by David Chapman
Staff Writer
Pearl Leibowitz and the staff at Worman’s Bakery & Deli are still baking confections fresh each morning and serving their trademark meals for breakfast and lunch, but the Downtown fixture isn’t raking in the dough as much lately.
“Business isn’t as good as we’d like but we’re holding our own,” said Leibowitz, longtime owner of the restaurant on Broad Street. “I think more people are ‘brown-bagging’ it for lunch due to the economy, but we still have some of the most loyal customers around.”
Fewer customers were expected, she said, but it’s the steep increase in the cost of ingredients that has her shocked.
Rye flour, for instance, has tripled in price over the past several months. Eggs, flour, sugar, meats, cheeses and other bakery and restaurant staples have risen in price dramatically as well, which means small changes had to be made to persevere.
Reducing the quality of ingredients for any of their products is out of the question, said Leibowitz, so compensating for tougher economic times means reducing the quantity of items made every day. Baking a few dozen less cookies here or a cake or two there adds up, she said, and only a few of the less popular items have been pulled completely.
It’s the quality that attracts longtime customers like Mariano and Audrey Ann Lezcano, who come from as far away as Middleburg for the pastrami sandwich and a confection or two.
“We come by whenever we can,” said Mariano Lezcano. “Everything is so fresh and natural.”
Amid the concerns and changes, Leibowitz can look at the empty lot across the street slated to become the new County Courthouse as reason for optimism.
“No doubt about it, it (new Courthouse) would certainly help business,” she said. “We had a customer tell us it could be the end of the year or next year when construction begins. I always ask ‘Which year?’”
She jokes, but knows even the “hardhats” working on its construction will be a welcome addition to her clientele.
Many of the occupants of the current and future Courthouse are regulars at Worman’s, said Leibowitz’s nephew and future owner Scott Worman.
“A lot of judges, mayors, ministers and the like are regulars” he said. “It still is the place a lot of the City’s movers-and-shakers come by for breakfast and lunch. It’s been like that since I’ve been here.”
Since he was a teenager who learned how to make fresh bagels in the morning, Worman has been involved with the restaurant. He loves the business and said he’s in it for the long haul.
“I’m 100 percent loyal to them,” he said of Leibowitz, his father and the business.
Neither Leibowitz nor Worman know when the passing of the family torch will occur, but neither is too concerned about it. Both are happy, they said, and Leibowitz wants to continue the day-in, day-out business as long as she can.
“As long as I’m here and as long as I’m well,” said the 83-year-old Leibowitz. “I still feel fresh but remaining well is the big thing.”
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