Grandpa Schleifer cooked like a real man. Auto mechanic, Polish immigrant, World War II veteran, speaker of seven languages, John Wayne fan… he was a hard-boiled New Yorker, who brought a gentle touch to all of his tough-guy activities.
And man, could he cook. As a young boy, I always got excited when this strong-armed, tire-changing, don't-mess-with-my-friends-or-family tough guy, put on his apron and announced that potato-nick, kugel, and beef brisket would be on the table shortly. I knew I would eat well that day.
This article appears in May 6-12, 2009.