A landmark in Newark's Clinton Hill neighborhood for many decades, Bragman's Delicatessen and Restaurant is a traditional-style Jewish deli that specializes in oversized, mouth-watering sandwiches.

"There are not too many delis like us left in New Jersey," said second-generation owner Larry Reisner, whose father, Charles, bought the business from the original owner in 1951. "My father was a Holocaust survivor and he came here with virtually nothing. After coming to the States, he went to work for his cousins in a butcher shop, and later helped another cousin at a deli on Bergen Street in Newark."

Reisner's mother, Janice, was born and raised in Newark and worked as a dietician and eventually became a teacher at the Newark Vocational School, teaching food classes.

"She helped my father at the store and I began working here at a young age during the holidays. I started working for my father full time in 1985," he said.

Reisner took over ownership when his father passed away in 1995 and has remained true to the deli's legacy.

"When my father was running the store, people came here not only for the food, but also because of my father's great personality. We still see customers from all over the country, as well as from Europe."

That's because the deli menu is as packed with delicious sandwiches that are lovingly made. All combination sandwiches come with homemade Russian dressing and coleslaw, or just order a regular sandwich with any topping. All sandwiches are overstuffed with meat, and served on Jewish rye bread.

"Our corned beef and pastrami are cooked and steamed better than New York-style, using an old-fashioned steam table. On a good day, we'll sell a couple of hundred sandwiches."

Customers can order sandwich specials named in honor of family members. Reisner said the bigger seller is The Charlie Special, named in honor of his dad and featuring hot corned beef, pastrami, coleslaw and family-recipe Russian dressing.

Resiner also pays homage to his mother with The Janice Special, a triple-decker combination of hot pastrami, hot corned beef, turkey, coleslaw and Russian dressing.

If customers want to serve a crowd, the catering menu offers great options.

"Place your order five days in advance and we'll give you a nice discount," said Reisner.

Choices include the super-sized Sloppy Joe, a triple-decker with corned beef, pastrami, turkey, coleslaw and Russian dressing cut into eight pieces. Or choose a tea sandwich platter featuring 50 bite-sized pieces -- meats or salads.

"We can basically do almost anything our customers want us to do," Reisner said. "It's what we've been doing from the time this place began, and what we plan to keep doing. It's our legacy and our mission."

Bragman's does not sell pork products.

Bragman's is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. For a few weeks in December, the deli is also open on Monday. Bragman's is closed Christmas Day and New Year's Day, but open on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve.

Bragman's is located at 393 Hawthorne Ave., Newark (973) 375-9868 or visit BragmansDeli.com.

--Robert Wahlers