Murray’s Sturgeon Shop

Good place for lox, will be coming back. A piece of old NY which are falling by the wayside more and more

Five stars for the regular Nova lox. I can absolutely attest that this is the best place to come elevate your Sunday brunch menu. The Nova lox are smoked and cut to perfection (ask for a sample, but only if you are going to buy).
The staff know their product is amazing, and so do the patrons. A little slice of old New York lives!
Personally the salted Nova was too salty, and the Gravalax were delicious as well but not exceptional like the Nova.

Wow must try if on the UWS the lox was amazing. They don’t make delis like this anymore.

Eh. Just eh. The Sturgeon did not look good so I didn’t t buy it. I had some of the Whitefish, while adequate it was hardly transcendent and it was very expensive. Service is spotty. There is something really disconcerting about cans of Pringle’s Potato Chips on the counter of a place like this. Doesn’t fit. I think the Cucumber Salad was sitting there for a while. Ordering is very slow and very tedious. Yentas with large lists ordering one thing at a time, droning on and on. I don’t get it. I’ll go to Zabar’s or Russ and Daughters.
And be prepared to spend $$$$$

Let me start by saying I’m vegetarian. Or, I was until I walked in to Murray’s… The pastrami is to die for. The pickles too. I got both half sour and regular. And come slow and latkes, and vegetarian paté. And crumbcake and rugelah.
I can’t wait to return.

What can one say about Murray’s? It lacks the ambience of Russ & Daughters. It lacks the fame of Barney Greengrass. It clearly lacks Zabar’s breadth of offerings. But those in the know know the truth: Murray’s has the best smoked fish in the city. Period.
Over a three year period, I have done head to head cage matches between these four venerable establishments. Nova, sable and sturgeon. All four places have excellent nova. You can’t go wrong with any of them (well, Zabar’s has slipped a little bit… they don’t cut as consistently thin as they used to). Where Murray’s shines is the sable, and their incomparable sturgeon. It’s just better. It’s moist, succulent, and basically perfect; they cut it just right, and I don’t care who says R&D’s or BG’s is better: we blind tasted, and Murray’s won. There is clearly an UWS code of silence about this place. When you talk about smoked fish in New York City, no one mentions Murray’s. But try going in there to buy before one of the Jewish holidays, and you will see that this place is no fluke (ha ha). People wait hours to get this fish (I know I did and I was *not* alone).
If you «like» smoked fish, you have several choices in New York City, all of which were perfectly good. If you «need» smoked fish; know that it can only come hand — sliced; or for whatever other reason want the absolute best… you only have one choice. I highly recommend that you make it. :)

Came here on the recommendation of a good friend. Simply outstanding old school place. Everything looks and tastes homemade.
Best. Smoked salmon. Ever.

The best lox uptown. Deliciously mild flavor. Luscious texture without being too fatty. Sliced perfectly thin. The salads didn’t look fresh and the bagels were small and stale. Just come for the fish, and you won’t be disappointed.

Charming old school deli. Delicious smoked salmon, bagel and cole slaw. Will definitely be back and try more! And the service is nice too.

Old school charm and superb smoked fish. Clearly they are not Russ and Daughters — the younger generation of ownership has not gotten involved to their detriment. The smoked fish swillers of the UWS have moved on to Fairway and stayed true to Zabars, but I would still strongly recommend the Nova, Scotch Salmon and Baked Salmon — really and truly high quality. The rest of the output is questionable in appearance as many of the salads (cucumber, chopped liver, whitefish, etc.) looks like they suffer from lack of turnover.
I sincerely hope this store hangs on and stays around for another 100 or so years, but unless they see investment both financially and emotionally from new blood, the prognosis is dim.
Eat Smoked Fish Y’all…

If you want a legit trip to the past PLEASE stop by Murrays!
It’s a teeny tiny store front and even though their main product is the smoked fish I just want to call attention to their delicious soup. Seriously — if you live on the UWS and need a quart of chicken soup or split pea soup on a cold day you NEED to hit up Murrays!
They have a bagel/​smoked fish special and their bagel chips are super tasty. Definitely a must frequent if you live nearby.

Best bagel place you never heard of, unless your local… sorry to you guys for the good review. This place should be more well known outside the area. Old school deli that does things the old school way.

Walking into this store is like taking a time machine back to 1965. The décor and the merchandising seem unchanged since I first visited the store in the late 1980’s. At some point, about 10 – 15 years ago, they added kosher deli meats, but otherwise the store is unchanged.
The distinguishing feature is the fish cutting. You always get meticulously sliced fish — with the sable trimmed to remove the dark area near the spine and the salmon in paperback sized slices. Many stores ruin good product with bad knifesmanship. At Murray’s the countermen have major skills.
The salads are also good, particularly the smoky whitefish salad and savory spinach and egg. Old fashioned pickled lox catches your eye.
For me, the sturgeon and sable have become special occasion items, but the salmon is reasonably priced. The Scottish, sampled most recently, had a fine smoky flavor and was not greasy. If you can afford the sturgeon, well the place is called Murray’s Sturgeon Shop for a reason.
I am hoping that this place will survive until the smoked fish revival taking place downtown and in Brooklyn makes to the UWS.
West Siders –Support Your Local Smoked Fish Shop.

I cringed at the $ 16.75 price tag for a quarter-​pound of sturgeon, but one bite turned that frown upside down. Luscious, rich, delicately smokey, flavorful but by no means overwhelmingly fishy. Also, if you buy $ 25 worth of smoked seafood, I believe they throw in some bagels and cream cheese. Finally, the guy at the counter was really nice. Great place.

I couldn’t possibly recall how many different places I’ve had smoked salmon and pickled herring in cream sauce but hands down this place is the best! If Rolls Royce opened a smoked and pickled fish store this would be it… worth every penny. The temperature of the fish is perfect. I typically order some to eat right at the counter in addition to take home (standing only as it’s a take-​out only place) but that’s because what little discipline I have vanishes the moment I walk in there. The the extremely professional/​knowledgable staff are only too happy to accommodate. I first came here in ’92 and it still is fantastic.

Most would not exclude Nova /​Lox from the ‘smoked salmon’ category, yet somehow they miraculously lifted the ‘no smoked fish’ stipulation on their $ 12 for $ 24* Amazon Local** voucher after I had been perusing the display for a few minutes. Feeling foolish that I overlooked this on the voucher when I spotted the notice on the glass, it was certainly a concession when I couldn’t get any of their sturgeon, but that said, the nova was not substandard, albeit certainly sliced for use on bagels/​bialys (and packed greasily in a plastic bag accordingly).
I must say that given they have been around for decades and people usually love this kinda grub, it seems that it isn’t exactly a hit with Unilocalers, even after these group deals (I’ll be the 35^th review).
Only one small bone and one small scale in the pound
​No smoked fish or caviar went w 11.30 of $ 10/​lb nova estimation a bit off tjere big plastic nag… cream. sauce nice kick pickled herring… herring salad… whitefish salad all tasty. nice guys narrow space nowhere to consumem. guy in front of me still there and clearly already 10 minute​s into bothering a dude
*As you can see, I almost nailed the total, and just owed $ 0.14 (fortunately they accept cards though I just gave them a rare coin from the pocket).
**The same as they offered in May 2012

It is worth going to this place just to smell the air. If you really care about your smoked salmon, sturgeon, white fish, halvah or many other things that make German Jew like myself happy, this is the place. I was completely unprepared for this place. They have scallion cream cheese that actually smells like fresh scallions. I live in MA so thank goodness they offer shipping. Everything I got here was like the best I ever had. The smoked salmon actually beat the salmon I had at my aunt’s apartment in Philly when I was 14 and that is something I never thought I would ever say.

Seriously, if you’re on the UWS and looking for a sturgeon, where else would you go?

A New York City Institution and an Upper West Side Tradition! If you don’t know what these guys do, then don’t worry about it, more for me!

While Murray’s is obviously an UWS staple with smoked fish and pickles to boot, I feel like it is an example of a store that is overwhelmed after being featured on Groupon. That’s how it felt today, anyway.
Now, the Groupon does expire in two days, so there is obviously a rush from regulars and newbies alike. The prices are calculated by hand, so the system for ordering — and, when you throw Groupon into the mix, trying to hit a target of $ 25 — makes things slow and, at almost closing time, nerve-​wracking. Ordering was a bit rushed.
In the end, my gefilte fish was good ($ 2.99/each), and my latke had some nice texture ($ 1/​each). I can’t wait for my tongue sandwich ($ 30/​lb) tomorrow! And maybe, if the tongue and/​or white fish salad I bought ($ 4.50/lb) blow me out of the water, I’ll be back to try the smoked fish (not applicable with the Groupon deal) and update this review.