Langer's Deli - Free #19 Day (6-15 and 6-16, 2012)

The #19

Langer's Delicatessen-Restaurant, on the corner of 7th and Alvarado in Westlake, has been a Los Angeles staple since 1947.  So the food must be good, right? Their website claims that it's "The World's Best Pastrami." I was of course skeptical, having dined on the pastrami sandwich several times at Canter's Deli across town and already thought that was the best I had ever tasted, a wondrous blend of salty, tangy and meaty with a great texture to boot.  (Canter's also has 16 years more experience than Langer's, as they have been open since 1931.)  The deli war rages on.

The free food line

The main reason we traveled to Langer's on this day (Saturday, June 16, 2012) was they had gone mad and decided to give away free food to celebrate their 65th anniversary.  (They also did the promotion the previous day.)  Now, LA is a town where people will stand in line for 2 hours to get ramen from a hole in the wall, so surely we must be crazy to attempt to get the World's Best Pastrami for no charge.  Well we arrived around 11:15 AM to the image to the right. The line looped around on itself 6 times under the tent before getting to the short line in front of Langer's. My companion suggested just buying sandwiches and consuming them at nearby MacArthur Park, and I was about to side with him when the line moved a few steps forward. If it kept advancing at the same rate, we wouldn't have to wait too long. And thankfully it did continue.

Almost inside!

Waiting in line was not so bad either, this massive promotion was thought out very well.  There was a large tent to keep people shaded, numerous deluxe portable toilets (with air conditioners built in!) onsite, well defined airport-style tensa-barrier line markers, and a number of LAPD's finest standing watch. The fine folks from ESPN radio were broadcasting live as well. After about 45 minutes, we arrived in the line just outside the storefront, staring in at patrons hungrily tucking in to large sandwiches. I wasn't hungry earlier, but now it was just past my normal lunchtime and I was ready to eat.  Less than 10 minutes later, we were seated inside.

Service was quick and our orders were taken promptly by a friendly, motherly waitress.  Myself and my friend ordered the #19, the purported free sandwich, while my friend's fiancee ordered a french dip as she was offended by several of the toppings.  And a round of iced teas too.  The beverages came immediately, and the sandwiches also arrived quickly as the kitchen surprisingly was not fouled up by the french dip order.

My #19 is the first picture in this article for reference.  It is a pastrami sandwich topped with cole slaw, swiss cheese, and russian dressing between two slices of rye bread.  And it looked amazing.  We dug in.  The meat was delicious, smoky and tender, and seasoned well.  Not too fatty either, if you're into that kind of pastrami.  The flavors and textures of the meat and the creamy dressing complemented each other well.  The cole slaw felt more like a topping than a part of the sandwich, but had good crunch and flavor.  A side of pickles came with each sandwich, and they were hit or miss with some very good and others having that old pickled shoe taste.

And the best part of the sandwich? The bread. The fresh rye was exceptional, with authentic flavor, soft doughy center texture, and delightfully crusty outside.  It contained the sloppy sandwich contents without decomposing during the meal, a major accomplishment considering every burger in town is wrapped in paper as an extra precaution against disintegration.  Their house-baked bread is this deli's best attribute.

The French Dip

As for the french dip, it was mighty tasty, with a very good french roll (but not as good as the rye).  This 'wich without the extra ingredients made a good measuring stick for the pastrami against my prior favorite of Canter's. They are both very good overall. I still have to hand the better pastrami in LA title to Canter's due to its fattiness. (On a side note, the LA Times came to the same conclusion in 1989.) This may sound a little disgusting to the healthy types, but it's that fatty taste that makes it richer and more savory in the mouth.

I did enjoy my trip to this restaurant.  It has an old-school feel, like it hasn't been updated much since it opened, yet the interior was clean and homey.  The waitstaff was courteous and quick.  We left full and happy.  The only major drawback to this place is its price.  Today, we only paid for the iced teas (and left a generous tip) as they were nice enough to include the french dip in the promotion.  On a normal day, however, a single #19 sandwich will run you in excess of $15.  I know the quality is excellent and the portion is large, but it's hard to justify consuming a $15 sandwich on a frequent basis.  (That probably wouldn't be great for my health anyway.)  To be fair, Canter's is also expensive.  They must know they have something special on their hands.

My LA pastrami war champion: Canter's.

But the Langer's bread, I'll go back for that.