FAMOUS FOURTH STREET DELICATESSEN Photos: Suzi Nash

Anyone nostalgic for the good old days need look no further than Fourth Street right here in Philadelphia. When you walk into the 84-year-old institution and peer across the spotless tile floor, you are greeted with a vision of the past: bustling waitstaff in crisp shirts and deli personnel clad in white lab coats, ready to do business. Gleaming metal fixtures, art-deco chandeliers and a proudly displayed wall of the “famous” who have crossed the threshold of Philadelphia’s Famous Fourth Street Delicatessen, 700 Fourth St.

Owners Bill Shapiro and Harry Willner took over the joint in February and have delighted in keeping up with tradition. Shapiro, the former owner of Cobblefish in Manayunk, said with a smile, “This place has good bone structure. It’s been around since 1923. Our job is not to screw it up!”

The main change, according to Shapiro, is an expanded dinner menu to bring the deli a little more in line with today’s health-conscious society. The staff is offering some vegetarian options and will utilize Shapiro’s knowledge from Cobblefish to bring in a variety of interesting fresh fish dishes. But don’t worry, they have no plans to stray far from the European style of cooking people have come to expect. On the corporate side, they are looking to expand the catering services and have created a fun and reasonable menu for Philadelphia businesses.

Before eating, I took a few moments to talk with Shapiro. “We take great pride in our food — we cure our own corned beef, smoke our own pastrami, make our own brisket. I think we have captured the authentic flavor profile of a true New York Jewish deli. And it’s not just about the food. It’s about being able to do things right. In chain restaurants these days, you order a rare hamburger and they bring it out well done. When you complain, they say, ‘It’s OK, we’ll take it off the bill.’ Well, I didn’t go out to have a free hamburger, I went out to get something good to eat.

“It’s also about community, it’s about friends. Eating out is a luxury; you can make your own sandwich at home. We’ve joked about having a ‘Wing Bowl’ type of event here, but I think it goes against the essence of what the deli is all about. This is a place to savor the food, experience the sights and smells. It’s a place to gather and catch up on the latest gossip — the equivalent of the barbershop in some communities or the pool hall. We want people to enjoy the meal and not feel rushed. I’m afraid stuffing down 20 pastrami dogs in five minutes is contrary to what we are all about. There’s too much hard work that goes into the food to see it swallowed whole! It’s a great PR event, but I think I’m a bad-enough businessperson to say no. I have to feel good about what I’m doing. At least today; tomorrow I may have a different answer. Maybe at Halloween we’ll do something that fits us better, like bobbing for pickles.”

As our server came over to take our order, Shapiro apologized, saying, “I’m sorry, they’ve been listening to me and haven’t had a chance to look at the menus.” To which the server responded, “If you’re waiting for him to stop talking to order, you’ll starve to death. It’s like waiting for a ride at Disney World: You feel like you’ll never get to the end.”

This kind of banter between staff members is part of the charm at Fourth Street.

We managed to get our order in and were joined by co-owner Willner, a congenial fellow with a wide smile and hearty laugh. He comes to the restaurant from 27 years in the car sales business.

“It’s not all that different for me; it’s a matter of paying attention to details and delivering what the customer wants,” Willner said. “I’m a people person. I met Bill at Cobblefish over 12 years ago and we became fast friends. When I got the opportunity to get this place, he was the first person I called. I always wanted to own a restaurant and now it’s come to life. I’m living out my dream.”

To start our meal, we were given a complimentary bowl of half sour pickles, whole sour pickles and sauerkraut. One of the few things not made on the premises, they are shipped in from the lower east side of New York City. The deli goes through several thousand pickles each week.

First up we tried the sweet and sour cabbage soup ($6). True to its name, it was tangy with a subtly sweet undercurrent and chock full of fresh vegetables.

Warned about the large portions, we tried to restrain ourselves but couldn’t help ordering an appetizer before the main course. We tried the famous chopped liver ($9), a huge mound of liver with large pieces of chopped hard-boiled eggs and fried onions. It was delicious and could have been a meal in itself.

For our lunch, we ordered the pastrami reuben ($12). As Willner had told us, the pastrami was to die for. It was served with a choice of sides, including cole slaw, potato pancakes and cucumber and onion salad; we opted for the potato pancakes. Small nuggets, they were more like Tater Tots than pancakes, but still tasty.

We also ordered the corned beef and eggs ($11.50) from the “Breakfast Anytime” menu. The corned beef was melt-in-your-mouth perfect. All the vegetables are cut fresh with each order and the difference is amazing. Instead of the usual mush of hash, you can differentiate each taste in each bite. Though the price may seem a bit steep for breakfast, the portion is so enormous you can feed a family of four. There’s a member of the Philadelphia Eagles who stops in regularly for the meal and finishes it on his own. Willner jokes, “I’m afraid Eagles fans are going to hate me when this guy goes back to training camp and can’t run anymore!”

At the end of the meal, and after loosening our belts a few notches, we were served the complimentary Famous Deli cookies. Baked on the premises and stuffed with pieces of chocolate, the cookies are as famous as the many celebrities who flock to get them.

We wrapped up with an order of the chocolate challah bread pudding ($6), soft bread dribbled in chocolate and served with fresh whipped cream, and apricot rugalach ($3). Tasty and not too sweet, it was a great way to end a satisfying meal.

For those of you who need a home away from home or just a satisfying home-cooked meal, Famous Fourth Street Deli is the place for you. To quote Shapiro and Willner: “When you walk in these doors, you are a guest in our home. We tell our staff, we have no customers, only guests.”