Katz's Deli Private Event Catering

Yes, Katz's Deli.  The one famous for many things, e.g. "I'll have what she's having" and many other movie scenes, along with being around forever (founded in 1888), notorious for looong lines and crazy ticket system, etc, etc.  I'm fairly certain I went there my first ever visit to NY, because, well, I had to right?  I don't particularly recall a ton about that visit though, besides the line, as it was close to 20 years ago and I wasn't much of a foodie then.

Corporate Lunch Option.

But Katz's Deli also does catering and private events.  Their options include a food truck, drop off catering trays, etc, or, as we had at my office, a full carving station.

Carving Station.

The setup was impressive, they even had their own big light up Katz's sign, and a crew of staff members each working a carving station for each type of meat offered.  Everything was sliced to order, just as it is in the deli.

Popup Menu

"Featuring our world famous pastrami, which is so tender it'll make you forget your ex, our classic corned beef so juicy you'll be dripping more than a leaky faucet in your zeidi’s bathroom, the hot brisket is so tender, it'll melt in your mouth like a schmear on a hot bagel, and turkey so succulent it'll make you want to get down on your knees and thank the poultry gods for its existence."

Our lineup featured the main 4 meats Katz's is known for: pastrami (obviously), corned beef, brisket, and turkey.  Rye bread only.  The setup includes Katz's own full sour and half sour pickles, as well as condiments (mustard, Reuben dressing, mayo).  Our hosts also added on potato salad and slaw.

Sliced to order.

The staff pulled out big steaming slabs of meat, sharpened their knives in front of us, and got to carving!

Pastrami on Rye. $28.95.

I was pretty interested in the corned beef, but I felt like if I was getting only one thing, it had to be the pastrami right?  I think at the deli you have choice of bread, but our event had only rye.

The bread was remarkably soft.  Such perfectly fresh bread.  I saw them pull out the (giant, lengthy!) loaves, and, besides the length, it looked like generic bread in plastic wrap, nothing fancy about it, not from a local bakery, etc, but, wow it was soft and fresh.  Slight caraway flavor, just enough.  Great bread, really.  ****.

Pastrami!

Of course, the pastrami inside was the main attraction.  Great crust.  Perfectly rare/mid-rare.  It fell apart easily as you bit in.  There was a fair amount of fat on the far end of the pieces, but you can request lean meat only.

Yes, this is great pastrami (particularly with the bread and condiments).  ****.

A full sandwich sells at the restaurant for $28.95 (our event served half sandwiches).

Sides / Condiments.

To go with our sandwiches, we had two kinds of side salad (potato, slaw), and two kinds of pickles, along with standard condiments.  I was really hoping for the other side salad Katz offers (macaroni), but alas.  

Full Sour & Half Sour Pickles. $11.95/Quart.

"Our famous house-brined pickles are available by the quart! Full sours have a garlicy, tangy crunch."

"If you've ever dined with us before, you know all about our incredible housemade pickles. We offer full sour pickles as well as half sour pickles (also referred to as new pickles!), which are brined for less time and taste more like a snappy, fresh cucumber.  Either way, they're garlicky and crunchy; everything you'd expect a pickle to be. "

I tried both kinds of pickles, and brought some home to share with my family so they could at least experience some part of Katz.  My father, sister, and mother all said they tasted too much like cucumbers.  They are not used to actual deli pickles, clearly.  My 7 year old niece however LOVED them, and demanded all the rest.  I thought they were fine, a decent fresh pickle, nicely sour, but not something I'd rave about nor go out of my way for. ***.

Deli Mustard. $5.50.

"Our handmade mustard adds a bit of zest to any of our classic sandwiches. Add it to anything you'd like to for that matter...hot dogs, knishes, dip your pigs in a blanket in it, you get the point..."

The mustard was good.  Nice zing.  Went perfectly with the meat.  ****.

Reuben (Russian) Dressing. $4.50 / 8 ounce jar.

"Our housemade Reuben dressing is a key ingredient to a classic Reuben, but regulars often ask for it on almost any sandwich!"

The reuben dressing was extremely tangy.  Very sharp.  It did go well with the meat, but the flavor was intense, and I almost felt like it competed with the flavor in the meat itself, almost masking it as it dominated.  Low ***.

Potato Salad. $8.45/16 ounces.

The potato salad ... was ... ok.  Honestly, not great. Very simple.  Just potato in dressing.  It had a lot of bite to it, I think too much vinegar.  It just tasted quite harsh.  Very little seasoning.  I did like the style of big slices of potatoes rather than chunks, and they weren't too mushy, but I wouldn't get this again.  **+.

Coleslaw. $8.45/16 ounces.

The coleslaw was better.  Still very simple (one color of cabbage, a little carrot), but the dressing to this was more balanced with the addition of mustard, and it was more flavorful with the addition of onion and garlic powder.  I think it also had horseradish as it had quite a zing too it, although that was not listed in the ingredients.  I liked the big chunks of crisp cabbage.  ***.

Read More...

Cheesecake Factory At Home

Update Review, 2024

As I mentioned when I reviewed the classic Cheesecake Factory mini baguettes from their "At Home" product line, they also transform their signature brown wheat bread into dinner rolls, larger buns, and a sandwich loaf.  Although I didn't love the baguettes before, they were good for bakery bread, so I was curious to try something else.

Bakery Buns.

"Our Bakery Buns have a rich taste and soft texture with a wholesome oat topping that complements whatever recipe inspires you.  They’re sturdy enough to hold generous portions of your favorite flavors at the grill or in the kitchen."

I was really curious about these.  I like their brown bread, but it seems like it would overpower burgers, or pulled pork, or anything I'd normally put into it.    

The buns were about as expected.  Soft.  Moderately fresh.  Slightly sweet and malty taste.  Good scattering of oats on top.  But I really just wasn't sure how to use them. If I was one to eat deli meat turkey sandwiches, or grilled chicken, I could see it going well with either of those.  ***.

Original Review, February 2021

Perhaps you've been lamenting that can't go out to The Cheesecake Factory to enjoy their epic menu of #allTheThings.  Such is the COVID world.  But did you know that you can just go to your local grocery store and, most likely, get a bunch of their branded items?

"We are excited to be introducing The Cheesecake Factory At Home™ - a line of delicious products that can be enjoyed at home. Look for these exciting new products in select retailers near you!"

Is it the same as going to the restaurant with its 250 item long menu?  (Yes, really.). Clearly, no.  Most of these products aren't even replicas of actual things served at the restaurant, but, of course there are cheesecake options (whole cheesecakes, slices, or bites), and, probably the part of a Cheesecake Factory meal more people look forward to than the cheesecake even: the brown bread, along with other breads, ice cream, and, um, puddings.  A very random assortment of items, no actual entrees, nor even appetizers (I would have expected frozen appetizer line!), and, really, I love pudding, but ... that seemed so very random.

Note that this is entirely different from their cheesecake, cakes, and cupcakes available to foodservice distributors, which I've reviewed previously (along with a slew of desserts).

During the summer of 2020, while staying in rural New Hampshire with my family, I got a chance to try out some of these products.  I was pleasantly surprised by a few.

Bread

"The Cheesecake Factory® is the fantastical food experience that is absolutely certain to satisfy. Now you can enjoy our famous “brown bread” and new brioche hamburger buns– at home. Loved around the world, our brown bread baguette is a Cheesecake Factory signature taste – now available to enjoy at home in Mini Baguettes, Dinner Rolls and Sandwich Bread. Our deliciously buttery and sweet gourmet Brioche and Wheat Brioche Hamburger Buns were made exclusively for you to enjoy at home."

Yup, breads.  The famous brown bread is available in 3 forms (dinner rolls, mini baguettes, and sandwich loaf), and they also offer up two styles of burger buns.   I found these in the bakery section of my grocery store, not frozen.

Brown Bread Mini Baguettes.

"The Cheesecake Factory® is the fantastical food experience that is absolutely certain to satisfy. Now you can enjoy our famous “brown bread” – at home. Loved around the world, our brown bread baguette is a Cheesecake Factory signature taste – now available to enjoy at home in Mini Baguettes, Dinner Rolls and Sandwich Bread."

I opted for the mini baguettes as my form factor of choice.

I tried it many different ways, and always liked it, but never loved it, not quite as much as I wanted.

I found that I certainly preferred it slightly warm, not crispy, so I didn't just heat it at 350* for 5 minutes as instructed, but rather, wrapped it in foil so it would warm but not crisp.

It was ok with butter, the slight sweetness of the bread made it a touch interesting, but it didn't wow me.  I used honey butter the next day, and again, it was good, but not great.

It was better dunked in heavier sauces, it went great with Trader Joe's excellent tomato sauce found in the frozen stuffed shells, but in that case, it was just a vessel for the delicious sauce.  I think it could go well with pesto or chimichurri too.

The winner though?  No question, dunking it in anchovy oil, e.g. the oil left behind in a tin of anchovies packed in oil.  I loved that pairing!

This was a good packaged bread product, but, I wouldn't get it again.  Low ***.

Ice Cream

"Cheesecake lovers no longer need to choose between a slice and a scoop; now you can have both in one delicious dessert! Our new Ice Cream line features seven celebratory flavors with real cheesecake ingredients incorporated right into the mix."

While *most* desserts I do believe get tremendously better a la mode, cheesecake is one I've never considered that way really (adding whipped cream, of course).  I did recently discover that I do love carrot cake warmed up and paired with ice cream (even when it has tons of cream cheese frosting, yes!), so maybe ...

Nor have I ever really felt the question of "cheesecake or ice cream", or "slice or scoop" as they put it.  Both are great desserts, but rarely ones that come up as a question like that.  Anyway.  Cheesecake Factory has branched into ice cream, as a retail product, readily found around grocery stores nationwide.

As an ice cream girl, who consumes ice cream at least once per day, of course I needed to check it out.  They currently offer 7 flavors: original, chocolate, strawberry, salted caramel, cookies & cream, birthday cake, and key lime.  Basically, your basic ice cream flavors (vanilla, choc, strawberry, cookies & cream), the top selling trends (salted caramel, birthday cake), and, one wildcard (key lime).  I was a little disappointed that they didn't have any that were actually inspired by their actual cheesecakes offered at the restaurant ... at least a red velvet?  All feature the same base ice cream featuring cream cheese and sour cream, and mostly vary just by what is swirled in.

Original.

"Premium Cheesecake Ice Cream with a Signature Cream Cheese Blend, Sour Cream and Graham Swirls."

"This one’s a classic! Our Premium Cheesecake Ice Cream with a Signature Cream Cheese Blend, Sour Cream and Graham Swirls is the perfect scoop of creamy cheesecake goodness in a frozen treat you’ve been waiting for!"

I started with the basic "Original" flavor, their signature cheesecake, as an ice cream, with graham swirls.

My first impression was quite positive: it was indeed true to name - it tasted like cheesecake, a very classic, sour cream forward, tangy cheesecake.  It does have both sour cream and cream cheese in it  Would you put it on top of a slice of pecan pie?  Nah, I think it would clash.  But I immediately wanted to throw some on top of a berry crisp.  It was very very rich however.

The texture/consistency was fine, not super creamy, but not bad.  The style that freezes quite hard, and definitely needs to soften before serving.

The graham swirl worried me - I don't really care for graham, but also, so often this kind of element is gritty or mushy and somewhat "ruins" a product for me.  I didn't see much on top, but once I dug in ...

Original: The Swirl.

It was far more than a "swirl".  Huge, huge chunks of the graham cracker substance.

It was rock solid, so nearly impossible to just get a little, once you had a big chunk, you were getting a HUGE chunk.  On the plus side, it was not mushy nor gritty, and did add a nice crunchy texture sorta.  But I don't really like graham that much, so, the flavor wasn't one I really wanted.

Overall, I found myself wanting to like this more than I did.  It was so intense in its cheesecake nature, which would be great, but ... I never seemed to actually *want* cheesecake ice cream.  I need to be in the mood for cheesecake, and use ice cream as a pairing usually, and I just never felt the urge to pull this pint out.  That said, if you really like cheesecake, and like the sound of a cheesecake ice cream, I think it really was quite true to name.  **+.

Decadent Desserts (aka Pudding)

Oh, pudding.  Another of my favorite desserts.  And one so very underrated.  I was pleased to see Cheesecake Factory, fairly randomly, launched a premium pudding line, dubbed "Decadent Desserts" (which, is fairly amusing, because pudding is just not nearly as decadent as their namesake item ...).

I had pretty low expectations thought - why pudding? They don't have pudding on the menu at restaurants, it has nothing to do with cheesecake, it just seemed ... random.  And honestly, most store brand pudding, shelf-stable or refrigerated, ready-to-eat or make at home, etc is just, well, not very good. But the Cheesecake Factory at Home Pudding?  Well, it is remarkably good.  

The puddings are considerably more "real" than those on the shelves next to it, like Snack Pack, Jello, etc, and as such, carry a much higher calorie/fat/sugar content (e.g. 290 calories per cup instead of 100 or less in Snack Pack or only 60 in Jello, with 12 grams of fat instead of 3 g or 1 g, respectively, and a whopping 39 grams of sugar instead of ~10 in Snack Pack or ~15 in Jello.  Or really,  0 as most of theirs are sugar free).  Even the Jello brand "Decadent" line is <100 calories each.  Of course, this is just due to what is in it - whole milk and cream are the first two ingredients in Cheesecake Factory line, instead of water (!) and nonfat milk in a Snack Pack, or skim milk and water in Jello brand.  It really is pudding.  And you can tell.

The puddings come in 4 flavors: Vanilla Fudge Duet (vanilla bean pudding with dark chocolate sauce), Chocolate Black-Out (Belgian chocolate pudding over dark chocolate fudge sauce), Cake Batter Strawberry Royale (cake batter "inspired" pudding with sweet strawberry puree), and Salted Caramel Delight (salted caramel pudding with rich caramel sauce).

They all sounded pretty good to me, besides perhaps the cake batter strawberry (although honestly, I'd try any!), which was fine, as my local Hannaford (the only place that had them) didn't stock that variety anyway.

Salted Caramel Delight Packaging.

The puddings come as 2-packs (rather than 4-6 like other brands), and are found in the refrigerated section.  They must stay refrigerated.  Mine had about a month until the expiration date.

Salted Caramel Delight.

"Creamy salted caramel pudding over rich caramel sauce."

"Delightfully decadent! Our creamy salted caramel pudding with rich caramel sauce is inspired by The Cheesecake Factory’s deliciously decadent desserts."

I started with the salted caramel.  One bite in and I was amazed.  It was *good*.  Very good.

The pudding was very creamy, and, unlike all other brands ... didn't taste anything like chemicals.  It had no fake flavor to it at all.  It didn't taste like salted caramel, but rather, butterscotch, and that did not bother me one bit (I adore butterscotch pudding, probably my favorite flavor).  It tasted homemade, really.  It had a depth to it "like grandmas", honestly.  The pudding layer was fairly wholesome, or at least, not loaded with crazy, just whole milk, cream, sugar, corn starch, salt, "natural and artificial color", and fruit juice (for color?).

It was fabulous as butterscotch pudding, although I wanted some whipped cream to put on top.  I also thought immediately that it would go great perhaps with some caramelized bananas and a shortbread crumble.  But, the pudding alone, or pudding and whip, was plenty satisfying.

I dug down to reach the sauce in the bottom, which was also supposed to be salted caramel.  It indeed tasted more like caramel, although I still tasted no salt, and it was a nice sauce.  The consistency was great - not thin, not too thick, easy to swirl in.  There was plenty of it.  And it was *very* sweet.  Yes, of course I tried just a spoonful of it alone, and that was way too much.  But some swirled in?  Great.  The salted caramel is made from corn syrup, sugar, sweetened condensed milk, nonfat milk, buttermilk, etc, basically, what you'd expect to find in caramel sauce.

I was really quite pleased with my cup, although I found it far better to put into a bigger bowl, so I could add whipped cream (and crumble or shortbread biscuits!), and so I could mix in the caramel sauce.  It was a bit hard to get balanced bites eating out of the cup.  I was curious what it would be like to actually just mix it all up, mixing in all the sauce, sorta like fruit on the bottom yogurt, but, I didn't want to ruin it.  That pudding layer was just too good.

I would get this again in a heartbeat, and I think it truly was as good as homemade.  Shocked, really. ****.

I immediately updated my grocery shopping list to include trying a new flavor.

Chocolate Black-Out.

"Rich Belgian chocolate pudding over dark chocolate fudge sauce."

"A chocolate lover’s dream! Our rich Belgian chocolate pudding with dark chocolate fudge sauce is inspired by The Cheesecake Factory’s deliciously decadent desserts."

Next up, the chocolate chocolate one.  Chocolate pudding, chocolate fudge sauce.

This one was less successful for me.

The pudding was a very dark, very rich looking color, but the flavor wasn't particularly strong.  It was sorta creamy, but a bit grainy.  Now, granted, I had this just a few days after having a fairly mind blowing chocolate mousse, so I had that in mind, but this just wasn't anything special.  It seemed no better, no worse, than any packaged pudding on the market (although, like the salted caramel version, was made with real ingredients - whole milk, sugar, cream, whole eggs, etc).  I didn't really want it.

But the dark chocolate fudge sauce?  That was delicious.  And although technically a "sauce", it was more of a super chocolate pudding-sauce, really creamy, excellent flavor.  I tried mixing some in to the pudding to make the pudding shine more, but really, I just wanted the sauce.

I "salvaged" the second cup by just giving my dad the pudding layer, and keeping the sauce layer, adding whipped cream and brownie bits, and truly loved it.  ** pudding, **** sauce.

I wouldn't get this again obviously, as the chocolate pudding was just meh, but it made me excited to try the Vanilla Fudge Duet, featuring the same fudge sauce layer.

Read More...