Is it just me, or does anyone else dream of proper salt beef sandwiches from days gone by? Next year, it will be ten years since the last of the famous Bloom’s restaurants closed its doors for the final time. I was only eleven then, but I’m still mourning the loss of Britain’s greatest kosher culinary experience.
I have fond memories of my grandparents taking me there for treats, where my grandfather would tell me how much he used to enjoy going as a small boy for a true Bloom’s Vienna sausage. There is something sad about an age-old institution like Bloom’s, which opened in 1920 and is so important to the London Jewish community’s heritage, completely disappearing.
Future generations will never know the excitement of unwrapping a steaming hot takeaway sandwich stuffed to the brim with tender meat from the white paper. It was like opening all your Chanukah presents at once! Nor will they ever bite into a delicious Bloom’s latke.
This is why I reach out to the surviving members of the Bloom family to bring back their cherished restaurant and their original salt beef recipe — not the spicy version that replaced it in the restaurant's last days. It is just what we Jews of London need right now to help cheer us up from that dreaded business with the Labour Party.
The problem is, all the current restaurants in Hendon and Golders Green are pretty much the same: Israeli and hummus-mad. They lack the haimish feel of Bloom’s, even if the waiters are more polite!
There are very few real Ashkenazi restaurants left. Admittedly, there was not as much experimenting with flavours, but it’s simple and gentle and, in my view, just as tasty, if not more. And at least you know what's on your plate.
In all seriousness, I think many of us miss Bloom’s dearly, and would love to share a rye-bread sandwich with our loved ones once more. And with services such as Deliveroo now operating in most of the other kosher restaurants, there is even the possibility of having a salt beef sandwich meal delivered directly to your door.
I really hope there is a way to make the rebirth of Bloom’s happen; maybe if we all pledge our support, we can encourage the family to revive their restaurant. And why not? It wouldn’t be the first time an important Jewish icon has come back from the dead!
Joshua Rocker is a third-year history student at King’s College London.
