Greenwich & Delancey: The Best New York Jewish Deli is in Greenwich, CT

Chef David Teyf is poised for his closeup. Two years after unveiling his elevated kosher delicatessen, Greenwich & Delancey in Cos Cob, Teyf is confident that he has perfected his vision. "I want to be the first place to take this type of food to a Michelin level," he declares with determination. Drawing on his classical culinary training from Le Cordon Bleu Paris, he seamlessly applies haute cuisine techniques to Eastern European Jewish classics with standout results, like his meticulously crafted pastrami (carved tableside with the reverence normally accorded to prime rib), pillowy pelmeni (chicken dumplings), and the perfect bowl of matzo ball soup. 

Refined service accompanies Teyf’s outstanding cuisine. Hot towels, amuse-bouches, and a complimentary closing shot of fresh ginger tea make his patrons feel cared for. Teyf's goal is clear: to offer not just a meal, but an unforgettable dining experience. “It’s important that every guest at the restaurant feels like they’ve come to your home,” explains Teyf, emphasizing the use of the word "guest" over "customer" or "diner." Language is important to Teyf, who employs the word “Delicatessen” in describing his restaurant to ensure that guests leave “wowed”' relative to their expectations. 

Entering Teyf’s domain, a colossal challah in the pastry case sets the stage for the delights to come. “Two and a half pounds,” Teyf boasts, “and made completely from scratch.” As are most things on the menu, including the other breads and pastries (the fantastic, moist babka is also mammoth), his charcuterie program featuring both beef and vegan products, and chicken broth stewed for hours with “a tremendous amount of bones.” The food here is made with both love and painstaking attention to detail, necessary in achieving the high standards of kosher preparation he upholds. A rabbi is even onsite at all times to ensure adherence to kosher law.

The undisputed star of the menu is “Chef David’s Signature Pastrami.” “The restaurant needs to be known for something,” he explains, and while homemade smoked fish is his specialty at his restaurant LOX at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in downtown NYC, pastrami is the focus here. In an ode to his brother Gena, who’s been “obsessed with pastrami since childhood,” Teyf executes a labor of love that takes the better part of a week to transform a tough, fatty cut of beef into the most succulent pastrami we’ve ever tasted. 

After being cured, rubbed in a special spice blend, aged in a sealed wooden cabinet, smoked, and then steamed, a gleaming slab of pastrami emerges on a wheeled cart under a glass dome. Once at the table, the cloche is swirled aloft to release a dramatic puff of fragrant smoke. The meat is then hand-carved with a foot-long slicing knife into slivers that are so tender, they require no utensils (this is not an exaggeration; my 7-month-old baby happily devoured the leftovers I brought home, and he has no teeth). 

Alongside the pastrami come the necessary accompaniments: three varieties each of pickles (half sour, sour, and tomato) and bread (challah, rye, and Russian brown), plus an abundance of spicy brown mustard. If you don’t want to spend $78 on the tableside preparation, half its price will procure a sandwich heaped generously with the same meat. 

Teyf’s familial ties go deeper than just the pastrami. He runs his operation with his two sons – Elan and Tollan, also Cordon Bleu-trained chefs – whose names appear throughout the menu in attribution to their signature dishes. Teyf’s ancestors are also honored; walking through the entrance, one immediately sees a yellowing photograph of Teyf, his parents, and his brothers dating back to his childhood in Belarus. Beyond lie bales of hay, in a nod to the horse that saved his grandfather’s life after he jumped from a second story window to flee the Nazis during WWII.  

Teyf’s palpable connection to his family resonates even more when we learn how his forebears laid the groundwork for his career in food. Matzah makers in Minsk for over 50 years, his family fled the Soviet Union in 1979 by way of Vienna and then Italy, where Teyf spent six months of his childhood developing his obsession with food before settling in Brooklyn, another gustatory mecca. Teyf pays homage to his heritage in his hors d’oeuvre “Minsk matzah babka” – a layered concoction of matzah, onions, garlic and fresh dill that was so meaty and savory, we thought it had been made with chicken fat (it’s not). 

Just as the matzah babka is a family recipe, Teyf likes “to connect to people’s childhoods,” exemplified by the pelmeni that harken back to his own upbringing. These airy chicken dumplings are served boiled or pan-fried with vinegar and tofu-based dill sour cream, as there’s no dairy to be found at this establishment. This nostalgia sets the stage for a number of other dishes, including items like the “Going Back to Camp” bologna sandwich and his franks in a blanket, made with homemade beef hot dogs and everything bagel seasoning dotting the crust, served with every condiment one might crave for dipping

We love how the menu bridges tradition and innovation, challenging preconceptions of kosher cuisine with items like pastrami-stuffed doughnut holes dolloped with Russian dressing and drizzled with honey, and devilled eggs adorned with crispy shitake mushroom shards in lieu of classic bacon. A BLT with homemade beef bacon riffs on the canon by using a torched tomato and pickled onion. And for those who question the efficacy of Jewish penicillin (otherwise known as matzo ball soup), there’s the popular “Immune Boost Soup,” made with Teyf’s same bone broth, plus a glut of ginger and scallions that could cure the most lingering of ailments.  

Even after trying all of these things, we didn’t feel weighed down, and Teyf explains why: “I’m a health conscious chef, and I select quality ingredients. I don’t even own a deep fryer,” he proclaims proudly. “I only pan fry, and the oil is changed after each use.” Food is served in season, so the menu is constantly changing, except for a few staples like the pastrami, pelmeni, and soups. “I would love for people to think of us as old school clean food with roots tied to Eastern Europe,” he elaborates. 

Despite the low-publicity launch, Greenwich & Delancey has already gained local acclaim. Teyf recounts a recent story about a Greenwich Hospital OB-GYN enthusiastically spreading the news of the deli’s opening to a woman in labor. He hopes more will follow suit. “The more people come, the happier I’ll be,” he says. “I love to feed people. As a chef, I live for people rolling their eyes as they take their first bite, saying, ‘oh my God, that’s the best I’ve had.’” These moments of pleasure abound at Greenwich & Delancey, in what will certainly become a staple in Greenwich and beyond. 

Greenwich & Delancey is open Sunday through Thursday, 11am-9pm. Delivery is available via Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber Eats, and the restaurant also offers catering and event buyouts. 

Greenwich & Delancey 59 E Putnam Ave, Cos Cob (203) 340-2733