The Carnegie Deli was one of the most famous iconic Delis in New York. They were famous for over stuffed sandwiches and over sized slices of cheesecake. The big selling sandwiches were pastrami and corned beef. Many celebrities were known for dining at Carnegie Deli.  There is tale that the waiters were surly.

I’ve been here to Carnegie Deli in Las Vegas years ago before the real Carnegie Closed and we thought a re-visit might be fun.

You enter and see some autographs from celebrities.

You order at one of the counters and then take a number.

If your at this counter you try to ignore the picture of the cow so you don’t feel guilty with your corned beef, pastrami or brisket.

Then you seat yourself.

Hope you are hungry and brought a few friends……one sandwich is enough for FOUR hungry people.

Oy VEY! There is too much meat for me. I remove about 70% of the meat for a normal size sandwich.

That’s better.

The Pros-

You get a LOT of food for your money in Vegas. This sandwich can easily feed four people. The food runner is happy to bring you extra bread to make more sandwiches.

The Cons-

This sandwich really is ok but it’s not the best……I really don’t think this is similar to what the real Carnegie Deli Served.

To start with real New York Style Deli Places give you a bowl of assorted pickles (not just one pickle) to get your stomach ready for a big sandwich.

The bread is wrong. The correct bread for a New York Style Sandwich is double baked Rye and not squishy weak tasting rye.    (But hey we are in Las Vegas….It might be a west coast thing…NOT  ALL but most bread in Arizona, Las Vegas and California isn’t so great)

The meats (pastrami and corned beef) are ok but not succulent like they should be. I don’t think the flavor is right either. The pastrami is unbalanced with flavors with too much added smoke flavor and not enough black pepper.

Corned beef isn’t bad corned beef but is weakly flavored…..also not succulent like really good corned beef.

We also tried a potato knish.

The knish is also extra large. It’s about four servings. I like that the knish isn’t wrapped in puff pastry like many places are doing these days because to me knishes should be made with knish dough. The potato filling inside is ok…..better than some I’ve tried but not as flavorful as others. Good places with serve a knish with gravy. They didn’t offer gravy here.

The Las Vegas Carnegie Deli is quick and value priced if you are alright with sharing and have the chutzpah to ask for the extra bread you will need to make more sandwiches. ($25.00 at this time can feed four people on the strip)

I started to wonder…..on the menu it reads that the corned beef and pastrami come from the Carnegie Deli in New York…How can that be if the Carnegie Deli is closed?

I called to find out.

A Carnegie Warehouse is still in business and supplies the Corned Beef, Pastrami and Cheesecakes to the Carnegie Deli in Las Vegas. I don’t know but I am guessing that the Carnegie meats are the ones produced for the masses. I know I come across Carnegie Deli meat maybe once a year at Costco. It might be a similar thing that wine companies do… like the major wine companies make high end wines that are very expensive and lesser wines for the masses.

Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

Ok food reasonably priced on the Las Vegas Strip located in the Mirage.

www.Mirage.com