After an auspicious beginning to our cross-country Deli Run with two ‘happy meals’ in New York, my grandson Ben and I hit Los Angeles running—but only for a short distance. Before we had even gotten out of airport traffic and to the car rental center, he announced there was no reason ever to return to L.A.
I’m not partial to Los Angeles myself, but I think our two deli meals, plus the Petersen Automotive Museum and a great breakfast at Fabulous Grill leave it open for me, but so far he’s unrelenting.
Our first deli tasting was at Canter’s, which has been around since 1931; take the 24-hour sign with a grain of kosher salt—it only applies to Friday and Saturday. It’s in the Fairfax district, which used to be a mainly-Jewish neighborhood but now abounds with other cultures and quite a lot of trendy ‘streetwear’ shops. It’s also a near neighbor of the famed Farmers’ Market.
Unlike Moe’s or Katz’s, our New York choices, Canter’s is mainly a sit-down waiter-service operation, but there’s plenty on display in the counters up front.
We hadn’t really eaten since breakfast, so we were ready to add some sides to our sandwiches, including fries, the inevitable pickles and a potato knish, seen half-gone below. Soup-and-half-sandwich combos always appeal to me, and the broth with meat kreplach (dumplings) hit the spot.
Canter’s Reuben was on toast, the pastrami not.
We even had room left to share a slice of the best dessert of the trip—a slice of warm cherry pie with ice cream. Rich filling, real fruit and not too much sugar.
The report…
- Ben: Canters had much more tasteless corned beef, but I think that paired well with the reuben 8/10, fabulous cherry pie 8.5/10, good fries 6/10
- PH: The soup really hit the spot, and the knish wasn’t bad for its type (I prefer the thicker-skinned Coney Island style). The pastrami was more peppery than smoky. Bread better than Katz, but that’s faint praise. But the pie. Oh, my… the pie.
We almost missed our other goal, Langer’s, near McArthur Park, because I hadn’t noticed early closing hours. Fortunately we were able to reverse direction and make it in time, because it was one of the highlights of the whole trip—even if some customers appear to have waited a long time for service.
Actually, the service was quite fast and efficient, and so was Ben; half the Reuben gone before I remembered to take its picture!
The pastrami, thick cut and trimmed nicely, overflowed the sandwich, but I didn’t mind at all. Langer’s pastrami is similar to Katz’s, and it has a big plus: the bread. Langer’s bread comes from a local bakery; they then re-bake it for half an hour to firm the crust. Outstanding rye flavor and makes the sandwich that much more memorable.
And, as at most famous delis, there’s plenty of merch and nostalgia.
The report…
- Ben: Langer’s very good, incredibly quick service, reuben was a bit hard to find because it wasn’t labeled as a Reuben but rather by the ingredients. The corned beef was very rich, and the pastrami was incredibly tender. The bread was very soft, with a crisp crust. 8.5/10.
- PH: Langer’s takes the cake, if that’s the right expression. Meat made in heaven—rich, deep smoky flavor—matched with bread worthy of it. Even the pickles and cole slaw were top-notch. Worth a trip to L.A. all by itself, maybe
Even though it was mid-afternoon, that did us food-wise for the day. The next morning, a detour to Fabulous Grill for fabulous hash-browns and more, and then off for our flight to Chicago. See you next week for the final stages of the Deli Run!
