Serious Eats: 25 Touristy Spots in America That Are Actually Good

Ed Levine’s nationally recognized food blog SeriousEats.com has created a new slideshow documenting “25 Touristy Spots in America That Are Actually Good.” The selections come from all types of restaurant categories – from hot dogs to steak houses – and Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant is honored to be part of Ed’s list:

The pastrami from James Beard Award-winning Langer’s Deli may well be the best pastrami sandwich you ever eat. But that depends, of course, on if you have diehard East Coast Pastrami loyalties. The meat is thick cut, juicy, and has just the right amount of fat. Compared to the legendary Katz’s in NYC, the meat is spicier and a bit more peppery. It’s served on very flavorful rye bread that’s double-baked to ensure crispiness and that special chew.

Click here to view our selection page and make sure you click through all 25 selections – it’ll make you hungry and want to travel, all at once!

Thank you, Ed and SeriousEats.com team! – The Langers

Lisa Lau: Weekend in LA Yum Yum

Food blogger Lisa Lau recently spent a weekend in Los Angeles trying out some interesting eateries, and she included Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant on her itinerary:

Finally, I wanted to write about Langer’s Delicatessen. It’s been in existence for many decades, but I accidentally found it while I was “yelping”. I discovered that their pastrami sandwich made it on a list of Jonathan Gold’s 99 Things to Eat Before You Die”. I didn’t know who Jonathan Gold was, but if he created this list, we would try this sandwich. OMG! This pastrami on rye was awesome. So tender, so flavorful, so delicious.

Click here to read the entire review and learn more about her culinary weekend in Los Angeles – thank you, Lisa!

Le Continental: Langer’s Delicatessen

Le Continental, “Drinking and Dining with the Jab” is a food blog with reviews of restaurant visits from around the country. They recently visited Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant and enjoyed themselves thoroughly:

Here it is! Easily my favorite sandwich in the world. Warm pastrami, trimmed and sliced thick to order. Piled on house-baked rye bread that is sliced for each sandwich from still warm loaves using a meat slicer – crispy crust but super-soft center.

Click here to read the complete review and to browse the site – it’s really interesting with a variety of cuisines visited and reviewed.

LA Weekly: Jonathan Gold’s 99 Essential Restaurants 2011 – Langer’s Deli

Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant is proud to have been named once again to Jonathan Gold’s “99 Essential Restaurants” list for 2011 in the Los Angeles Weekly.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning Gold is a longtime fan of Langer’s hot pastrami, so perfectly captured here:

By this point, it is a matter of conventional wisdom: Langer’s serves the best pastrami sandwich in America. No matter how many doubting New Yorkers you drag here, no matter how many Chowhound throwdowns between Langer’s and Katz’s there may be, the results are always the same: The thick, peppery, smoky slices of hand-sliced meat; the thickly cut seeded corn rye; and the dab of yellow mustard as important to the whole as a sushi master’s wasabi, make victory inevitable.

Click here to read the complete review in Jonathan’s “99 Essential Restaurants 2011” list.

Thank you so much, Jonathan, for all you have done for Langer’s Deli – The Langer Family

Edwin Cho: Langer’s World Famous Pastrami

Blogger Edwin Cho recently posted a terrific review of his visit to Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant, which was prompted by his cousin’s visit to Katz’s of New York. He sampled a variety of our menu, which makes for a great, all-around review, but of course, the focus was on our world famous hot pastrami:

Langer’s is a Jewish style deli that serves pastrami and corned beef the right way. If you think pastrami is that thin-sliced, salty luncheon meat you get in your sandwiches, you’re mistaken.   Notice how the meat actually looks like meat. The meat actually tastes like meat too. Oh, and it’s not overly salty. In fact, it’s not salty. It really just tastes like meat. I know, this may be revolutionary to some of you.

Click here to read the complete review at Edwin’s blog

Thank you for the great review, Edwin – be sure to say hello next time you visit us! – the Langers

Langer’s on KTLA’s Morning News Oct. 26

Norm Langer and Jaime Castaneda of Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant appeared this morning on KTLA Channel 5’s Morning News to receive our award for being one of Los Angeles’ Top Delis – a contest held earlier this summer by KTLA.

For our appearance, Jaime hand-cut steaming-hot pastrami right on set and built #19 sandwiches for co-anchor Frank Buckley and weather anchor Mark Kriski, while co-anchor Michaela Pereira and longtime Langer’s fan and entertainment reporter Sam Rubin looked on from the anchor desk.

We’ll have video shortly, but in the meantime, here are some still shots from the segment.

All of us at Langer’s would like to thank everyone at KTLA for their hospitality and kindness to us during our visit. We would especially like to thank producer Janet Hill for all her efforts on our behalf – we are grateful, Janet.

– The Langer Family

Zagat.com: Langer’s Deli named in Top 8 Downtown LA Restaurants

Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant is pleased to announce we have been selected in a round-up of the 8 Top Downtown Los Angeles Restaurants by Zagat.com.

You can see the entire list of eight by clicking here, or click here to visit the Langer’s page at Zagat.

All of us at Langer’s would like to thank the Zagat team for their kindness in selecting our restaurant as one of Downtown LA’s best. We are humbled and very appreciative.

– The Langers

Daily Trojan: City park provides range of eateries

The University of Southern California is a close neighbor to Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant – just a short trip down Alvarado to Hoover, under the 10 Freeway, and you’re there – so we’ve been pleased to welcome so many Trojans and their friends and family over the years. The Daily Trojan, the university’s student newspaper since 1912, recently did a food profile on the MacArthur Park area, and Langer’s was included in their coverage:

The most famous restaurant would be Langer’s Deli, the Jewish restaurant so beloved that Langer’s Square is dedicated to it. Like a typical Jewish deli, Langer’s offers a huge menu, but locals know exactly what to order: the No. 19, a multi-layered sandwich of tender, hand-carved pastrami, sharp Swiss cheese, crunchy coleslaw and piquant Russian dressing.

The article also includes mentions of Mama’s Hot Tamales Cafe and other neighborhood eateries, so make sure you click here to check out the entire piece. Thank you, Daily Trojan!

Santa Monica Daily Press’ Michael Ryan: It’s a Family Affair at Langer’s

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The Santa Monica Daily Press, the leading local newspaper for the Santa Monica community, publishes a regular column called “Tour de Feast” that includes a unique angle: the author, Michael Ryan, visits local eateries on bicycle. His pieces are fun, witty and well researched, and belie the fact that he arrives at every article subject on two wheels (instead of the more Los Angeles-centric four).

Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant is the subject of his most recent article, and it’s just terrific – we encourage you to visit SMDP.com to read the entire piece – it’s that good:

What makes Langer’s great is the food. What makes Langer’s an institution is how it’s run. The delicatessen was established by Al Langer back in 1947. Three dining room expansions and 4 million pounds of pastrami later Al Langer’s son Norm has made a definitive point to preserve what his father worked all his life to build.

“I’m here six days a week. I’m here to watch the product, I’m here to tailor it, to make sure it goes out the way my dad originally prescribed it. The minute I walk away it’s subject to change,” Norm said.

I cannot imagine Mr. Langer takes many days off. Imagining the restaurant on one of Norm’s vacation days is like “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson when he had guest hosts. It just does not seem appropriate. Being the consummate professional Norm is, you will never hear him utter the “F” word — franchise.

“To open up more restaurants means the product is going to suffer. Anytime something is run by family, it’s a living, breathing part of you and that’s what makes it a success,” Norm said.

In addition, Michael created an accompanying video profile to the story, which you can watch right here.

Click here now to read Michael’s complete article at the Santa Monica Daily Press website.

From all of us at Langer’s Deli, thank you, Michael, for a wonderful article and video.

– The Langers

GastronomyBlog.com: Langer’s Deli

GastronomyBlog.com recently featured a profile of Langer’s Deli, featuring the authoress, her astronomy-focused husband (“the Astronomer”), and two friends – all of whom had never been to Langer’s before (but did have familiarity with the smoked meats of Canada):

I couldn’t resist ordering the #19, the most popular sandwich on the menu. Tucked in between two impressively sturdy slices of rye bread were pastrami, Swiss cheese, coleslaw, and Russian dressing. It was a monstrously portioned creation, and I was beyond thrilled to dig into it.

Whereas my dining companions needed to add a smear of mustard to their sandwiches, mine arrived dressed to the nines and sensational from top to bottom. It was impossible to discern the pastrami’s flavor and texture amidst all the fixings, but I didn’t care because the entire package was so damn satisfying.

I loved how the meat married with the tangy dressing and coleslaw, while the bread valiantly held together all the saucy stuff. The #19 lived up to the hype and then some. Open wide!

Click here to read the complete article and view the delicious photos at GastronomyBlog.com.