once upon a time people plugged in their phones

One thing you may not know about Canter’s is that there are phone jacks in the dividers between the booths. I have it on authority that if you bring in a phone and plug it in, you actually can connect directly to god.

I suspect the god in question is Jehovah not the Prince of Peace. Though Daniel tells me that at 3am, no one much cares. They’ll take a god, any god will do.

I’m thinking maybe we’ll have to have a talk with the big guy about the future of Metblogs. He may not be the right god for a Hail Mary, but he can probably pull some strings.

Alex is passing the baton. I have arrived. I am surrounded by Metbloggers (Joz, Fraz, Alex, and Ruth666) and Susan, a Classic Eats stalwart.

I have my lox and eggs and onions, as you see here. I was a bit sad I couldn’t have a side of fruit, but Daniel, our server, reminded me that tomatoes are, in fact, a fruit.

Ruth brought a passel of canned goods, but I await the flood from you, our readers. Come donate. We await your arrival.

As I prepare to bid my adieu to Canter’s (for now), I just want to take a moment to comment on some of the more salient architechtural features of this fine establishment:

First of all, that ceiling tile. Daniel, our ever-charming server, tells me that the tiles came in some time in the 1970s, and that he has had to talk down many an inebriated soul who, in the middle of the night, have been completely unable to handle the brilliantly mesmerizing leafy glory of that ceiling. Daniels calls the tiles Canter’s “autumnal homage.”

Secondly: the amazing geometric glass decorations over in the second dining room to the right of the main room. I think these are gorgeous and I want them in my house.

Alright, I am signing off for now but I will be back bright and early tomorrow morning! The food donation bin is looking good, but we can always use more food bank donations, so keep them coming!

Frazgo, JozJozJoz, Ruth666, Daniel (our wonderful Canter’s server!), Travis K, and Alexandra A.

The canned food donations for LA Foodbank are starting to fill up and there are a few bucks in the kitty!

(I’m running out for a GMCLA concert at Fairfax High School which is just around the corner.)

But seriously, how else would you describe our photos?

This is my Pastrami Reuben sandwich on rye with fries. Look at that melty cheese!!!

But for those who aren’t lucky to be able to dine like this at Canter’s we are collecting donations (cash and/or cans) for the LA Foodbank.

Come by, grab a bite, say hi and make a donation! We’re here until noon tomorrow (Sunday, 5/23/2010)

It’s about 4pm and I just got here and I am currently the happiest girl in the world with my matzoh ball soup (with carrots, please) and a cherry phosphate.

I always, always, always order a cherry phosphate at Canter’s because I love them so much but never actually knew what it was – so in the interests of science, I asked our friendly server today what makes a phosphate a phosphate, and it turns out it’s just seltzer water and syrup, but done old-fashioned soda fountain style instead of out of a machine. I think it’s less sweet than soda usually is, and super delicious.

The scene doesn’t seem too busy right now – lots of empty tables, lots of folks here alone catching a late lunch – but I’m sure there will be a rush as we get close to dinner time.

Be sure to come out and join the fun and pastrami and bring a donation for the food bank!

When I was here last week (I accidentally showed up to the Blog-a-thon a week early), I ate three whole pickles– in addition to half my smoked turkey/Reuben sandwich.

Right now I’m at 1.5 pickles… and counting.

Lucinda Michele was going to video herself eating all of these, but she needed both hands to shovel the desserts into her mouth.

Video shot by Lucinda Michele, but uploaded by JozJozJoz.

The Very Special Classic Eats Blog-a-thon at Canter’s Deli and Bakery starts tomorrow at noon with Lucinda Michele to kick things off for us. Look for the LA Foodbank donation box and the LA Metblogs Classic Eats Signage (same as what you see here.) Stop by, say hello, drop a few dollars in to the collection box or drop off some canned food.

We will be updating totals on what we’ve collected every hour or so. Help us get to $1000 in cash and 200 pounds of canned foods to help the LA Foodbank feed people in need in our City of Angels.  For every $1 donated, the LA Foodbank is able to acquire and distribute 4 meals. $1 = 4 meals. $1 = 5 pounds of food. Even if all you can spare is 25¢, that is still going to go far. Anything you bring to put in the canned food box will be welcome. The most needed foods are: canned fruit, cereal, dry pasta, canned meats, rice, peanut butter, canned vegetables and tuna.

Big thanks to Canter’s for letting us do this and to Verizon Wireless for donating Mifi Mobile Hotspots so we can blog on site. And if you bring in your laptop, you can blog too!

There has been a slight shift in our blogger schedule (in bold):

Squee! Mifis donated courtesy of Verizon Wireless. Thank you!

Saturday:
noon – 2:00 Lucinda
2:00 – 4:00 JozJozJoz
4:00 – 6:00 Alexandra
6:00 – 8:00 Travis
8:00 – 10:00 Julia
10:00 – midnight Kevin

Sunday
midnight – 2:00 Janna
2:00 – 4:00 Queequeg
4:00 – 6:00 Kevin
6:00 – 8:00 Julia
8:00 – 10:00 Alexandra
10:00 – noon: Will

We really look forward to seeing you all there!

The Very Special Classic Eats Blog-a-thon at Canter’s Deli and Bakery is this weekend! From noon Saturday to noon Sunday, your LA Metbloggers will be live-blogging all the hot nosh action from within Canter’s.

Here’s the line up of bloggers so you can meet us all in person:

Saturday:
noon – 2:00 Lucinda
2:00 – 4:00 JozJozJoz
4:00 – 6:00 Alexandra
6:00 – 8:00 Julia
8:00 – 10:00 Travis
10:00 – midnight Kevin

Sunday
midnight – 2:00 Janna
2:00 – 4:00 Queequeg
4:00 – 6:00 Kevin
6:00 – 8:00  Julia
8:00 – 10:00 Alexandra
10:00 – noon: Will

There may be some special guest bloggers and the occasional doubling up of the team just for fun. Look for the Classic Eats sign (like the one above) as well as the LA Foodbank poster. Again big thanks to Canter’s for letting us do this and to Verizon Wireless for donating Mifi Mobile Hotspots so we can blog on site. Remember, this is your one chance to have free wifi while you eat your matzoh ball soup at Canter’s.

Most importantly, please come and help us achieve our goal to raise $1000 in cash AND 200 pounds of canned food for the LA Foodbank. For every $1 donated, the LA Foodbank is able to acquire and distribute 4 meals. $1 = 4 meals. $1 = 5 pounds of food. You can eat 5 pounds of rugelah? You can donate a $1.

As you already know and have put into your calendars, next Saturday and Sunday, May 22/23, is the Very Special Classic Eats Blog-a-thon at Canter’s Deli and Bakery.

Your humble* LA Metbloggers are going to take turns at a booth at Canter’s, blogging about the people, the ambiance, the kibitizing, and the noshing. We will get a 24 hour view of a piece Los Angeles, via Canter’s. Starting at noon on Saturday and ending at noon on Sunday, we’ll see the weekend lunchers, the early bird-specialers, the post movie noshers, the “What’s open after 10?” crowd, the post-club hangover avoiders, the pre-dawn transition crowd, the Sunday breakfast, then Sunday brunch crowd.

We are also blogging for a good cause. We want to raise $1000 in cash and 200 canned food items for the LA Foodbank. For every $1 donated, the LA Foodbank is able to acquire and distribute 4 meals. $1 = 4 meals. $1 = 5 pounds of food. (And you thought a dollar didn’t go very far these days.) Please stop by the Metblog table and drop whatever you can into the collection jar. Canter’s will also donate all their leftover bakery goods on Sunday.

Canter’s is old school, in case you weren’t aware. They originally opened in the 40′s in Boyle Heights then headed west to Fairfax after WWII where they have been ever since. Canter’s is still old school and doesn’t have wifi or internet of any kind. But we are not letting that stop us because Verizon very kindly donated a set of Mifi Mobile Hotspots to us to achieve our blog-a-thon dream. For 24 hours, you can enjoy free internet access with us at Canter’s. That’s a worth a buck in the Foodbank donation jar, right?

Free wifi, donations for a good cause, amazing food — there are no excuses for you not to be there!

*I know, “mostly” humble.

Date: Saturday May 22 – Sunday May 23.

Time: Noon to Noon

You read that right. 24 hours of Classic Eats at Canter’s Deli for the first ever LA Metblogs Blog-a-Thon!

From noon on Saturday to noon on Sunday your Metblog writers will be tag-teaming it to bring you 24 hours in the life of Canter’s Deli. We’ll nosh, we’ll write, we’ll kibitz, we’ll write some more. All you have to do is come by and visit. Any time you want!

The best part? Well, let’s be honest, there are going to be so many best parts it’ll be hard to pick just one, but one of the best parts is that we will be collecting donations (money and canned goods) for the LA Food Bank while we blog. Canter’s will be making a donation as well.

Mark your calendars! More info and details to come in the next two weeks.

Did you know Canter’s has its own food truck? Me neither! Follow them on twitter!

(Canter’s Deli at night Photo taken by DaveofCali (David Liu) {{cc-by-2.0}} )

Last Saturday was a fun, though very low-key Classic Eats. The weather was gorgeous and so was the company!

Special guest Susan (who is now a veteran Classic Eater*) and I were first at Johnnie’s Pastrami. We were met a short while later by Sarah and her son Charlie then Burns! not long thereafter. We chowed down on some classic yum yums at Johnnies: Pastrami, chili cheese fries and cole slaw.

After that there was many full bellied good-byes and Susan and I headed over to the Apple Pan for dessert. (Stopping to pick up my better half on the way.) The Pan was packed so the three of us opted to get our food to go. Outside we said hello to some other Classic Eaters who had skipped Johnnie’s for the Full Apple Pan experience.

Everyone seemed to eat well and enjoy the ambiance of these Classic Westside joints!

Click past the jump for more photos of the good food and even better company!

*Veteran status = you’ve been to more than one Classic Eats.

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Westside! Here’s the deal:

5:00pm at Johnnie’s Pastrami for some outdoor lounging near their firepit, some meaty meat sandwiches and apparently chili cheese fries to melt for.

6:30 or 7 we will mosey over to the Apple Pan for dessert. Again, the Apple Pan will be a tad tricky as it is a small place, they only have counter seating and seating will be hard to come by. We may need to order “to-go” and eat our pie on the sidewalk outside. No matter what, it will be a great time!

Don’t forget they both take CASH ONLY!

Johnnie’s Pastrami
4017 Sepulveda Blvd
Culver City, CA 90230

Apple Pan
10801 West Pico Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90064