(Jewish Group) First Kosher Butcher Opened by a Man of Many Firsts
One of the most common questions we get from our visitors here at the museum is “Which deli is the best?” New Yorkers and tourists alike are always on the lookout for the best kosher (or kosher style, more typically) deli in the city, But it’s not as often that we wonder which was the first – how did the deli tradition get started in this city? Any iconic New York deli might try to tell you that it is the original, the oldest, or the best, but the first kosher deli is practically ancient history as far as New York timelines are concerned – it opened on November 15th, 1660 by a man named Asser Levy. Technically, it didn’t even open in New York – the city was still called New Amsterdam at the time.
Asser Levy, is believed to have been born in present day Lithuania, but eventually moved to Amsterdam in order to escape religious persecution. During his time in Amsterdam, Levy most likely learned about the opportunities in the New World and eventually moved to a Dutch colony in Brazil. However, he was once again forced to re-establish himself when the Portuguese took over and expelled many of the Jewish Colonists. So he made his way toward another Dutch settlement – New Amsterdam.
Which is how Asser Levy received the first-ever license given for a kosher butcher in New York on November 15th, 1660. Aside from being just the first of its kind in New York, it is quite possible that Levy’s deli was the first kosher butcher shop in America.
A kosher deli is about more than just a dietary restriction. Yes, it is the diet outlined by Jewish Law that states that all meat and dairy consumed must be ritualistically slaughtered and blessed by a rabbi. Under kosher law, certain types of food are prohibited altogether. But, the establishment of a kosher butcher in a neighborhood also signifies the establishment and solidity of the Jewish population. Levy’s new business could have been one of the first occasions of such Jewish permanence to happen on American soil.
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Companion article: Keeping Kosher in 17th Century New York City
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