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Why does this ham and cheese cost $29 at a Manhattan shop? An investigation.
By
Phil Corso
and
Catalina Gonella
Published Apr 12, 2023
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Catalina Gonella/Gothamist
By
Phil Corso
and
Catalina Gonella
Published Apr 12, 2023
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You’ll need three Alexander Hamiltons to get a taste of Eli Zabar’s ham and cheese sandwich.
Reddit user mauceri posted a picture on Monday from one of the eatery’s Manhattan locations detailing the $29 sandwich “on health bread,” garnering more than 600 comments and 2,000 upvotes. Gothamist reached out to Eli Zabar to get to the meat of it.
“Fake Sandwich News,” said Sasha Zabar when asked what made the ham and cheese worth $29. He described it as Eli Zabar’s “signature sandwich since Eli first opened in 1973.”
Zabar said it was actually two sandwiches packed into one wrapper. A single ham and cheese sandwich, cut in half, goes for $16. A double sandwich, meanwhile, costs $29, and is crafted with the intention of sharing, or, as Zabar put it, “having one now and then the second sandwich later.”
“Every morning we bake our seven-grain health loaf in a special size, which EAT [owned by Eli Zabar Inc.] then slices the long way, schmears with French mustard, and covers with thinly sliced roasted glazed ham and imported Swiss cheese,” Zabar said. “For $16 you get one sandwich cut on a bias and wrapped. For $29 you get two excellent sandwiches not cut but wrapped.”
Eli Zabar offers a ham and cheese for $29 on the Upper East Side. It's one of the eatery's more popular items, along with the $30 salmon sandwich.
Catalina Gonella
Gothamist's reporter took a bite of the $29 Eli Zabar ham and cheese so we could see for ourselves. It certainly tasted like a ham and cheese, but it was also on the dry side.
"The 'health bread' tastes … healthy."
The to-go packaging made for a non-customizable experience. The eating experience improved, however, a few bites in, as the heart of the sandwich started to really sing, meaning you start to taste more than just the health bread.
"The middle is actually a little better, not so dry."
A cashier at Eli Zabar’s Upper East Side location told Gothamist the $29 ham and cheese was one of its most popular items, along with the $30 salmon sandwich.
Cezar Penha, who spoke with Gothamist near the eatery, said he was surprised to see the $29 sandwich advertised as two. With his casual consumer eye, he pegged the sandwich at around $11.
“There’s something missing there. There’s something odd. It’s gotta be a joke,” Penha said. “It’s not possible, for real. It looks like one squished on top of the other. It doesn’t look like two sandwiches there at all.”
For a comparison, a similar ham and cheese sandwich at Smith Finest Deli in Brooklyn goes for $6.50 when served on a croissant.
It turns out that offering expensive sandwiches has become the New York way – especially since the pandemic cratered the city’s food industry. A menu at another deli just blocks away from Eli Zabar’s Upper East Side location advertised its ham and cheese sandwich at $22, for example.
A writeup on InsideHook.com even outlined how one New York City eatery was actually losing money on a $14 sandwich because of the confluence of higher food prices and other maintenance costs, including rent and insurance.
Rising inflation hasn’t helped, either. The classic bacon, egg and cheese sandwich made headlines last year as rising costs forced New York bodegas to hike the price of the go-to breakfast item.
Tagged
manhattan
restaurants
Phil Corso
Phil Corso is the evening news editor at WNYC/Gothamist. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
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Catalina Gonella
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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