On Labor Day, Joel and I took a spontaneous trip to the very famous Canter’s Deli in Los Angeles for lunch.

Three things to know about us…

First, we aren’t very spontaneous.

Second, we hate crowds.

Third, we don’t like long drives.

(I promise we are actually fun people!) 

So the fact that we drove nearly an hour (on Labor Day, no less!) to get a pastrami sandwich was quite out of character for us.

Strangely enough, the 2 Freeway was nearly empty. Uhhh…when does that ever happen and how is it possible that it happened on a holiday?

I asked Joel if he thought we had entered the Twilight Zone.

But back to Canter’s…

Canter’s is a traditional Jewish deli, open 24 hours a day, in the Fairfax District near West Hollywood. They’ve been operating since 1931 and the deli has been passed down through 4 generations of family.

Many TV shows have filmed scenes inside, including Mad Men and Curb Your Enthusiasm. It was our first time there and it was fun to visit.

I’m the one who initiated this trip and, in all honesty, there are two things that lured me there.

The first and foremost has to do with a band. I’m a huge Wallflowers fan. Over the last 20 years I’ve heard them mention often how they got their start at The Kibitz Room, a bar that is attached to (and owned by) Canter’s. At the start of the Wallflower’s career they were regulars playing at The Kibitz Room, so I wanted to see it in person. (There’s still live music there most nights).

The second thing that lured me in was Canter’s Instagram page.

Well done to their marketing team because once I started see photo after photo of those gorgeous, fat, high-stacked pastrami and corned beef sandwiches, I was ALL IN! I couldn’t get those sandwiches out of my mind!

So…the food.

The had the “Brooklyn Avenue” sandwich which is pastrami and coleslaw on rye bread. It came with sides of potato salad and pickles. It was tasty and had a generous portion of meat. The coleslaw was delicious. I could eat a vat of it.

Joel enjoyed his beef tongue sandwich and we shared a homemade vanilla malt that was fantastic.
Next time I want to try the Reuben sandwich with corned beef and sauerkraut.

Canter’s serves breakfast lunch and dinner, along with many traditional Jewish dishes like matzo ball soup and knish; and they have a large dessert counter.

Inside Canter’s, the interior is old and worn down. It could definitely use freshening up but the food made up for it.

After lunch we walked through The Kibitz Room next door. It was small and felt like a bit of a dive, but I’m sure it’d be a fun place for a drink if there was a band you wanted to see.

So glad we went!