I have been to Art's Deli, but we're talking many years ago and I don't even remember thinking about the prices back then. So I got on their website this morning and browsed the menu items a little bit, and BK ain't kidding. What they're charging for yer typical deli sandwich is shocking, but you know what else struck me? The photos of the food. With maybe a couple of exceptions, nothing looked special enough to warrant that level of pricing, and the photos themselves are fairly pedestrian. Everything struck me as kind of ordinary.
If the Carnegie Deli were still with us, the prices would for sure be right up there. But the servings would be humongous and I always loved their food, especially the pastrami. It was always just totally worth it. At the dearly departed Artie's on upper Broadway, you never had that kind of sticker shock, their food was always delicious, and you could sit there and talk forever.
I'm guessing that Art's thrives by having a very established clientele who won't budge until they're carried out feet first, and plenty of movie studio expense accounts.