Hollywood Sign & Langer's Deli

I can’t think of a more prevalent piece of Angeleno iconography than the Hollywood sign. So, five of us set-off to get as close to the Hefner owned signage as possible. The drive up was not without its own set of challenges. As we wound our way along Gower Street onto Beachwood Drive, my brakes began making a chilling metal on metal scraping sound. Not one to be much of a risk taker when it comes to failing brakes on a winding road, we squished into a friend’s Prius, who was close behind, and abandoned my vehicle to deal with later.



Street parking along Beachwood was a breeze, no need to dusty up the Prius squeezing into a tiny spot outside the Sunset Ranch. Which, by the way, is a tremendously amusing experience riding horses while donning bicycle helmets and feeling like a bit of an idiot. But that’s for another day. The hike starts at the Hollyridge Trail sign and would take us about 40 minutes to reach the top. We did our fair share of horse poop dodging, but it quickly diminished as we took a sharp left up the hill towards the sign. The hike was very pleasant, no steep moments, no off-roading through itchy plants; a great hike for any and everyone.



And let’s talk about the views! As you get to the top of the hill, behind the fence mind you, the view is rather epic. Climb up the dirt path, so that your vantage point is above the fence, and what you get is all of Los Angeles proper from behind the huge letters of the Hollywood sign. Pretty spectacular, I can’t image what it must be like at night. Unfortunately the fences, security cameras, threats of trespassing amounting in jail time and the rumor of random helicopter flybys deterred us from getting up close and personal with the sign. So, we posed for the obligatory photo and headed onto our next adventure.



Next up, the best pastrami sandwich in LA, better yet I would say it’s the world’s best. We hopped into the death trap, cranked up the music to drown out the scraping brake noise and headed to Alvarado Street. The neighborhood is a little shady, but bustling and made for quite the visually stimulating walk toward the deli.



Founded in 1947, Langer’s Deli is the definition of what a deli should be. Its patrons are from all walks of life, a true cross-section of Angelenos graced the many brown leather booths. There was no question what to order: Pastrami. The menu is huge, so while deciding what pastrami concoction to get, we put in an order of fries to tide us over. (And then another!)

Decisions were made, #10, #65 and three of the famous #19’s – pastrami, Swiss, coleslaw, Russian dressing on rye. These are not cheap sandwiches, like any deli, the price is a tad steep, but I would gladly slap down 15 bucks time and time again for these sandwiches. We all took our first bites, and a moment of OMG, shut the front door, glossed over us – this was unbelievable. Every pastrami sandwich before this was a joke. The secret to Langer’s beloved rye bread is in double-baking; to give it the crispy crust it’s famous for. The pastrami is smoked, steamed, hand-cut and piled high on the outrageous rye. Slather it with Gulden’s mustard, and no other sandwich comes close.





The Days Damage: 5 Pastrami Sandwiches $75 + 2 fries $7 + drinks + tax & tip = $109
Item 6 & 19: Check