Leonard (Lenny) Briskets was born in Yonkers, a city in Westchester County, New York, in the mid-1950s and grew up assisting his Jewish parents in the family's deli. Even though he disliked the job, to begin with, it's the inspiration behind his food truck and newly opened mainstay, both called Lenny Briskets, in Sydney.
In the late 1920s, his mum and dad migrated to the US from Poland and Vienna, respectively, when they were both in their teens. They met in the early 1940s while working in the shmatte "rag" clothing business. His mum was a seamstress, and his dad was a salesman. A couple of years after their marriage, they bought a European-Jewish deli in Yonkers. It was called Ludlow Deli after the street in which it was located.
Even though they didn't know anything about delis, Briskets' dad was keen to smoke meats and his mum was a great cook – a combination that gradually made their deli a success.
Lenny Briskets mum (far right) and dad at work in the kitchen. Source: Lenny Briskets
They made and sold pickled meats and vegetables, schmears, schmaltz (rendered goose or chicken fat), and the crowd pleasers: smoked meat and pickled tongue.
"Because my parents worked hard seven days a week from early in the morning until dark, there wasn't time for home cooking, so I would always eat at the deli for lunch," Briskets tells SBS Food. "My favourite choice was chopped whitefish with mayonnaise, and any leftovers were brought home and would make up dinner."
The longer you smoke, the more smoke flavour you'll put in there.
As an only child, Briskets spent many days at the deli building rapport with the regulars, which he loved. But he didn't enjoy plucking the feathers off the chickens or how his clothes absorbed the smell of smoked meat.
However, in his early 20s, craving to spend more time with his dad, he became more interested in learning how to smoke meat. He went on to spend the next 15 years mastering the art of meat smoking from him.
Briskets explains that the Jewish way of smoking meat is to do so at low temperatures (below 30°C) for around 12-48 hours, instead of hot smoking, which is how it's done Texan style.
"Cold smoking meats does not cook the meat. It's simply a technique of slowly flavouring, as the smoke only penetrates the surface of the food and leaves the inside untouched, and is then cooked slowly in an oven," he says.
Meat smoking gave Briskets and his dad quality time together.
"In my family, the art of running the cold smoker was a man's job, so this became the way I got to spend time with my father, and we essentially created a father-son bond over smoking not only briskets but also fish, chicken and sausages."
Before moving to in Australia in 2017, the business was sold and is now a Spanish deli. However, by 2019, Lenny opened the food truck, selling gourmet cold-smoked meat sandwiches around Sydney.
This became the way I got to spend time with my father, and we essentially created a father-son bond over smoking not only briskets, but also fish, chicken and sausages.
Then in January this year, he opened his first mainstay in Darlinghurst, which has a 1950s-inspired diner and bar, and a European-Jewish deli like his parents had.
The diner's menu is the same as the food truck's and includes deli classics like smoked beef briskets and pastrami sandwiches. Meanwhile, the food truck is reserved for private functions such as weddings, bar mitzvahs and birthdays.
"I have a big kitchen in Botany where I smoke my meats using equipment that still has those elements of creativity and improvisation that my dad used and is always part of my process," says Briskets. "But I also have a lot of big professional equipment my dad never had which makes it easier for me to cold smoke using wood."
On average, he smokes 300-500 kilograms over three days every week. He smokes his pastrami for a minimum of 12 hours, barbecues briskets for six hours, and fish and chicken for 30 minutes to an hour.
Briskets says, "When it comes to learning how to cold [smoke] meat at home, any chicken cut is a beginner-friendly food, and while there is the equipment you can buy, for example, a vertical or offset smoker which takes wood pellets or chips ideal for controlling low-temperature smoking, you can still experiment with your existing home charcoal grill."
He advises placing a foil pan that's filled with ice at the centre and surrounding it with a small amount of hot, ash-covered coals, which you can handle with tongs. Add wet wood chips to the coals to help keep a low temperature. Place your meat on a grill rack above the ice pan and cover the grill. Smoke each side for 30 minutes and keep adding ice.
"Essentially, the longer you smoke, the more smoke flavour you'll put in there, so it's just a preference," he says.
"Be ready to be disappointed as the art of cold smoking takes time to learn, but above all, don't give up and be creative with your cold smoke equipment."
Tuesday to Saturday: 11am–9pm
ALL THE BRISKET
Brisket and classic coleslaw toastie
