Author: Gary Nager

When I lived in New York City in the early 1980s, the two most iconic Jewish delicatessens in Manhattan were the Stage Deli, which closed for good in 2012, and the Carnegie Deli, which permanently closed its doors at the end of 2016. The two delis, which also were bitter rivals, were located about a block from each other on 7th Ave., near Carnegie Hall, and both were known for their huge, overstuffed sandwiches, weighing in at a pound of meat each.

I thought both famous eateries were gone forever; that is, until Wesley Chapel Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. franchise owner Daniel Kurland told me that all 16 or so of the locations in the Florida-based chain were replacing their existing deli lunch sandwich meats with authentic corned beef and pastrami (and a few other items shown on this page) from the wholesale distributor that has stayed in business since the Carnegie Deli closed.

“Brooklyn Water Bagels even tried to get an exclusive,” Kurland says. “Our corporate entity wanted our stores to be the only places you could get these authentic Carnegie Deli items, including corned beef, pastrami, potato knishes, cheesecake, sour Kosher pickles and even mustard.”

But, Kurland added, “We were told that there were delis and restaurants all over the country, many in the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area, where the first Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. locations opened, which already were buying these items from the Carnegie Deli wholesale distributor. They had to be grandfathered into our agreement with Carnegie.”

So, while it’s not the only place in the U.S. where you can sample these items that I loved so much when I lived in Manhattan,   Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. is one of very few places on the west coast of Florida, and is certainly the only place in Wesley Chapel, where you can buy them.

And, because the Carnegie Deli was famous for its 1-lb. sandwiches, Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. today offers the (pictured above) Manhattan Combo sandwich — with 1-lb. total of Carnegie Deli corned beef and pastrami, on authentic Jewish-style rye bread (or your choice of bagel) with Carnegie mustard (which also is available for purchase in a squeeze bottle), or the also-popular 1000 Island dressing. No, there’s no steamer “drawers” keeping the moisture (and heat) in the meats before they are piled into your sandwich, but otherwise, they are very much the same tasty (albeit fairly fatty, yum!) deli meats I remember from New York City. 

There’s also The Manhattan sandwich, which offers 1-lb. of your choice of corned beef or pastrami, as well as the Half-Pounder Deli sandwich, which has just 1/2-lb. of your choice of corned beef or pastrami, for you lightweights. There’s even The Reuben, which features corned beef or pastrami with sauerkraut, melted Swiss cheese, with mustard or 1000 Island dressing on toasted rye.

And, considering that a Jewish deli sandwich would never be complete without a Kosher sour pickle, Brooklyn Water Bagel’s Carnegie Deli sandwiches are all served with a matching Carnegie pickle. 

But Wait, There’s More! 

Growing up, I was never the biggest fan of potato knishes — which, at most delis, are either square or round single-serving “pies” with a dough crust, stuffed with uniquely seasoned mashed potatoes — but for those of you who crave them, Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. also offers Carnegie Deli’s round (only) knishes, that are very much like the ones we got at our local deli in Woodmere, Long Island. The knishes are especially delish with the Carnegie mustard, too. 

And, you can even finish off your meal with a nice-sized slab of Carnegie Deli cheesecake, which is a creamy, yet dense dessert which is offered with a cherry sauce either poured over it or on the side.

And, don’t forget that Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. also has a delicious roast turkey, bacon and avocado wrap, tuna, egg, chicken and even whitefish salad sandwiches (all of the creamy salad options are available for to-go sale in tubs) and, oh yeah, a huge variety (at least  dozen or more different kinds, from standard plain, sesame and everything to more exotic types, like Black Russian with seeds) kettle-boiled-then-baked fresh bagels and pick-your-own fillings omelettes that are available for breakfast or lunch anytime you visit. The smoked Nova Scotia salmon is authentic, too, and also is available for sale in packages, as are a variety of different types of cream cheese.

And, just in case you’re not a cheesecake fan, Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. has a great variety of other outstanding desserts, most of which (not including the authentic Jewish rugelach pastries) are made in-store, using the franchise’s “Brooklynized” water.

The black & white cookies are the best in the area, the chewy chocolate chip cookies have huge chocolate chunks and the house-baked muffins include blueberry, chocolate chip, apple cinnamon and banana nut. 

And, if you love delicious coffee, Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. has the best hot and cold coffee in town, at least in my opinion. Its Brooklyn Water Coffee Roasters is its in-house micro-roaster, roasting its coffee in small batches (never larger than 90 lbs. at a time), and purchases only beans that are rated 80 points or higher by the Specialty Coffee Association of America (or in the top 3% of coffee in the world). My favorite available-all-year-‘round variety is the Brooklyn Infusion, with Kahlua, caramel and sweet vanilla flavors, but the seasonal Winter Wonderland blend, with white chocolate, caramel and hints of coconut also is amazing, although Kurland says it will be gone by the spring.

Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. (27835 Wesley Chapel Blvd., Suite 101) is open every day, 6 a.m.-3 p.m. For more information, visit BrooklynWaterBagel.com, call (813) 775-2275 or see the ad on pg. 34 of our latest Wesley Chapel issue to receive a free bagel just for stopping by.