RESTAURANT REVIEW : Deli Pitches Flavors of Brooklyn

Visiting the new Brooklyn Deli & Bakery in Woodland Hills is like stepping back in time via a Roger Kahn baseball anthology. Almost every square inch of this place is crammed with Brooklyn Dodger souvenirs--a mini-museum of early ‘50s memorabilia in homage to “Dem Bums.”

Dodger glory is everywhere here. The wall above the seating area is one enormous collage of newsprint featuring Brooklyn’s then home team, and the gruff counterman (an unspoken prerequisite for a true New York-style deli) labors under an original Brooklyn baseball cap. You have to visit the men’s room (sorry, ladies) to experience the restaurant’s holy of holies, a framed portrait of the 1952 Dodger infield--Reese, Robinson, Hodges, Cox and Campanella. Now, dat’s class.

This is probably the tiniest deli of quality I’ve eaten in. The restaurant’s six emerald-green booths are squeezed onto a raised platform about two feet directly opposite the counter, leaving only a narrow strait for the waitress to navigate. The booths seat two comfortably, but if you come in a group of three or four, the padded seats can be extended out eight inches (more room for you, less room for the waitress).

Hands-on food preparation is the hallmark of any authentic deli. This one roasts plump, salt-free turkeys daily on the premises, and hand-slices items like lox, New York-style black pastrami and corned beef to order. The good, creamy potato salad, the tangy cole slaw and the wonderfully crunchy half-sour kosher pickles are also homemade, and all tables have been stocked with Gulden’s brown and Beaver’s hot and sweet mustards. None of those garish, bright yellow mustards for expat Brooklynites, please.

Sensational turkey soup, salt-free and de-fatted, is my favorite way to begin here. The soup is full of good components such as huge chunks of fresh-tasting turkey, carrots, celery and egg noodles, which can be further enriched by the addition of meaty kreplach (heavy flour-and-egg dumplings with a minced beef filling), or light, fluffy matzo balls. Turkey is also sliced thin and served in a hot sandwich, on a fresh baguette accompanied by delicious turkey broth for dipping.

That is the only circumstance that justifies eating a baguette at this deli. Practically all of these sandwiches are served on massive slices of double-baked rye bread, meaning that the bread, already baked elsewhere, is given an additional turn in the deli’s own oven, to ensure a thick, chewy crust.

I probably should not mention this, but this is one place where you can still get a legitimate hard salami sandwich. When you walk in, you’ll see three or four salamis hanging over the counter, a practice fast disappearing due to Byzantine health regulations. Salamis are hung to dry them out--something the French and Italians have been doing without incident since time began. But in Southern California this technique is not, ahem, legal. Put a few slices of this stuff on some double-baked rye bread with brown mustard, then take your base in Dodger Valhalla.

Sandwiches of corned beef and pastrami, slightly hard versions themselves, are also big draws. The relative softness of deli meats is purely a matter of style. In this case, the longer you steam them, the softer they get. This black pastrami has a hard, spicy crust and is extremely dense and flavorful. The corned beef is somewhat softer, and when hand-sliced, a good deal leaner.

Come for breakfast on weekends, and you can get traditional specialties like matzo brie and potato pancakes. A spate of omelets, notable mostly for having been named for places like Coney Island, Brighton Beach and Flatbush (made with ingredients like fresh mushrooms, turkey sausage and jack cheese) are menu fixtures.

Don’t bother paying $2 extra for the hand-sliced gourmet lox, by the way--the ordinary lox is just as tasty. Have some on a water bagel with cream cheese and sliced onion. Potato and spinach knishes are often available as well, despite not being on the menu. These heavy pockets of dough pretty much steal away the appetite, and leave you uncomfortably full.

Moderation is called for with the ultra-rich desserts, too, like the creamy, authentic New York-style cheesecake, the Meyers Rum chocolate cake and the chocolate brandy cake, all baked here. The latter two are killers--dense Bundt cakes so intense with spirits you’ll want a designated driver if you intend to eat an entire piece.

And don’t miss the soda fountain, with its black-and-white shakes, chocolate malts and authentic egg creams, all made from Brooklyn’s own Fox’s U-Bet chocolate syrup. Even a Red Sox fan like me can appreciate this kind of tradition.

Suggested dishes: turkey soup with kreplach, $2.95; turkey dip sandwich, $6.95; hot pastrami sandwich, $5.95; chocolate brandy cake, $2.95.

Brooklyn Deli and Bakery, 20929 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, (818) 888-DELI. Open 8 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. No alcoholic beverages. Parking lot. MasterCard and Visa accepted. Lunch for two, food only, $12-$25.