(Google Street View)

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Some Tarrytowners are known to still sing

the praises of the Flamingo Deli, that iconic

anchor store of ''Flamingo Row.'' That is my

pet name for that strip of stores along North

Broadway, across from the bank (then named

"County Trust"). A pungent smell of kosher

dill pickles was one of the trademarks of the

Flamingo. Hand-sliced daily, the whole pickles

were kept in an oaken barrel under the

counter. What of the proprietor and his work-

force? Below, for all to see, is that team of

regular guys (there WERE also some

gals--but they must have missed this

particular photo shoot).

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They were led by one Ernie Ellis.; here, the

one with the tie. Establishing the Flamingo

back in the 1950s, owner Ellis did delegate

management to others for awhile, but came

back in time to help Tarrytown celebrate its

Centennial in 1970. Today, the storefront

hosts Sushi Thai Asian Fusion (but neighbor

Pastry Chef remains). Some of the deli

favorites back in the day? You chose between:

matzo ball soup, a corned beef or hot

pastrami sandwich on rye, a hot dog topped

with sauerkraut, or the trademark burger;

along with made-from-scratch onion rings

(and those ubiquitous sliced pickles).

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Then--to wash it all down--many chose a

chocolate malt. And you didn’t want to

forget that pungent shot of Dr. Brown's

Cel-Ray Tonic; actually, a celery-flavored

soft drink!

All tinted photos are scanned from the

1970 Tarrytown Centennial booklet. Due

to its very pale ink, these photos must be

processed heavily to be clearly visible.

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The written material on this site
has been borrowed from the book
G. Washington Slept Here:
A Sleepy Hollow Local History.
Copyright 2021 Notary Sojak,
All Rights Reserved.

A free sample (including all of
Main St.) may be downloaded

HERE .

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Back to Home

To Sleepy Hollow '70s

_____

(Google Street View)

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Having discovered what seemed to be an

ideal vacant storefront--adjacent to the

supermarket "Grand Union"--Tommy Cavalieri

(at bottom) decided to make this spot the

permanent location for his operation. His

first store in Tarrytown, the "Italian Village

Deli," had been at 36 Main St.

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One of the great markets of the old

North Tarrytown was "Cavalieri's," at

the corner of College Ave. & Cortlandt St.

Established elsewhere on Cortlandt back in

1913, Tom and brother John were to

become second-generation co-proprietors

at the corner location.

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If you were seeking produce back then, Johnny

was your man--up front. Tommy, a butcher

by trade, ran the full-service meat counter in

the back. Their legendary "wedges" (just below)

were considered contenders in the unofficial

local submarine sandwich competition. They

also offered fabulous, round Italian

loaves--straight from Arthur Ave. in the

Bronx--daily.

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But this store was to close down in 1969, the

family losing the property under an eminent

domain action (leading to the building of

the College Arms Apartments, low-income

housing). Since the early 1900's, reportedly,

the family had owned not only this corner

lot, but other real estate around it, as well.

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After this, but before opening his own place,

Tom worked for “Greene County Deli,” which

is addressed separately on my Beekman Ave.

web page. As for brother Johnny, he report-

edly opened a smaller meat, fish, fruit and

vegetable store, apparently not far down

Cortlandt St. from the original corner spot.

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(The Daily News, a Gannett Publication)

_____

The written material on this site
has been borrowed from the book
G. Washington Slept Here:
A Sleepy Hollow Local History.
Copyright ©2021 Notary Sojak.
All Rights Reserved.
A free sample (including all of
Main St.) may be downloaded
 
HERE .

_____

Back to Home

To Sleepy Hollow '80s

_____