Kaufman’s Delicatessen

Being from New York, admittedly it is difficult for me to really agree when delicatessens boast the «New York Style» moniker. Most of the time, the effort is greater than the product. As far as Kaufman’s is concerned, I will say that two things do remind me most of New York delis: the matzoh ball soup, and the attitude.
The soup is truly a sight to behold. First, it’s huge. For nearly $ 13.00, it really has to be. When you get the soup to go, you actually get two quart-​size containers: one for the broth, chicken, veggies, and pasta, and one for the matzoh balls. The matzoh ball itself is just the right combination of fluffy and dense: light around the edges and harder in the middle. The chicken and broth are also perfectly prepared. I personally appreciate the pasta (bow ties), but that is definitely unusual as far as authentic matzoh ball soup is concerned. The only change I would make would be to add a little more carrots.
What has not been so great is that every time I go to Kaufman’s, whomever is behind the counter (the owner?) seems like he is bothered or annoyed. A smile goes a long way with customers. Just last week, I came during lunch hour and there was hardly anyone there. The man behind the counter took my order and then mentioned that the credit card machine wasn’t working. I didn’t have cash on me so I told him I would come back after a trip to the ATM. He shrugged his shoulders. When I returned 5 minutes later, he acted like he never saw me before. Then an elderly woman came in and asked about the dessert selection (there were hardly any cakes or desserts on display) and he gruffly told her that they were waiting for the bakery. That struck me as odd since there were many signs around the deli indicating that their cakes and desserts were made in-​house.
I do enjoy the food — especially the aforementioned soup — immensely, but I think I would be likely to go to Kaufman’s more often if I felt that it was a friendly establishment. Something just doesn’t feel right.

I got the lunch special — $ 10 for a ½ sandwich and soup. I was super excited to get a sandwich from here, after seeing all the pics of sandwiches overflowing with meat, but I was seriously disappointed.
The soup was good, but the sandwich barely had any tuna in it. Yes, it’s a lunch special, but they should still make that half sandwich properly.
Wasted $ 12. Bummer.

It could be a 2.5 but it’s closer to a 2 than a 3. I had the$ 10 lunch deal. I asked what was a signature sandwich or soup and was recommended the pastrami and chicken noodle soup. Both were very bland. Arby’s has more flavor in the meat. The chicken was nice in the soup but there was no flavor. Plus bow tie pasta just doesn’t cut it in soup. The half sandwich and portion of soup for $ 10.80 with tax is a rip off.

Best Reuben’s in Philadelphia! The service is fast paced and friendly, the prices are reasonable with the amount of food you receive and the atmosphere is just like a traditional NY Style delicatessen.
Definitely worth checking out, they are on the up and up for sure!

Surprisingly the brunch is really good here and they do great with take outs through Caviar.

I’ve been going to this place since it opened as Famous 4^th Street. I’m addicted to their soup and rye bread, to the point that I bring it home via a 2 hour commute for my family to enjoy as well.
Since it became Kaufman’s, I have not seen any difference in the quality of the food. I still love their matzo ball soup. It’s my comfort food when it’s cold, I’m sick, or I’m just craving good soup.
What I have seen is a difference in the atmosphere. The service is nowhere near as inviting, there is no acknowledgement when you walk through the door, the people manning the counter are not very welcoming (it seems more like an inconvenience) and where it used to be packed every lunch hour, now it’s relatively empty. It just doesn’t seem like the happy place it used to be.

Philly transplants to California return to the motherland and our first meal was here. Matzoh ball soup for me, pastrami sandwich for J, shared potato pancakes. All were delish. The ball o’ matzoh was light and fluffy and the chicken broth was delicious, and pastrami hot and lovely. It was a little unclear whether to seat/​serve yourself at the outset, but once we caught on the service was serviceable and friendly. Whenever we find ourselves back in town, we’ll definitely swing by.

Ate at this deli for the first time this past Tuesday, 12÷8÷15. Had the turkey reuben, latkes and chocolate cake. Food was fresh and delicious. Owner was on the premises; he was cordial and accommodating.

Pastrami Cheesesteak. The sandwich is extremely rich and amazingly generous with the meat. I feel like finishing this in one sitting, would warrant my picture on a wall and a free T-​Shirt.

Yes, I miss the old 4^th street Deli and its charm, but Kaufman’s makes for a pretty good substitute. The pastrami sandwich is filled with delicious, thin slices of peppery gold and the small should be enough to fill you up. I will definitely return.

Was greeted immediately by a server and got my drink order. Got my order in. The bring out a generous portion of slaw and two pickles! Then my soup arrived more than a generous portion of matzoh ball soup! My sandwich came in was fabulous, it was more than enough to eat for two people. I wish this would’ve been my first stop in Philadelphia for food!

After reading a couple of tepid reviews that seemed to be as much about GrubHub as they were about Kaufman’s Delicatessen, I thought I’d try the deli out.
It was very good. Got a corned beef & pastrami rueben and whitefish salad+bagel. Both were really good, even the whitefish bagel, which I ate the next day. Either the corned beef or pastrami had a piquant flavor that was pretty nice (cardamom/​clove/​allspice?).
I had eaten here a couple of times when it was the Famous 4^th Street and if Kaufman’s is better or worse, it’s not by enough to make a fuss. I ordered to-​go and the guy behind the counter was very nice, helpful. I don’t live in town, but I’ll return when I am and in the mood for a straightforward sandwich.

If a roach literally runs across your table and the explanation is that the building next door is vacant or whatever, there’s a problem.
Not sure exactly when but this place changed hands. In my last two visits I noticed the recipes, specifically for the soup, had changed. No longer did it taste like Bubby’s. Then the portions got smaller. Lastly the prices increased.
The roach was the last straw. Don’t go here! It’s pathetic and should be ashamed to keep the Kaufman name !!

New York style deli they self proclaim. I’ll have to take their word for it as I have never been to a New York deli. Food was good. It was prepared to order. Turn around time was quite fast even at lunch time.

If you’re looking for a place with gut-​busting portion sizes, look no further. Dining Partner and I stopped by Kaufman’s for lunch around 2pm on a Saturday. The place was pretty empty so we had our choice of seating. I was craving a chicken salad sandwich and the one I received was large enough to feed a small army. The matzo ball soup was delicious and matzo ball itself was about the size of a tennis ball. We also split an order of the challah stuffing, which was good but unexpectedly had raisins and was more sweet than savory. Huge portions, nice staff, good food!

This was the first place I’ve ever tried having brunch «family style», aka when a group collectively orders a bunch of food and shares all of it! It works great here, because they have enormous portions for each of their foods, and they’re able to move some of the tables together! Also, my biggest dilemma at brunch places is whether to get sweet or savory, so it was like being able to have the best of both worlds here!
The 8 girls at my table ordered 4 dishes to share together (french toast, pastrami sandwiches, hashed cornbeef, and lox omelet). We ate until we were stuffed and still had some food leftover. Everything tasted really good overall, especially the french toast! I would go back again and again for that french toast if health was never an issue. And, the bill came out to be $ 11 a person including tip and tax, which was actually a good deal!
So why not a higher rating? I can’t particularly rave about the atmosphere, and our service was awkwardly less-​than-​friendly and rough around the edges. They weren’t particularly rude but we didn’t feel very welcome. In general, we felt like we were being a bother or something, even though we’re definitely not a rowdy type of group at all. It’s kind of a bummer that the service knocked down overall the experience. Perhaps we were just catching them on a bad day, so it may be worth another try!

This joint is A-​ok. Woke up craving some jewish food. Went with 3 others and we seriously ordered waaaay to many things. The pastrami sandwhich was decent, no need for that much meat but we split it. I get it, its a novelty. The matzo ball soup was also good. The fries and turkey sandwhich were just ok. The latkes and some quinoa type deal were also just ok.
In conclusion, it was decent enough to try, and id prolly come back, but def stiff on the wallet. Its pretty much the same thing as 4^th st.

On Ash Wednesday, I, being the good Catholic-​raised girl that I am, not only forgot to get ashes and avoid meat, but also ate a giant matzah ball soup and latkes lunch. Nobody tell my Grandma. Oy vey.
On a cold winter day all I wanted was a giant bowl of soup, and Kaufman’s did the trick. A friend and I stopped in around noon and it was almost empty when we walked in, but was packed by the time we left. You’re greeted with a rather large bowl of cole slaw and pickles (I hate pickles, but with varying levels of pickledness, I didn’t hate these! Very interesting flavors I haven’t tried before). The waiter was a bit… aloof? Not super friendly and it took a few stare-​downs to get his attention, but I get that the lunch rush is a pain and they’re new.
The ½ portion of potato pancakes was delicious– 5 small, perfectly crispy circles, with awesome apple sauce and sour cream. The Matzah Ball soup comes with one GIANT ball, surrounded by bowtie pasta, chicken, and carrots. Perfect for a cold day. Looking around, the portions are huge! Most of these are definitely a sharing or save half for dinner situation. Warning: there is a homeless guy strategically positioned outside and you will feel like a dick walking by with your takeout box. Also, watch out for the «side orders» my friend’s bacon side cost as much as her meal and was basically a bowl of bacon!
We were in and out within an hour. $ 17 with tax and tip is a bit much for lunch but it’s nice to be served once in a while, and the potato latkes were a great mid-​afternoon snack! The cookies that come with the check are awesome yoo!
Recommend for a casual lunch.

My colleagues and I ordered take out on 12÷23÷14. I split the half pastrami, half corned beef with a co-​worker. It was excellent. The meat was tender, the bread was soft, and the potato salad was actually seasoned. I really enjoy this place, and the breakfast is great too.
Solid joint!

We came in a couple weeks ago to order a Reuben. I had heard about the size of the sandwiches. Our server brought us complementary pickles and pickled cabbage, which was delicious, and had more of. We then had the matzo ball soup. The matzo ball was delicious and big enough to share, and the soup and broth was very tasty and fresh. Every part of the corned beef reuben was incredible, as was the house Russian dressing (that we had more of on the side). The sandwich was MASSIVE, and was more than enough for both of us to share. I can only imagine how big the large sandwich is.
Our check came with two cookies, which were a perfect way to end our lunch. Everything on the menu seems to be sized (and priced) to share between two people or more.
Perhaps the best part about Kaufman’s is the service. Everyone we met was extremely nice and accommodating, and we were truly wowed just before we left. We saw a gentleman (who we think was the owner) with a big (and I mean BIG) plate of french toast, and Jess commented to me how good it looked. The man then came over to us and encouraged us to take a piece (which was massive) and try it, and he then brought us over maple syrup. The french toast could have been a meal in and of itself, and it was delicious and light and airy… unlike any french toast I’ve ever had. It seemed to be a cross between funnel cake and challah french toast. We were extremely appreciative, left stuffed and happy, and needless to say will be returning again!