Lev & Ida’s, New-School Jewish Sandwich Counter Opens with a Bang at the Cannonball Factory

Lev & Ida’s Sandwich Counter tried to have a soft opening last week, on the ground floor of Hudson’s old Cannonball Factory, the hulking and historic brick building once home to Etsy’s regional outpost. But the shop, named for owner Frederick Pikovsky’s grandparents, was quickly overwhelmed with sandwich seekers impressed by elevated traditional flavors, including pastrami that would make Katz’s proud.

When crafting the menu, Pikovski nodded to his love for New York City Jewish, Italian, and Greek delis, his grandmother's Brooklyn kitchen, and the multicultural, idiosyncratic food culture of Hudson. The shop drew lines immediately. On its second day in business the counter sold out within two hours.

The pastrami. Photo provided by Lev & Ida's.

Pikovsky says the early success has been validating, as people have been seeking out the shop primarily through word of mouth. Lev & Ida’s is a bit off the beaten path, not far from the intersection of Fourth and Warren but accessed through the Cannonball Factory’s back door off Prison Alley.

A Circuitous Path

Pikovsky was born in Bensonhurst in 1983, the son of Ukrainian Jewish immigrants who fled the Soviet Union. Food was central in the family, though not professionally. “We couldn’t really afford to go out very much,” he recalls. “So it was a lot of home cooking. Especially from my grandmother, Ida.”

That foundation eventually led him to culinary school in Los Angeles, and an early cafe venture. But his career swerved into other lanes: travel publishing and the creation of the co-working space brand Barnfox, a Hudson-based remote-work hub he launched in 2020, occupying the main levels above the growing food hall. The project began unexpectedly while negotiating his lease in the Cannonball Factory. All of a sudden he had access to the whole building and in the rocky foundation of the historic industrial building he envisioned a Chelsea Market–style ground floor of small businesses and food vendors.

Frederick Pikovsky and photos of the shop's family legacy. Photo provided by Lev & Ida's.

After the success of the first stall, Chinese/Malaysian eatery Yummy Kitchen, Pikovsky thought the next thing Hudson needed was something he could do himself. “I didn’t think I would get back into food,” he admits. “But it just felt like the natural thing to do. The perfect way to honor my history and fill a need.”

Quick and Ready

Naming the counter after Lev and Ida was more than sentimentality. For Pikovsky, their story is baked into the menu, which honors his Eastern European roots, New York deli culture, and Hudson’s discerning palate.

The shop also fills a practical void. Hudson’s longtime go-to grab-and-go sandwich spot in the center of town, Cascades, closed in 2019 after decades in business. “It left a hole,” Pikovsky says. “There wasn’t that default place where you knew you could just get a good sandwich quickly.”

Photo provided by Lev & Ida's.

Lev & Ida’s aims to be that reliable spot, but with sharper focus. The pastrami, brined and steamed in-house, sets the tone. “It’s a 24-hour process with a full packer brisket,” Pikovsky explains. “We slow cook, steam, and season with both spice and sweetness. When it comes out right, it’s like butter.”

Pikovsky speaks the truth. The shop’s pastrami has been dialed in from day one, sliced thick and stacked on sourdough rye with whole-grain mustard and Hawthorne Foods sauerkraut. The bite is luscious and peppery; steam keeps the meat supple and the kraut’s acid reins in the richness ($21).

The pastrami is the showstopper but every sandwich on the opening week menu is well tuned to a clear idea, built on sturdy bread sourced from Leavened across the river. The lineup features a balance of meat-forward options and bright, produce-driven options with attention-grabbing names.

Photo provided by Lev & Ida's.

The Feel Good gives turkey some tang with dill havarti, tahini–scallion spread, gherkin pickles, arugula, and mustard microgreens on sourdough ($15), and the Beautiful leans into Italian-American culture with Prosciutto, burrata, basil, house balsamic glaze and extra-virgin olive oil on focaccia ($15).

Named after the city’s beloved anonymous Instagram meme account, The Hudson Wail sandwich honors the poster’s acerbic bite: Spicy tuna salad with pickled daikon radish, Napa cabbage, cucumbers, crispy fried shallots, sriracha and sesame seeds on a milk bun ($14).
Vegetarians have two great options at the moment. The Chili Crisp Schvitz features tahini–scallion spread, tofu, fresh crunchy cabbage, and a generous spoon of jazzed‑up Lao Gan Ma chili crisp on a baguette ($13). The Whatcha Got There? spreads labneh and za’atar on heirloom tomatoes, along with mint, and extra virgin olive oil on focaccia ($13).

Photo provided by Lev & Ida's.

Pikovski says the menu will evolve and grow as the shop gets settled in, with plans to rotate in new sandwiches and the addition of soups and salads.

The Cannonball Factory as Setting

The Cannonball Factory has always been slightly hidden, which Pikovsky sees as a benefit. “It becomes word of mouth—like, oh, there’s this thing around the corner that’s really cool,” he says.

But the secret is out. With Barnfox occupying the upstairs and Yummy Kitchen next to the sandwich shop, all of a sudden the old building is buzzing again. Pikovsky says Lev & Ida’s is designed to complement the other businesses, not compete.

For Pikovsky, Lev & Ida’s also represents a kind of public rapprochement. When Barnfox expanded to Kingston during the pandemic, it faced backlash from residents wary of gentrification. “We became a lightning rod,” he recalls. “People said things that weren’t true. It was tough.”

Photo by Kristin Larson.

Hudson has been calmer, but the sandwich shop feels like an even more direct way to connect with the community. “Barnfox can feel exclusive to people who haven't been here because it has a membership model,” Pikovsky acknowledges. “But you open up a sandwich place that serves good food, and all of a sudden you feel more like a man of the people!”

Running Barnfox and Lev & Ida’s has meant 14-hour days for Pikovsky. “I haven’t come home before nine in three months,” he says. The pace is grueling, but gratifying. “Better to sell out in two hours than not at all. It feels good that the work was worth it and this is something people want.”