Greater Huntington coverage is funded in part by The Farm Italy, a striking neighborhood restaurant and cocktail bar bringing the simplicity, beauty and seasonal freshness of Italian dining to Huntington.
By Hamza Khan
Huntington resident Riyad Gazali spent 16 years commuting to Brooklyn to run one of New York City’s most beloved delis. Now, he’s bringing its food to Long Island.
David’s Brisket House — a Bedford-Stuyvesant staple — will open its second location at 4 Wall Street in Huntington.
“It’s like the center of Huntington, where everybody goes out, you can go dine there – so I felt like it’s a good area to have a restaurant,” Gazali, 49, explained. There’s a lot of foot traffic.”
Gazali signed a lease for the new eatery this past July. He plans to open by the first week of January, and is working on getting permits from the town.
David’s Brisket House has earned plenty of praise over the years. Eater named it one of New York City’s 12 best spots for a pastrami sandwich, and just a few weeks ago, New York Times Cooking featured the shop and compared it to the legendary Katz’s Delicatessen.
The Brooklyn deli is a classic only-in-New-York story: It’s a Yemeni-owned deli that sells Jewish-styled brisket and pastrami — all strictly Halal since 2015.
Of all its dishes, there is a clear crowd-favorite.
“Honestly, it’s funny,” Gazali said. “We’re a ‘Brisket House,’ but the most popular item is pastrami.”
A Jewish family from Eastern Europe founded the deli on Nostrand Avenue nearly 80 years ago.
Since then, it’s changed hands several times — to a Yemeni Jewish family, a Yemeni Muslim family, and, in 2010, to Gazali himself. All the while, the original pastrami and brisket recipes have held firm.
“I wanted it to be inclusive,” said Gazali, who was born in Yemen. “It took me that much time to find a Halal source that can produce the same quality of meat [and] would not change the quality or taste of the product.”
Gazali came to Long Island in 2009, just before he began running the deli. In 2018, he moved to Huntington — only 10 minutes from the new location.
The menu and Halal meat-sourcing will remain the same across both delis, Gazali added.
Inside the Brooklyn shop, customers are greeted by warm staff and a calm ambiance, which stands out in the bustling New York deli scene. Some trek all the way from Long Island to Brooklyn — not unlike Gazali himself — to try the menu.
“We’re very diverse in terms of the clientele that come in,” Gazali said, adding that he’s hopeful he will draw the same crowds on the Island. “We have all kinds of people that walk in.”
At around 900 square feet, the Huntington deli will be smaller than the Brooklyn location, which sits at around 1600, according to Gazali. Nonetheless, it will keep a modest dine-in option, offering 15 seats.
In 2012, the owners of David’s opened a location in Bay Ridge under the same name, which was in business for three years before closing. Another offshoot — in Williamsburg, named Pastrami Masters — has also since closed.
The Huntington shop will be Gazali’s first foray into the Long Island market, and, currently, the only location after their flagship shop on Nostrand.
A “Coming Soon!” banner on the Huntington storefront windows has already drawn attention.
“Local people, when I go to that area, they’re very excited,” Gazali said. “A lot of people are like, ‘Hurry up!’”
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