Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop: A New York Luncheonette from a Bygone Era on Ladies’ Mile

The Flatiron District has become one of the most popular neighborhoods in our City.  It is where Fifth Avenue crosses Broadway at the foot of Madison Square Park’s 6 1/2 acres, near galleries, museums, chic eateries and luxury high rises.  But it wasn’t always this way.

There was a time when the Flatiron area was strickly industrial and most of the businesses closed around 5pm.  The area was known as The Ladies’ Mile because some of New York’s most famous department stores were located there.  Names like Lord & Taylor, B. Altman W & J Sloane, Arnold Constable, Best & Co., Bergdorf Goodman and the list goes on.  In 1989 it was designated The Ladies’ Mile Historic District by the NYC Landmark Preservation Commission.  It was a popular place to shop and the neighborhood luncheonette was the place to eat.

The Eisenberg family opened their luncheonette at 174 Fifth Avenue between 22nd Street and 23rd Street, in the heart of Ladies’ Mile, in 1929 – naming it Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, and although this tiny luncheonette has passed through several hands since they retired, it has been lovingly kept the same – even when business was slow.

When Eisenberg’s went on the market for the fourth time in 2005, one of it’s old and loyal customers saw this as a good opportunity to put his heart and soul into something he viewed as a New York institution and a part of our history.  That new owner was Josh Konecky.

Mr. Konecky’s moto would be to have a basic old-time New York sandwich shop.  No wraps or panini’s here.  But eventually an ‘Eisenburger’ would make its way onto the menu of already popular favorites like hot pastrami, tuna melts & egg creams. And as evidence they’ve moved with the times, there was even a Heisenberg during the last season of Breaking Bad.

Located across the street from the Flatiron building, Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop still packs in quite a crowd everyday despite an enormous array of eateries like its nearby neighbors Eatily and the Shake Shack.  Still for many New Yorkers, Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop has no competition, and we are happy to learn that they have a nice long lease.

You can follow them on Facebook or give them a call – open every day and they deliver – in every way. On a visit, also check out the homage to Ladies’ Mile in the 23rd Street Subway station–in the form of a hat mosaic.

You can follow AFineLyne on Twitter or on Facebook at Harlem Sketches or Greenwich Village Sketches.  Don’t forget to head over to the Untapped Shop.