Chicken Soup to the Rescue (The 2nd Ave. Deli Delivers)

December 21, 2009 | By | 0 Comments

2ndavedeli

The scene: our living room. Craig is sneezing, coughing, blowing his nose. He’s not happy. He’s feeling unwell. Me? I’m ok, I’ve avoided the cold so far. But I am sympathetic, I am suggesting he buy cold medicine, and then I suggest what my mother and grandmother would undoubtedly suggest if they were in the room too: “Chicken Soup.”

As it happens, Craig is reading New York Magazine and stumbles across an article about the best soups in New York and a big full-page spread about The 2nd Ave. Deli’s chicken soup. For years, I’ve declared that chicken soup my favorite in the city; when it was close to NYU (before it was relocated), I would go there religiously if I ever felt unwell. And this article, called “Deliverence,” was all about how the 2nd Ave. Deli will now deliver a tub of chicken soup to your door in 30 minutes. It would cost $22.95 plus delivery charges, a ridiculous price to pay for any other soup; but this is the 2nd Ave. Deli chicken soup we’re talking about, a cold-killing elixir stronger than any medicine a doctor would prescribe. I lifted the phone, I dialed the numbers, and 30 minutes later…

…there it was.

delieryunpacked

A big tub of golden soup with a big fat matzoh ball, little diamond noodles, like Jewish confetti, big fat coins of carrot (how do they find carrots so big?) and half a chicken’s various parts (drumstick, thigh, breast). Also, a container of coleslaw, pickles, and rye bread with both mustard and Thousand Island dressing for spreading. In other words: almost enough food to call it dinner.

First things first, heating the soup. I poured it into my Dutch Oven and heated it on low heat so it came up gently. Soon, it was steaming and ready for the patient:

chickensoupheated

I ladled the soup into bowls, brought the rest to the table, and there it was: the most restorative dinner a sick person could possibly eat, right there in our apartment.

2ndavedelidelivers

Craig slurped gratefully. “This is just what I needed,” he said, healing instantly.

“Jewish Penicillin,” I replied.

And it’s true: not only did Craig get better a few days later, but I never caught his cold. So for little more than $30, we both avoided trips to the doctor and ate a four-star deli meal without leaving our door. Now, when we get sick, we no longer have to navigate our way to midtown Manhattan for the cure; the cure, it turns out, will come to us.

The 2nd Ave. Deli Delivery

Call 212-689-9000

Or, if you’re feeling well enough to travel, go to:

162 East 33rd Street between Lexington & 3rd Ave.

Related Posts:

The (New) Second Ave. Deli

Cold Recovery at The 2nd Ave. Deli

Hallelujah! Chicken Soup From Scratch

Charitable Chicken Soup for My Roommate’s Soul

Fall Out of Fall with a Matzoh Ball

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