Arnold Reuben was interviewed about his restaurant by the Federal Writers' Project in 1938. Marian Burros remembered the restaurant's appearance in a January 11, 1986 New York Times column: "Italian marble, gold-leaf ceiling, lots of walnut paneling and dark red leather seats—to a small-town girl it was the quintessential New York restaurant."
The restaurant's menu included sandwiches named for celebrities; Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra both had sandwiches named for them.
Reuben's restaurant is one of several restaurants and chefs that claim to have originated the Reuben sandwich. According to its version, in 1914 an actress filming with Charlie Chaplin requested the combination. There is disagreement whether that recipe was the same as what became to be known as the Reuben sandwich. Another version is that the sandwich was named after Arnold Reuben for his charitable work and donations, though the actual sandwich was created by William Hamerly.
I used to eat there when I went to New York. The staff was rude and you couldn't get a refill on your coffee if you begged for it. It was closed for health violations in 2001. Arnold would have been ashamed.
