| Canter's Deli | |
|---|---|
Canter's Deli at night |
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| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 1924 |
| Food type | Jewish delicatessen |
| Street address | 419 North Fairfax Avenue |
| City | Los Angeles |
| State | California |
| Postal code/ZIP | 90036 |
| Country | United States |
| Other locations | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Website | Official website |
Canter's Deli is a famous Jewish style delicatessen in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, California, near the border of West Hollywood.
The Canter family originally opened up a delicatessen in Jersey City in 1924. They came west along with many Jews from the northeastern United States in the early 1940s, and opened a delicatessen in the Boyle Heights neighborhood, which at that time had a substantial Jewish population. After World War II, the Jewish population of Boyle Heights left en masse for the Fairfax District, West Hollywood, and other West Side neighborhoods (as well as the San Fernando Valley) and Canter's followed the influx of Jewish businesses west, converting a movie theater which had previously shown Yiddish-language films to a delicatessen much larger than its previous spaces.
Canter's quickly became a hangout for show business personalities, given its location and its late hours. It has remained such ever since. In the 1960s, Canter's became a late night hang out for hippies, rock musicians, and other countercultural types, partially for the same reasons. Also, many rock musicians had grown up in Fairfax and West Hollywood, and the Sunset Strip was only half a mile away. Canter's has remained a favorite of rock musicians to the present day, and is still open 24 hours as always. Canter's is open every day of the year except for the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Canter's is widely celebrated for its traditional deli favorites, such as pastrami, corned beef, matzoh ball soup, challah, lox and bagels, and brisket. But it also has a massive menu of other breakfast, lunch, and dinner options and has been awarded for its food many times over the years. For example, Los Angeles Magazine named Canter's waffles the Best Waffle in Los Angeles.[1] And Esquire magazine called their Monte Cristo sandwich one of the best sandwiches in America.[2]
The bar in Canter's, called the Kibitz Room, has its own history and has been a favorite of music personalities. Even though the restaurant is open 24 hours, the Kibitz Room closes at 2 am. They have live music every night, and were the launch pad for plenty of bands, most notably the Wallflowers, Fiona Apple, and Rick Rubin's new project, the Vacation. The Big jam has had plenty of "A List" musicians sit in, including Phil Everly, Jackson Browne, Melissa Etheridge, and Marc Canter's high school friend Slash.[3] Marc Canter, now the restaurant's owner, recently published a book about the early days of Guns N' Roses.[4]
The restaurant has been featured in several movies and television shows, including HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm in the episode "The Blind Date". In 2007, Adam Stein, finalist on the FOX TV show "On the Lot," filmed Dough: The Musical at Canter's. Canter's is also mentioned in the song, "Oh Daddy," by The Turtles. In 2003, Canter's opened an additional location inside Treasure Island Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
On 14 October 2008, Canter's celebrated their 60th anniversary. To mark the occasion, the deli reduced the price of their "famous" corned beef sandwich to its 1948 price of 60 cents, limited to one per customer, for a period of 12 hours.[5]
Today, the restaurant is not certified kosher, being open on Saturdays and offering many non-Kosher menu items (e.g., ham sandwiches).
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Canter's serves...
Canter's is also prominently featured in Ann Patchett's novel, The Magician's Assistant. Canter's is mentioned in the song, "Oh Daddy," by the Turtles.