Mannysdeli.com
Title
Manny's Coffee Shop & Deli - Since 1942
Description
Ken Raskin, proprietor and son of the late Manny, works the rooms, greeting customers who have known him since he was a small boy. Ken feels that part of the secret to his success is being visible to his customers, making sure they are happy and satisfied, and personally overseeing the daily working of the restaurant. Sometimes Ken's mom Arlene, wife Patti or one of his four children, take over the task of making sure the customers have eaten to their hearts' content.
The family tradition is nothing new at Manny's. It can be traced back (along with some of the recipes) to more than 50 years ago. When Jack Raskin joined his brother Charlie in the first of the Raskin cafeterias located on Van Buren and Halsted streets. The Russian-born brothers specialized in Jewish cooking served up quickly and in large portions - the way Charlie had learned by watching his mother.
Manny's Coffee Shop & Deli came into being shortly after World War II, when the Raskin brothers split up so that Jack could open his own restaurant on Roosevelt Road near the open-air market area known as Maxwell Street. The restaurant property Jack bought had been originally named Sunny's. So rather than tear down the old sign and get a whole new one, Jack named it after his teenage son, Emanuel (or Manny, to family and friends), saving money by simply buying two letters and replacing the "Su" in Sunny's with "Ma."
