Junior's

The perennial favorite of the transplanted Borscht Belt crowd, Junior's offers a great meal that would make your bubbie tsufridn.

Wall-to-wall brown vinyl booths and glass display cases are punctuated by the bustling of waitresses, bus boys and clattering of glasses and cutlery. The menu offers the popular and familiar. Sandwiches are piled mile-high with corned beef, pastrami, or any of the other meats one would expect to be bookended by two pieces of rye bread slathered with deli mustard. The generous portions of matzo brei beam with a familiar glow and taste great with a sprinkling of sugar.

This past visit, I ordered a Monte Cristo with a knish and kugel. The prices at Junior's are a bit steep, but most entrees are large enough to split between two people.

The Monte Cristo is a deep-fried chalah bread triple decker sandwich filled with ham, turkey and swiss cheese. Junior's version is well-cooked and served with a side of powdered sugar and fruit jelly. No Monte Crisco can be complete without maple syrup, so I had to wait awhile longer for the waitress to bring some to the table. While waiting for the syrup, I dove into our knish and kugel. As a transplanted New Yorker, I have grown to expect the quality of knish to equal that of a Yonah Schimmel. To my surprise, Junior's knish tasted as close to the Lower East Side treasure as a frozen, pre-packaged knish could be. With a bit of mustard, it was great.

Here's an indicator of how good the kugel tasted. When I ordered the kugel, the waitress paused from scribbling down on her pad. Taking a step back and looking lost in thought, she sighed and said "Ah... the kugel." She flashed a smile, jotted down the rest of the order and floated off to another table. When the noodle kugel arrived, the plate was almost as warm as the waiter who delivered the dish. One bite revealed a sweet, complex taste not usually associated with kugel. Creamy, sweet noodles slightly seasoned with cinnamon were firm but light-tasting. A layer of raisins lined the bottom of the kugel; raisins are traditionally mixed into the kugel. This simple variation is a magnificent improvement and brought out the flavor of the noodles.

Despite the high prices (sandwiches can cost upto $15) and spotty service, Junior's is a great place to feed your need for Jewish Deli nostalgia. Order the kugel; it'll make your mama happy.

Junior's (2379 Westwood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064 ) is located on the corner of Pico and Westwood by the Westside Pavillion. Valet parking is available at the restaurant.