in NYC. (Photo by John Tanner)

This is not to take anything away from Katz’s or, say, Pastrami Queen (which, unlike Katz’s, is actually kosher) or to suggest that it isn’t delicious. It is. Very delicious.

It just isn’t as good as the hot smoked pastrami. This, I am sure, will come as a shock to many people, a reason to huddle by the banks of a river in Egypt. But go to Hometown or 2fifty or ZZQ. Go to Prime or City Limits or Little Miss BBQ. Taste for yourself. Your taste may differ from mine (and many others), and you may well remain unconvinced. But open your mind, open your mouth, and give some a try.

John Tanner
Founder, John Tanner’s BBQ Blog