Soup For You: The Magic of Zaftigs

If you want to schedule a meeting with me (or a brunch date, or a chicken soup craving), I will now be holding them all at Zaftigs in Brookline. With a robust all-day menu that Nanny Fanny would be proud of, Zaftigs is the quintessential neighborhood spot that draws both a local crowd and a flock of out-of-towners seven days a week. The famous Chicken Matzo Ball Soup is simply a tease to an incredible menu that boasts tradition, innovation, and the cure for any craving – breakfast, lunch or dinner – that will have you planning your next visit before the coffee is poured.

So, we have to talk about it immediately: the Chicken Matzo Ball Soup. While you can absolutely order hot soup to-go, or order extra pints, quarts, & extra matzo balls to stock your fridge, you really need to experience the steaming hot soup service inside a booth, at a table, or at the counter inside Zaftigs and soak it all in. Delicate shredded chicken, whispy egg noodles, fresh herbs, carrot, homemade slow-simmered chicken stock and that scratchmade fluffy, tender, absolutely perfect matzo ball all hitting your olfactory senses in perfect harmony while Frank Sinatra croons and Danny O’Connor’s (local artist) rendition of Nanny Fanny in her iconic red dress (original creator of the soup recipe) adorns the wall in your sightline: this is how Zaftigs Chicken Matzo Ball Soup should be experienced. I sat down with Evan Shuman, Zaftigs General Manager (and beloved son of Owner, Robert Shuman, and Nanny Fanny’s great-grandson), who is a culinary professional, businessman, foodie, and my friend, to learn more about the history, the legendary menu, and the future of Zaftigs with Evan infusing his love, passion and expertise into the family business. He would not give me the Chicken Matzo Ball Soup recipe but, I will keep working on this for us.

Moving onto the next famous thing that you will now need in your life forever…the Zaftigs Potato Pancakes. They are perfectly crispy on the outside and pillowy and gorgeous on the inside. I went for classic – served with sour cream and THE BEST homemade apple sauce – but, now I will dream about everything else I can have with them, starting with the Empire Eggs Benedict (Evan’s recommendation): two poached eggs, spinach, smoked salmon, on potato pancakes with homemade hollandaise. These classic potato pancakes are probably a shareable dish but, don’t dare me to eat the whole plate because I will take that challenge and I bet I am not the only one.

Look around you while inside Zaftigs and notice the artwork – O’Connor capturing a wealth of family history. Evan’s great-grandfather (no, not Nanny Fanny’s husband – other side of the family) used to operate the Roslindale Public Market. I love that this shot of the Banana Stuffed French Toast is framed by the backdrop of this historic family endeavor. The secret family recipes now reinvented to showcase the culinary talent in the kitchen and create a crave-worthy lineup of brunch dishes that you might also want for dinner. The french toast is in a bourbon-vanilla batter and Zaftigs has a full bar with which to create a perfect “grown-up breakfast for dinner” situation if you want to pair that with a Bacon And Bourbon Mary, for example.

Zaftigs is classic, it’s historic (founded in 1997 – or “5757” which is the Hebrew calendar date), and it’s about to get even better. While eating a ginormous, insanely good sandwich while feeling like a New Yorker (more on that below), I had a sneak peek into what the future holds for the Brookline location (location #2 is in Natick). The bakery & bagel case is amazing already but, it’s about to undergo a transformation and the new offering will be nothing short of fantastic. Corned beef and pastrami by the pound, homemade bagels and bakery items, a curated selection of meats, smoked fish, and more – and by “more” I am actually speaking of Bialy, which is like a bagel but the center is filled with incredible fillings that might mimic the satisfaction of a sandwich (I was today-years-old when I learned what this was and now I must have it). Some of the prep cooks at Zaftigs have been there for over 20 years and, if you know anything about the operation of a kitchen, you know the prep cooks are the wizards, the workers, the keepers of the secret recipes, and the heart of the kitchen. My own team at Clandestine Kitchen is the secret to our success so, I love that Evan was so quick to shoutout the team that makes the magic happen everyday.

If it sounds like you might be dreaming when you hear that The New Yorker is 12 ounces of a MIX of hot pastrami and corned beef topped with swiss cheese and Russian dressing on Jewish rye bread (Cissel) served with a mixed pickle plate, I can tell you that this is 100% facts at Zaftigs. It’s as ridiculous as it sounds. If you crave any of those things, you will love The New Yorker. Evan made me laugh when he mentioned that real New Yorker’s will come to Zaftigs and comment “it’s good” which is a New Yorker’s way of giving a high compliment of praise (being from Seattle, this sense of humor is hard to understand but, I think now I get it). The sandwich menu boasts everything from a Grilled Chicken Caesar Wrap (which is probably insane and I will need to try it) to The Rachel – turkey, swiss, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing on pumpernickle – which is also my neighbor’s favorite sandwich and he used to live down the street with full access to this menu at all times (so, I will need to try this one, too).

Modeled after old-school delis, Zaftigs hits it out of the park on all levels. A little bit of everything, available all of the time. A return to your roots while embracing twists on iconic favorites, and a steadfast hold on classic family recipes. Where else can you have a sandwich, french toast, chicken soup, potato pancakes, coffee, bagels, and a cocktail, all while listening to Sinatra (for the record it was “Fly Me To The Moon”) while closing big deals or grabbing a table for two (or one!)? Add to that the fact that this is family owned & operated and 95% of the huge menu is scratchmade, and you have a spot that welcomes you home – whether your home was built on these traditional dishes or if diving into this menu is a new exciting adventure. Food is love and food is family…it’s hard to speak with a mouth full of potato pancakes so luckily, the soundtrack says it all: “in other words, I love you”.

My personal recommendations:

• Potato Pancakes
• Chicken Matzo Ball Soup
• The New Yorker
• Banana Stuffed French Toast
• the homemade bagels!

Zaftigs Delicatessen: Brookline, MA & Natick, MA locations