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Welcome to WFAEats — a fun adventure where we explore all things tasty and interesting in the Charlotte food scene. We want to share stories, recipes and culinary escapades and hear about yours!

'Deli Man' Film Will Delight

Cohen Media

What’s not to love? Here’s a film about food that’s guaranteed to get your juices flowing.

Deli Man tells the story of Ziggy Gruber, a French-trained chef who returned to his family’s culinary roots to make his mark in the delicatessen business. The film is part of the Charlotte Jewish Film Festival’s 2015 line-up.

The proprietor of Kenny and Ziggy's Deli in Houston, Texas, the cordial restaurateur is the tasteful tour guide in the documentary film from director Eric Greenberg Anjou. Viewers will see – and likely salivate over – piles of pastrami, bunches of blintzes, and much more.

Deli Man is peppered with celebrities that include Larry King, Jerry Stiller, and Alan Dershowitz, who swoon when they explain what defines the perfect deli experience: chicken fat, soup, the pickles, the cole slaw, the potato salad, and “the incredible juiciness of that hot dog.” King even proclaims that if he’s ever served a corned beef sandwich he doesn’t like, “I will never go back to that deli, ever, not ever, not ever. Not even if they come to my house and beg me.”

Clearly, people are passionate about their own deli experiences, but the film gives us more than a few nibbles of story to chew on. Deli Man serves up a thick slice of history, culture, and identity in its tribute to an aspect of Jewish-American life that is in danger of disappearing.

The film will screen twice in the Charlotte area: Sunday, Feb. 22 at 11 am, followed by a deli-tasting reception at Regal Ballantyne Village Stadium 5; and Monday, Feb. 23 at 7:15 pm at Regal Birkdale Stadium 16. Tickets are $10 and seating is limited. Visit the CJFF’s website for tickets and info on all films; you can also email: contact@charlottejewishfilm.com to check on last-minute ticket availability if a show is sold out.

To whet your appetite, watch the trailer https://vimeo.com/76564260">here.

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Amy Rogers is the author of Hungry for Home: Stories of Food from Across the Carolinas and Red Pepper Fudge and Blue Ribbon Biscuits. Her writing has also been featured in Cornbread Nation 1: The Best of Southern Food Writing, the Oxford American, and the Charlotte Observer. She is founding publisher of the award-winning Novello Festival Press. She received a Creative Artist Fellowship from the Arts and Science Council, and was the first person to receive the award for non-fiction writing. Her reporting has also won multiple awards from the N.C. Working Press Association. She has been Writer in Residence at the Wildacres Center, and a program presenter at dozens of events, festivals, arts centers, schools, and other venues. Amy Rogers considers herself “Southern by choice,” and is a food and culture commentator for NPR station WFAE.