NYC flavor comes to East Amherst
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

Jon Cohen is ready to serve customers at his establishment, Jonny C's New York Deli, at 9350 Transit Road in East Amherst. A Long Island native, Cohen offers traditional NYC deli sandwiches. Photo by Jim Smerecak Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com

A taste of the Big Apple is available in East Amherst at Jonny C's New York Deli.

For lunch or catering, the business is considered Buffalo's only original New York-style deli, owner Jon Cohen said. He has been a deli owner for 25 years, and this past fall he opened Jonny C's at 9350 Transit Road.

"I have always liked this area ... It's the next up-and-coming area," he said about East Amherst.

Located in the Transit-Casey Plaza, Cohen offers what he calls the best homemade corned beef, as well as soups and sandwiches.

The deli has a sit-down area for the busy lunch crowd, as well as chips, cookies and beverages to complement the homemade lunches.

"People come in for food they can't get anywhere else," he said noting that one of the items is matzoh ball soup.

The deli, which is nonkosher, had originally been located in Statler Towers in downtown Buffalo. Cohen decided to move after it was announced that the Statler Towers was undergoing a two-year reconstruction project.

Jonny C's also has a large catering menu for any occasion. The menu includes deli sandwiches and wrap platters, cold and hot buffets, hors d'oeuvres, a breakfast buffet, dessert and cookie trays, salads, a kiddush luncheon menu and a barbecue menu.

Cohen, a Long Island native, has made his home in Western New York, using local landmarks as inspiration for his sandwiches - the Casey, the Scajaquada, the 90, the Transit and the Amherst. He said his sandwiches are loaded with ingredients.

The deli is located in the former Latina Foods store. Renovated and upgraded with a kitchen, the deli serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Takeout is available.

"What we wanted to do was to make Jonny C's a real, authentic New York-style deli by not only serving great deli sandwiches, subs and food, but also including a store that is stocked with great Italian-American products and showcases a variety of frozen speciality foods and coolers stocked with everyone's favorite traditional household food and beverage items," Cohen said.

Jonny C's is open from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week, at 9359 Transit Road. For information, call 688-8400 or visit www. jonnycs. com.

e-mail: jfinch@beenews.com