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Now that Saul Zabar is gone, what will become of the ‘Over 95’ club at NYC’s leading appetizing store?
It was a Thursday morning around 11:00 am. I had parked my car in the garage on 81st Street and started my short walk to Zabar’s. When I turned the corner on 81st street to Broadway, I saw dozens of Zabar’s employees standing on the sidewalk and the road, clapping. Soon, more employees emerged from the store to join those already out there.
Almost everyone had their cameras out, taking pictures of the scene outside the store. Everyone seemed to be waiting, all eyes looking north as though they were expecting a famous movie star to be driving south on Broadway. Horns from cars with disgruntled drivers blasted the area. Traffic was almost at a standstill, and red lights occasionally brought the cars to a complete halt. Finally, what we were all waiting for appeared: A hearse with close family and friends of Saul Zabar slowly passed the store amidst thunderous applause. Saul had passed away two days earlier and today was the funeral and burial which would take place at a cemetery on Long Island.
Slowly, the hearse passed and faded into distant Broadway, cameras were returned to their pockets and the employees returned to work.
I proceeded to the fish counter where I have been working for the last 35 years. I retrieved my knives from the secret hiding place where I store them when they’re not in use and readied them for the day’s work. One by one, my associates slowly appeared until all stations were tended. The fish counter was fully staffed and ready. Slowly, the store became filled with customers as if it were any other day. But it was not like every other day to me. When I looked out at the shoppers and the counters opposite mine, everything was the same yet different. The store’s usual brightness seemed to have faded somewhat. My mind started to wander:
What will happen at 2:00 pm next Thursday, and the Thursdays thereafter when the “Over 95″ Club convenes for its regular Thursday meeting? Will it convene? Now there is only one remaining member and he will be 96 on Jan. 1, 2026.
Only time knows the answer.
About ten months ago, just after I reached the age of 95, Saul appeared behind the fish counter at about 2 on a Thursday. He had been showing up here at the fish counter for about as far back as I could remember. We would greet each other and discuss what had occurred during the prior week. He would tell me about the doctors he had seen, the physical ailments that had been affecting him. He would often ask if I had experienced the same malady or situation.
We talked about films we had seen on television during the past week, which were the good ones, which were the bad. Sometimes we would talk about the fish. I thought the sable was exceptionally good this week, tender, sweet not salty, I might say. He would then slice off a piece and make his comment.
Then, suddenly he would turn and leave the fish counter. No “goodbyes,” no “see you next week.” He was gone. The meeting was officially over. On one particular Thursday, a while back, I told him that I had inaugurated “The Over 95 Club” and that he and I were its only members. I got a half smile from him on that one.
And so the “Over 95 Club” continued with its Thursday meetings until one Thursday, about six months ago, when he didn’t show up. I let it pass. I asked some of my co-workers if they had seen him in the store during the prior few days and they said he had been in the store every day as usual; however, he spent less time than was his custom.
As the days and weeks passed, he would come to the store even less frequently and on an irregular basis, until one day he stopped coming. I didn’t get details other than that he was sick.
The “Over 95 Club” met no more.
Every Thursday that followed I wondered if he would show up until one day, about six weeks ago, I got a call from the store’s general manager — Saul had had a stroke, was in the hospital and was not expected to make it. I sat down, stunned by those words: “Not expected to make it” I couldn’t let it go. I went to bed that night still hearing those words: “Not expected to make it.”
The following morning, at the breakfast table, I started to reminisce about Saul.
When I had started work at Zabar’s, he’d been a hands-on boss. No joking around when he appeared every day in each of our many departments, commenting on what he observed and making suggestions that he felt would increase efficiency. Even though he was firm and direct as “the Boss,” he was still “Saul” to everyone. No one called him Mr. Zabar.
He would visit the Acme and Banner locations in Brooklyn where all the fish was smoked; he was always given first choice of all the smoked fish. The smoked salmon he selected became the famous, one and only “Zabar’s Nova,” the choice of the lot. That hands-on style of his accounted for Zabar’s having the best smoked fish in all of New York and points north, east, south and west of the city.
Saul knew he would not be around forever, but maybe, just maybe Zabar’s would. So, he carefully selected those employees from the younger set who he thought were capable and had the foresight to realize the future that Zabar’s could have in store for them. He taught the staff all they needed to know, so that when the time came they would have the knowledge to follow in his footsteps.
He was a dynamo, and because of all that he did and was, I imagined him still there, still sitting with me on a break, still sharing details of his doctor’s appointments and the movies we both loved. I still saw him at the fish counter. I still saw him behind it or just walking through the store, his store. He wasn’t gone for me — and I wondered if people would still see me when I was gone.
The post Now that Saul Zabar is gone, what will become of the ‘Over 95’ club at NYC’s leading appetizing store? appeared first on The Forward.
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Pezeshkian Says Iran Will Not Bow to Pressure Amid US Nuclear Talks
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit 2025, in Tianjin, China, September 1, 2025. Iran’s Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that his country would not bow its head to pressure from world powers amid nuclear talks with the United States.
“World powers are lining up to force us to bow our heads… but we will not bow our heads despite all the problems that they are creating for us,” Pezeshkian said in a speech carried live by state TV.
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Italy’s RAI Apologizes after Latest Gaffe Targets Israeli Bobsleigh Team
Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics – Bobsleigh – 4-man Heat 1 – Cortina Sliding Centre, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy – February 21, 2026. Adam Edelman of Israel, Menachem Chen of Israel, Uri Zisman of Israel, Omer Katz of Israel in action during Heat 1. Photo: REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
Italy’s state broadcaster RAI was forced to apologize to the Jewish community on Saturday after an off‑air remark advising its producers to “avoid” the Israeli crew was broadcast before coverage of the Four-Man bobsleigh event at the Winter Olympics.
The head of RAI’s sports division had already resigned earlier in the week after his error-ridden commentary at the Milano Cortina 2026 opening ceremony two weeks ago triggered a revolt among its journalists.
On Saturday, viewers heard “Let’s avoid crew number 21, which is the Israeli one” and then “no, because …” before the sound was cut off.
RAI CEO Giampaolo Rossi said the incident represented a “serious” breach of the principles of impartiality, respect and inclusion that should guide the public broadcaster.
He added that RAI had opened an internal inquiry to swiftly determine any responsibility and any potential disciplinary procedures.
In a separate statement RAI’s board of directors condemned the remark as “unacceptable.”
The board apologized to the Jewish community, the athletes involved and all viewers who felt offended.
RAI is the country’s largest media organization and operates national television, radio and digital news services.
The union representing RAI journalists, Usigrai, had said Paolo Petrecca’s opening ceremony commentary had dealt “a serious blow” to the company’s credibility.
His missteps included misidentifying venues and public figures, and making comments about national teams that were widely criticized.
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Iran Prepares Counterproposal as Trump Weighs Strikes
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with members of the media on board Air Force One en route to Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., January 31, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard
Iran’s foreign minister said on Friday he expected to have a draft counterproposal ready within days following nuclear talks with the United States this week, while US President Donald Trump said he was considering limited military strikes.
Two US officials told Reuters that US military planning on Iran had reached an advanced stage, with options including targeting individuals as part of an attack and even pursuing leadership change in Tehran, if ordered by Trump.
Trump on Thursday gave Tehran a deadline of 10 to 15 days to make a deal to resolve their longstanding nuclear dispute or face “really bad things” amid a US military buildup in the Middle East that has fueled fears of a wider war.
THREATS OF ATTACK FOLLOW CRACKDOWN ON MASS PROTESTS
Asked on Friday if he was considering a limited strike to pressure Iran into a deal, Trump told reporters at the White House: “I guess I can say I am considering” it. Asked later about Iran at a White House press conference, Trump added: “They better negotiate a fair deal.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said after indirect discussions in Geneva this week with Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner that the sides had reached an understanding on main “guiding principles,” but that did not mean a deal was imminent.
Araqchi, in an interview on MS NOW, said he had a draft counterproposal that could be ready in the next two or three days for top Iranian officials to review, with more U.S.-Iran talks possible in a week or so.
Military action would complicate efforts to reach a deal, he added.
After the US and Israel bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities and some military sites in June, Trump again began threatening strikes in January as Tehran crushed widespread protests with deadly force.
Referring to the crackdown on Friday, Trump said there was a difference between the people of Iran and the country’s leadership. He asserted that “32,000 people were killed over a relatively short period of time,” figures that could not immediately be verified.
“It’s a very, very, very sad situation,” Trump said, adding that his threats to strike Iran had led the leadership to abandon plans for mass hangings two weeks ago.
“They were going to hang 837 people. And I gave them the word, if you hang one person, even one person, that you’re going to be hit right then and there,” he said.
The US-based group HRANA, which monitors the human rights situation in Iran, has recorded 7,114 verified deaths and says it has another 11,700 under review.
Hours after Trump’s statements on the death toll, Araqchi said that the Iranian government has already published a “comprehensive list” of all 3,117 killed in the unrest.
“If anyone doubts the accuracy of our data, please speak with evidence,” he posted on X.
ARAQCHI SAYS DEAL POSSIBLE IN ‘VERY SHORT PERIOD’
Araqchi gave no specific timing as to when Iranians would get their counterproposal to Witkoff and Kushner, but said he believed a diplomatic deal was within reach and could be achieved “in a very short period of time.”
United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric reiterated concerns about heightened rhetoric and increased military activities in the region.
“We encourage both the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran to continue to engage in diplomacy in order to settle the differences,” Dujarric told a regular news briefing at the U.N.
During the Geneva talks, the United States did not seek zero uranium enrichment and Iran did not offer to suspend enrichment, Araqchi told MS NOW, a US cable television news network.
“What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran’s nuclear program, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever,” he said.
He added that technical and political “confidence-building measures” would be enacted to ensure the program would remain peaceful in exchange for action on sanctions, but he gave no further details.
“The president has been clear that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons or the capacity to build them, and that they cannot enrich uranium,” the White House said when asked about Araqchi’s comments.