DES MOINES, Iowa — A local Des Moines business is witnessing the positive power of social media.
Maccabee's Kosher Deli has seen hundreds of new customers after a TikTok about the restaurant went viral earlier this month.
Sarah Booz, a Des Moines-based TikTok creator, shared her experience at the deli with her 16.6 thousand followers.
"If you need some delicious kosher food in your life, go to Maccabee's Deli," Booz said in the TikTok. "It's on Polk and University, like, right behind the Waveland Cafe. Absolutely recommend it."
As of Saturday evening, Booz' video about Maccabee's has received more than 250,000 views and 34,000 likes.
Booz says she ordered a pastrami on rye with deli mustard and onions. But, it's become so popular with customers that rye and challah bread have run out.
"I'm telling you, it's booming," said Rabbi Yossi Jacobson, who owns the deli. "I have to go up and get more meat to feed the community. We never saw this before."
The increased popularity means some customers have had to wait almost 20 minutes to get their food.
Most people there on Friday afternoon were first-time customers, who had traveled to Des Moines. Some were in town for business, some for pleasure, but all made sure to visit the deli.
"It just got really popular. And when she said they were the best, I had to try it," said Dallas Rogers.
Maccabee's is the only kosher deli in Des Moines, and Jacobson says its the largest deli of its kind in Iowa.
"Maccabee's is the story of Hanukkah. So we hope that this place will be a place that unifies the community, and the community will support it," Jacobson said.
While making sandwiches isn't a normal thing for rabbis, Jacobson said he does it to unify the community through conversation and food.
"My name is Joseph Jacobson-- Yoseph," he said. "In the bible, Joseph fed all the people in Egypt. And what came was--there was a big famine. And his name was also Joseph Jacobson. It was Joseph, the son of Jacob, right? So I'm doing the same thing, just a few 1000 years later."