Norm Langer doesn’t have any favorites. Serving what many have called the country’s best pastrami sandwiches — and even “the finest hot pastrami sandwich in the world,” according to Nora Ephron — Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant, a nearly 80-year-old institution at the southern corner of MacArthur Park, whips up rapid-fire orders of thick-cut, cured and steamed meats often layered with spreads and slaw. The pastrami’s velveteen fat marbling juxtaposes the chew of its seasoned edges.
Fresh, fragrant rye bread balances it all, soft at the center and just crisp along the crust. But after more than 60 years working at his family’s Jewish deli, the dozens of sandwiches are routine — for Langer, anyway. “When you’re here every day you get bored with it,” he says.
“I mean, you have access to anything and everything. How much pastrami can you eat? How much corned beef can you eat?” While Norm Langer might tire of his deli’s menu, generations of Angelenos haven’t — as evidenced by the widespread outcry in response to his recent ultimatum : If the city of Los Angeles won’t clean up the neighborhood, he’s considering closing. On a September afternoon, at least one customer approached the restaurateur asking him if he’s serious, and begged him to stay.
L.A. cannot lose these sandwiches.
They can come on twice-baked rye bread, on French rolls, on fluffy egg bread or white toast, all plump with pastrami or corned beef or turkey or tuna. The options.
