Had any good deli lately? More than likely, the answer is no. For most diners, today’s deli is a theme restaurant; for our parents and grandparents, it was simply a place to get the food they ate every day. Even in Manhattan, the bastion of delicatessen, both the Stage and Carnegie have closed within the past decade. So when Katz’s announced that they were opening a 30,000 square-foot facility to make pastrami for global resale, it was news: whether you live in Boston or Bangladesh, you’ll soon be able to enjoy the real deal.

Craft distillers are now as ubiquitous as smart phones, but it was a different story back in 2001, when Ralph Erenzo and Brian Lee bought the historic Tuthilltown Gristmill in Gardiner, New York. Tuthilltown Spirits---and their whiskey line, Hudson---has been one of the shining successes in the craft spirit movement. I recently had the chance to catch up with their brand ambassador and sample their Baby Bourbon and some of their remarkable Manhattan Rye.

News flash: next week our correspondent Ken Schechet, who is eating his way through Asia, will report on the street food scene in Singapore.

Here are last week’s posts:

CUNE: Rioja Resplendent

Tuthilltown Spirits and Hudson Whiskey: An American Saga

The Global Power of Pastrami