THE UPPER WEST SIDE’S ROVING KNIFE-SHARPENER STILL MAKES HIS ROUNDS

By Laura Weiss

Tired of sawing through onions and watching your garlic hop around the counter? All it takes is $15 for the itinerant knife grinder, Mike Palotta, to sharpen three of your very dullest chef’s knives.

Mike’s been helping Upper West Side home cooks keep their blades in proper running order, operating out his 40-year-old boxy green trunk, for more than 60 years. He’s one of a small band of cutlery grinders who troll the neighborhood’s streets.

When you hear the telltale jingle of Mike’s bells, grab your knives and scissors, wrap them in newspaper and try to catch him before he turns the corner. I sprinted down the stairs — yes, I know, very stupid to run and carry a bunch of knives — and spied Mike’s ancient truck, motor idling, parked next to the curb. The words “Full Kosher Service Available” are written on the back of the truck.

It’s the same boxy green van he’s been driving for four decades. The same one that would come around to the Long Island town where I grew up. These days, Mike travels with his old dog Prince and his grandson Frank. It’s the best knife sharpening deal in town. You get a bit of history, and razor sharp cutlery.

Schedule?  When he feels like it. Mike appears on city streets “on random Sundays,” said Frank. The roving grinder trolls Long Island villages and towns in the summer. “There’s not much business in the city then,” he sighed, scratching Prince behind the ears.

Photo by Laura Weiss.

Laura Weiss is a food writer and journalist. She’s the author of Ice Cream: A Global History (Reaktion Books). You can also find Laura at @foodandthings.com or at https://www.foodandthings.com.