Apropos of nothing but everything, the WFAN studios are just a hop, skip, and a jump (and 20 minutes of traffic to go a mile and change) from Katz's Deli, perhaps the pre-eminent purveyor of pastrami in Lower Manhattan.
But there's one WFAN personality who isn't picking up a $25 pastrami on rye anytime soon, as we found out when Jake in Melville called in to talk Knicks and called NYC the "Pastrami capital."
"It's the pastrami capital? I hate pastrami, I can't stand pastrami, I don't eat it," Boomer Esiason revealed. "I can't even be around it, it's just not a thing for me."
He also doesn't like lamb because "it's gamey," and Gio was incredulous as this palate reflection.
"Pastrami isn't gamey, it's a salty delicious meat!" Gio said, before remembering a breakfast once provided for the guys that included pastrami, and finally understanding why Boomer didn't eat that day.
"I understand why people like it, but for me, it's not the delicacy people think it is," Boomer said. "I'd rather have bologna or olive loaf or liverwurst."
Liverwurst is where Gio drew the line, and he could only sit there shocked, the same as a few callers who chimed in to bust Boomer's bologna as well – the best asking Boomer "what animal do you shoot to get olive loaf?"
And that's when we got a deep look into Boomer's past.
"I had a great childhood thanks to my dad, but I was thinking about this last night: I didn't realize how poor we were growing up," Boomer said. "We would eat pork and beans, TV dinners, and bologna sandwiches. I ate everything my dad ate. Maybe we couldn't afford pastrami, maybe that's what it was."
Let's hope Dunkin' never offers pastrami, at least as long as Boomer's black card is buying us breakfast every now and again around here…
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