Hours
The #19 at Langer's: hot pastrami, Swiss cheese, cole slaw and Russian dressing on double-baked rye, cut in half, with a pickleDouble-baked ryeHand-sliced pastramiSwiss cheeseCole slawRussian dressing

Since 1947 at 7th & Alvarado, Los Angeles

World-famoushot pastrami.

“The finest hot pastrami sandwich in the world.”

Nora Ephron, The New Yorker
Order for pickupSee the menu

Mon–Sat8 AM – 4 PM · validated parking

19Pastrami, Swiss cheese & cole slawRussian style dressing, hot double-baked rye28.00

Anatomy of aNo.19

  1. 01
    Double-baked rye

    In 1936 Al's rye went stale on the truck to Palm Springs, so he threw every loaf back in the oven. The warm, super-crispy crust stuck: every loaf at Langer's is still re-baked before it's sliced.

  2. 02
    Hand-sliced pastrami

    Cured at RC Provisions in Burbank to Al Langer's own recipe, then steamed here for two and a half to five hours. It comes out so fork-tender a machine can't cut it, so it's sliced by hand into rosy kerchiefs.

    35–38%of the weight it gives up in the steam. “That's a loss most other restaurants wouldn't tolerate.”, L.A. Times

  3. 03
    One slice of Swiss

    Genuine Swiss cheese, laid over the hot meat so it just starts to soften.

  4. 04
    Cole slaw

    “A cushion of coleslaw, Swiss cheese and Russian dressing hovers over top like an upper bunk.”, Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times

  5. 05
    Russian dressing

    Russian style dressing, the house finish. Al put the five together in the 1950s, called it number 19, and it has been the most ordered thing on the menu ever since.

Say a number48

Regulars at Langer’s don’t ask for “pastrami, Swiss, slaw and Russian on rye.” They say nineteen. Every numbered dish on the menu is in here. Try one.

Most asked for
Now serving
type a number

19Hot pastrami

Pastrami, Swiss cheese & cole slaw

On hot double-baked rye with Russian style dressing. The one Nora Ephron called the finest in the world.

28.00

Order a #19Find it on the menu

What the critics wrote

The hot pastrami sandwich served at Langer's Delicatessen in downtown Los Angeles is the finest hot pastrami sandwich in the world.

Nora EphronThe New Yorker

On the wall behind the register

  • James Beard America's ClassicsTwo-time winner
  • The Michelin GuideRecognized since 2019 · 2025 plaque
  • L.A. Times Gold Award2026 · “the nation's best pastrami”
  • Goldbelly Icon 250Honored on the list, 2026

Seventy-nine years
on one corner.

Al Langer bought a twelve-seat deli at 7th & Alvarado in 1947. His son Norm started working for him in 1963 and has been there virtually every day since, now with his wife Jeannette.

The Langer’s story
  • 0→0seats, 1947 to 1968, and still today
  • 0Norm’s first day behind the counter
  • 80years at 7th & Alvarado
19051905Ellis Island19241924A busboy, age 1119361936The re-baked rye1947Twelve seats at 7th & Alvarado1955The #191970sHarder times1994Rescued by a subway2008Langer's SquareTodayNorm and Jeannette

Booth, curb, door
or overnight.

Eat it at the counter where it was sliced, pick it up on the way to work, or have it shipped across the country.

  • Pull up a booth

    Mon–Sat8 AM – 4 PM

    135 seats, tufted brown booths and a counter of stools signed Al Langer. Monday to Saturday, 8 to 4.

    Plan a visit

  • Curbside pickup

    Counter or curbside · pay at pickup

    Order right here, pick a time, and tell us your car's make, model and colour: we'll bring it out. Or pick it up at the register.

    Order for pickupRitual app

  • Delivered in LA

    Los Angeles delivery

    Hot from the pass to your door through DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats.

    DoorDashGrubhubUber Eats

  • Shipped nationwide

    Overnight, anywhere in the US

    Pastrami, rye and all the fixings, packed and overnighted anywhere in the US by Goldbelly.

    Order on Goldbelly
A Langer's boxed lunch: half a pastrami sandwich on rye, cole slaw, potato salad, mustard, Russian dressing, a brownie and a pickle

Lunch for
the office.
Or the film set.

Langer’s has catered Hollywood productions since the 1950s and still feeds sets across the Southland every week. Ten people or more, a little notice, one phone call.

  • Gourmet Party PackageBuild-your-own
  • Deluxe Sandwich PlatterReady to serve
  • Individually Packaged SandwichesOne box each
Plan a catering order

7th & Alvarado.
Langer’s Square.

The City of Los Angeles named the intersection after us in 2008, on what would have been Al Langer’s 95th birthday. Look for the sign: World Famous Hot Pastrami.

Map of 7th and Alvarado: Langer's on the corner across from MacArthur Park, the parking lot at 7th and Westlake and the Westlake/MacArthur Park Metro stationLanger's704 S. AlvaradoPOur parking lot7th & WestlakeMMetro B / DWestlake / MacArthur ParkMacArthur Park
Directions in Google Maps

Monday – Saturday8 AM – 4 PM

  • Monday8 AM – 4 PM
  • Tuesday8 AM – 4 PM
  • Wednesday8 AM – 4 PM
  • Thursday8 AM – 4 PM
  • Friday8 AM – 4 PM
  • Saturday8 AM – 4 PM
  • SundayClosed

Soup on MondayVegetable

  • 704 South Alvarado St.Los Angeles, CA 90057 · at 7th, across from MacArthur Park
  • Validated parking, 90 minutesOur own monitored lot at the northeast corner of 7th & Westlake, one block east. Take the ticket from the attendant; the cashier stamps it when you leave.
  • Metro B & D linesWestlake/MacArthur Park station, a block away: the subway that brought downtown to lunch in 1994.
  • (213) 483-8050Fax (213) 483-7171 for orders