Broadway Deli Plans to Pile on the Pastrami in the Crossroads

By Kevin Collison

In a match made in sandwich heaven, the soon-to-open Broadway Deli is bringing the piled-on-thick, genuine Chicago flavor of Manny’s, one of America’s great Jewish delicatessens, to the Crossroads Arts District.

The new deli, which plans to open in late April, is a collaborative venture between Bill Fromm, an entrepreneur who founded Barkley advertising and co-founded Service Management Group, KC Hopps and Manny’s Cafeteria & Delicatessen.

“We wanted to bring an authentic Jewish-style deli to Kansas City,” Fromm said.

“Part of my success in business is I know what I don’t know. The only thing I know about Jewish deli’s is I love a good one. That’s why we’re bringing the meats and recipes from Manny’s in Chicago.”

Fromm was sitting at a table in the new deli space at 2101 Broadway. The building at the foot of the Broadway viaduct was once occupied by Pezzettino Italian Deli & Market.

His love affair with Manny’s began while he was attending Northwestern University in Chicago. The famed South Loop Jewish Deli at 1141 S. Jefferson was his go-to place on Sundays.

When he decided to open a deli in Kansas City, he reached out to Manny’s to forge a partnership.

“We’ve had 75 years of success with our recipes and traditions,” said Dan Raskin, the fourth-generation owner-operator of Manny’s.

“To us, it’s a simple process. We’ve been doing it so long we know what works and we’re excited to be bring our model on how to prepare food and open another place in Kansas City.”

What makes a deli a Jewish deli, Raskin explained, is using top quality, home-made ingredients and serving it in “large quantity proportions.”

Fromm said there will be two sandwich sizes, the Broadway for big eaters and the Off-Broadway, a normal-size sandwich.

The meats being flown in from Manny’s include corned beef, pastrami, salami and roast beef.

Matzah ball soup will be a daily staple along with a second soup-of-the-day. Other offerings include chopped liver, knishes, lox and cream cheese bagels, scrambled eggs with lox or salami and blintz’s. Beer and wine also will be available.

The Broadway Deli will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m for breakfast and lunch.

“We’re not open for dinner because if you eat breakfast or lunch here, you won’t need dinner,” Fromm said.

The space can be rented for private parties in the evenings.

Fromm knows he’ll have a successful Jewish deli on his hands by the local response.

“The energy is created if you have lots of people here,” he said. “The food has to be great. If it’s great, you’ll have lines out the door.”

Manny’s has been a Chicago South Loop favorite since 1942. (Photo from Enjoy Illinois)