Johnny's West Adams

In a building owned by CIM, the powerful real estate company that’s slowly transforming (in other words, gentrifying) West Adams, this new-school deli serves excellent pastrami sandwiches that live up to the legacy of the original Johnny’s Pastrami, which closed in 2015. Though the new Johnny’s has added a few Jewish deli-inspired items and dropped the second half of the name, the juicy, flavorful pastrami sandwiches are still the main focus here. While you can continue to get the French dip-style version that uses thinly cut pastrami, the move here is the thick-cut pastrami served on Tartine marble rye, which can be further jazzed up with reuben toppings, mustard or coleslaw. The sandwich makes for a satisfying meal, especially when paired with drinks from the bar next door, but it’s also a particularly great late-night snack—Johnny’s stays open until midnight every day it’s open, unlike the other pastrami purveyors on this list.