NYC: Barney Greengrass
Barney Greengrass also goes under the name “The Sturgeon King” and for smoked fish, there’s no better place than Barney’s on the Upper West Side.
Barney Greengrass has been around since 1908 (at the current location since 1929), but for reasons unknown, it has never turned into the same tourist magnet as Russ & Daughters on the Lower East Side. Though Barney Greengrass has a large local fan base and the tiny cafeteria inside the deli is almost always packed.
The service is NYC-style, so forget about warm welcomes and polite phrases. The bill will most likely appear before you have thought about asking for it, when the staff has decided that you have been sitting around for long enough, but they mean well, so see it as a part of a very authentic New York experience.
What to order? The sturgeon is excellent, but the different kinds of lox are also very good.
Barney Greengrass, 541 Amsterdam Avenue (between 86th & 87th Street), Upper West Side, New York
