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Brent's Delicatessen & Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Delis Delis [Edit]
19565 Parthenia StNorthridge, CA 91324
Neighborhood: Chatsworth
(818) 886-5679
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 6 am - 9 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
515 reviews for Brent's Delicatessen & Restaurant
Review Highlights
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"I think I'm obsessed with the black pastrami reuben." In 40 reviews -
"Matzo ball soup was hearty and filling." In 49 reviews -
"The rye bread alone is worth the trip." In 62 reviews
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515 reviews in English
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Review from Cydney M.
Great food & service!
INFORMATION:
Website:
http://www.brentsdeli.com
Hours: Daily 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Parking: Strip mall and plenty of parking
Free Wi-Fi - I always forget about this, but my teenager reminds me
If you are in the valley and feel like having a fabulous lunch this is the place to go. This is the original location inside a rather old strip mall, but you won't care when you finish having a great meal here. Brent's is a family run business that has been open for 40 years. Brent's also has a second and newer restaurant in Westlake. The Westlake is very nice and spacious with lots of windows and display cases for all the goodies they sell.
PROS:
They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. My family and I always come in for lunch, so I can't comment on breakfast. I have never been here when there isn't a wait for a table, but that is a good sign. It appears to be popular with all ages and I always see quite a few families and on occasion a celebrity. There are lots of autographed photos on the walls. Yesterday I was sitting near the kitchen and there is one of Judge Judy.
My favorite thing to order is the soup and half sandwich combo. If you like matzo ball soup it is a couple dollars more because they don't bring a cup of soup. It is a pretty big bowl and enough for two meals if you are having a sandwich. I also prefer the lean pastrami which is available here on request on rye. My son likes the regular pastrami on sourdough bread. It is great heated up later. My husband prefers the #1 pastrami with Russian dressing and tomatoes.
The service is always top notch. Yesterday our server was exceptional. I always order lean pastrami and she double checked with my husband to make sure she brought the right kind for my husband and son. That is going above and beyond the call of duty in my book. She also brought extra Russian dressing, ranch for our steak fries and I was always nearby in case we needed anything. The matzo ball soup is always great and I can tell it is popular because I saw a few of them go by. When we were packing up all our leftovers the server was so nice to add extra broth to our "To Go" container.
If you have any room in your completely satisfied stomach for dessert they have some great selections. They have four layer chocolate and carrot cakes, cheesecake, assorted cookies and brownies. A lot of the desserts are displayed in cases right when you walk in. Next time I'll take some photos of those. I did take a photo of the soup and the #1 sandwich.
CONS:
If you are on a diet, stick to the Lean Cuisine and stay home or you can try to eat half and bring the other half home. This great restaurant is dangerous to all dieters.Listed in: Delicatessens in L.A.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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1/15/2011
Brent's has some great sandwiches, but I love the pastrami, so I stick with that. Today after… Read more »
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Review from Eric W.
5/18/2012
Very hard to beat, though I could not quite go the the 5 star. I will try again and get it there. For those in the know is crushes Nate and A's on food but going to Northridge for an entertainment meeting is a rough haul.
So, entering this large room we were seated in 1 minute. Quick snappy service and pickles are ready for us. We all order some level of pastrami and I go kreplach soup top. The kreplach and chicken soup was just ok. Too much dough on the dumpling and too many noodles in the just pretty good soup. The pastrami was just not greasy enough for a true deli hound and cut way too thin but it was large, solid and the side of slaw was perfecto. The bread was wonderful as were the selection of mustard's. Looking around at the other plates, they serve huge portions of very solid old country food and they do it right.
Next time in. Chopped liver, knish, a bialy and stuffed derma and let's see where it takes me. -
Review from Rockinqueen R.
Reseda, Los Angeles, CA
4/30/2012 1 Check-in Here
Brents has really good food there!
You get what you pay for :)
Restraunt is a bit noisy there , but their service is good. Its best to go there when is less crowded like after 1 pm!
Try their matzo ball soup! And their desserts! Delicious! -
Review from Joanna R.
Valencia, CA
4/1/2012
Yikes, I love(d) Brent's but will skip this location in favor of other delis or (if desperate for Brent's) the Thousand Oaks location.
I encouraged my girlfriends to meet here for lunch. We met at noon, so the three of us were seated at probably 12:10pm. We ordered and had our food served. One of us was still eating her salad when a to-go box was placed at our table (not at our request).
Then, a few minutes later she took a last bite and a different server stopped by and said, "Is there anything else? Because we're gonna need this table." We all just sat there and stared at each other - all of my years of serving or eating at a restaurant, I've never had this happen. While I can be stubborn as hell, I have no desire to sit in a restaurant where I'm not welcomed. We immediately paid and left and were outside just a minute or two before 1:00pm.
They are a busy restaurant and have long waits on the weekends and I even get the whole fast-paced deli atmosphere. But in no way was our 45 minute lunch excessively long.
I would rather give Brent's a chance to resolve it before I post about my bad experience, so I emailed Brent's. A Manager called me back within 24 hours, she said she knew who we were and described my group. She said sometimes its really busy and she was doing the seating that day with the owner and there were a lot of people waiting. So, sometimes they they encourage their busboys and servers to do this to keep people moving in and out - but its not meant to make us feel unwelcomed. Good to know. But then she also said we should have said something to a Manager (so what's their policy? to push people out? or not? or only push out those who don't ask to speak to Manager? Not sure I follow.)
She did offer to 'take care of us' next time we come back. No thanks, I'm good - I'd rather pay for a lunch at a place where they don't hustle people in and out in under an hour.Listed in: 1-Star Wonders
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Review from Adele S.
WOODLAND HLS, CA
5/21/2012
I met my sister in-law here at her suggestion. She loves the place. I ordered the eggs Florentine. The eggs Florentine were mediocre but edible, however the accompanying potatoes were burned. I was a bit dismayed to see a bill totaling just over $12 for an English muffin, two poached eggs, about 4 tablespoons of spinach and a heap of burned potatoes. I complained at the end, and all they wanted to know was why I didn't tell them before. Because our waitress disappeared and nobody had checked on us!!! My sister in-law and nephew seemed to be happy with their meals, but this is a restaurant I could easily do without.
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Review from Patty C.
Burbank, CA
4/7/2012 1 photo
I have been to Brent's Deli a few times, always for breakfast food and have never been disappointed! Although I have never been to a Jewish style deli in New York, whenever I go to Brent's, I imagine that is exactly what it's like, or pretty darn close.
The items on the menu are priced a little higher than other breakfast joints, but the portions are more than enough and the quality is always excellent. On this run I had an omelet with tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms and turkey sausage with home fries. The home fries here are killer, those crispy bits are the best part! I have also had the corned beef hash and it has to be one of the best I have ever had.
As other reviews may have pointed out, this place gets busy on the weekend and at lunch time. We arrived at 11:45 and the place was already pretty full. We left about an hour later and the place was packed! I recommend getting there early...especially if there is a Jewish holiday, you can barely get your foot in the door... -
Review from Juan F.
Reseda, CA
I had the Chorizo and Eggs with hash brown. I was surprised on how good their chorizo was since it wasn't an Hispanic deli. The food was exceptional and the service was great as well.
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Review from Amanda G.
3/1/2012 3 Check-ins Here
No one is allowed to complain that Brent's is expensive. It is totally comparable to other delis in the area and since the food is so awesome- I feel lucky to not have to pay more. (little secret, i totally would)
Although since childhood I have tried almost everything on the menu, and all are good, these are the best:
1. tuna salad sandwich- its delciious, has egg whites in it, and comes on the rye bread. order it WITH potato salad. nuff said.
2. Matzo ball soup. My nana's soup is a close tie, but Brent's is easier to get. The ball is yummy and filling without being dense and the broth is SUPER tasty (unlike the OTHER deli down the street).
3. Pickles- two kinds. You don't have to order them, so chaching, money in your wallet!
4. Rueben- Split it with someone, its HUGE! -
Review from Vanessa I.
Los Angeles, CA
4/12/2012 1 photo
Being a person in the Valley, I don't get the chance to get around to many delicatessens. I have not been to New York and honestly, this isn't a food style I like too much. All that being said, Brent's is awesome.
The decor is older, so you wouldn't go there for the mod decor. The food and service are the reason for going. The place is huge and almost always crowded. They get you in fast, they serve you quickly and the wait staff is so nice. So even though there is a crowd, you don't always feel like you're sitting around waiting.
The food is fantastic; the dishes are that of what I would imagine would be in a Jewish Deli. The They have a huge menu, but, as far as I'm concerned, the pastrami and corned beef are the reason for going. I have had these meats on the sandwiches. The rye bread is soft with chewy crust-very fresh tasting. The Meats are thinly cut and stacked sky high. The cucumber salad is sweet and their potato salad is very good, as well. Everyone gets free pickles while they wait for their food and there are a variety of kinds of pickles.
If you like deli food, you have to try this place. I would say the best delicatessen in the valley by far. A must if you like a good pastrami. -
Review from Kenny A.
PORTER RANCH, CA
4/25/2012
A group of buddies of mine got into a conversation recently about who had the best pastrami sandwiches. Yeah, we had our share of New York delicatessens and such but we kept the conversation to Los Angeles area alone.....only places we could get to within a 30 minute drive of the San Fernando Valley.
We mentioned places like The Hat, Langer's, some hole-in-the-wall places, and then one guy stood tall and said, "Brent's has the best pastrami, hands down!"
Although there was some debate about this, I had never even heard of Brent's Deli to begin with. So what did I do this past Sunday afternoon? I went to Brent's to try it out myself.
I got there around 11:30am in hopes of beating the lunch rush. Yeah, I did beat the big rush which hit around 12:30pm but I still had to wait about 10 minutes to get a table for me and my son. The wait was fine. I mean who can't wait 10 minutes for a fantastic pastrami sandwich at a Deli that's getting 4.5 stars on Yelp, right?
My son just ordered the PBJ with steak fries. I took a bite out of his sandwich, and it was pretty good. I ordered the Pastrami Sandwich of course.
They immediately brought out a plate of like 7 pickles. I like my pickles a bit crispy but these were soft. Didn't feel fresh, but I'll assume they were.
Then they brought out my Pastrami Sandwich on Rye, which is their default bread. Before I even consider trying a different bread, I've gotta try what they consider their best foot forward, right? Well, first of all, the sandwich is pretty mediocre looking. I guess I was hoping to be wowed by the looks of it right off the bat. It looked like something I could make in about 3 seconds at home. Then I took a bite into it and it was underwhelming.
On a scale of 1-10, if Langer's pastrami is a 9, then Brent's pastrami is about a 6.
Now let me say this though. The restaurant was packed. And at 11:30am, it looked like everyone is eating breakfast. The breakfast entrees did look pretty good. Maybe I should try their breakfast one of these days. For now, the deli is what I was going for, so I give it 3 stars. Good, but well......just good. -
Review from Jana W.
WOODLAND HLS, CA
4/17/2012 1 Check-in Here
Yummy yummy yummy! Brent's has got to be the best deli ever. Their pastrami on rye is to die for. The meat is super lean and tender and literally melts in your mouth. Their cheesecake is super awesome too! Also, the service is fast and courteous (Not that i would care. With food like this they can literally throw it at me and I would run around trying to catch it). Do yourself a favor. Get out of line at Jerry's and swing by Brent's. You will not be disappointed.
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Review from Mark M.
San Fernando, CA
4/2/2012
Am I in heaven or am I still dreaming?
This place has the most amazing food. It doesn't matter what you order, it's always superb. I am a lox-n-bagels fan, so for me, there's just nowhere else to go.
Get there early because it's always packed... and I do mean packed! -
Review from H and N.
Winnetka, CA
3/2/2012
I'm pretty lucky.
I live around the corner from Brent's so this is my comfort food.
And for a nice Jewish boy like myself, well let's just say I've never been unhappy with anything I've gotten here.
Brent's in my opinion blows away the competition, even the ones in L.A.
Their sandwiches, especially the Ruben blows Art's out of the water.
Even their burgers and tacos are good. My wife and I will often make a dinner out of their spectacular cobb and their sublime spinach salads.
As far as I'm concerned this is my favorite deli anywhere.. including New York. Sorry you east coasters, you got nothing on Brent's! -
Review from Scott S.
Danvers, MA
5/2/2012
Great food and service. Efficient, friendly waitresses (especially Andrea). A little expensive for breakfast but worth it- it's my favorite place to eat when near Northridge.
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Review from Lynn L.
Los Angeles, CA
4/30/2012
If you're looking for a deli with excellent sandwiches, this is it! The matzo ball soup is a meal in itself and it was delicious. Usually very busy, but worth the wait. Can be a little expensive, but the portions are huge and enough to share.
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Review from Rod D.
Van Nuys, CA
3/11/2012 1 Check-in Here
I have eaten here a few times. The service is outstanding. It is bigger than it looks from the outside. I am a fan a pastrami and that drives me here. This is my second pick in L.A. for pastrami after Langers.
The sides are great. The potato salad and cole slaw are perfect. I like the rye bread and pickles. The Black Reuben is my favorite. I need to try more than pastrami here but that is why I come here.
So the food is great but the service is better. Friendly staff that makes me feel I am welcome and not an interruption of their day. The last time I was in there I made an attempt to test the service by asking a lot of question to different people who work there. They were all great.
Don't waste your time with other Delis in the Valley. Go here. -
Review from Seung Eun C.
Los Angeles, CA
Pastrami in LA: Langers, Canters, Nate & Als... You get the picture.
And then there's Brents which we never tried because it's so far deep in the valley.
Well, we just happened to be in the valley so the heck with it - We drove an extra 15 miles to try it out! Long Drive!
We walked in and it looked legit.
We were quickly seated and ordered the following:
Pastrami & Corned Beef Double decker on Rye - First off, the meat here is sliced super thin - like prosciutto thin. We prefer thicker cuts (think Katz), but it was piled pretty high! The corned beef was a little dry but still delicious, but the pastrami was DA BOMB - moist, super flavorful, delicious. Enough said!
Black Pastrami Reuben - Again, the meat was right on the $. Saukraut, cheese, and toasted bread. MMMM... Comes with cole slaw and thick fries.
Matzo Ball soup - Softball sized, I'm talking HUGE portion! The soup had flavor but needed a little salt. IMO, it doesnt beat Canters but it was still delicous!
And lastly, THE RYE BREAD HERE ROCKS! Some places the sandwiches are too much bread not enough meat, BRENTS is plenty of meat not enough bread.
Yes, the bread was that good!!
Renee our server was awesome! Really great service!! -
Review from Joanna Y.
1/19/2012 4 Check-ins Here
When the mere mention of a restaurant launches your salivary glands into overdrive, you know you've got a problem of the best kind.
I've been coming to this establishment all my life, I would never bother with one of their satellite locations. The food is indescribably good. The waitresses feel like family and they always treat me as such. I read the very few negative posts and it's almost heartbreaking to see they didn't have A+ experiences, because 100% of my visits there have been amazing. -
Review from Arash D.
Tarzana, CA
3/5/2012 3 photos
This place is a Valley favorite -- we all know that already.
But I finally went to Brent's for my first time at the beginning of the year. I soon realized why people have turned into loyal and frequent visitors!!
If you come here be prepared to walk out feeling like a balloon. The plates are huge, and you eat a lot.
Anything you get here will be full of flavor and deli aromas. The waitresses have a "New York customer service" type of mentality -- cut the bullshit and give me your order... this type of customer service helps in the operation of a restaurant with efficiency, which is needed here since they get so damn busy!
I forgot what my friends and I ordered, but I attached the pictures of our plates so you can form a visual idea.
Suggestions:
-Order a brisket sandwich
-Any soup is great -- especially the cabbage stew with beef chunks and carrots
-Stick to deli options over hamburgers and traditional items or else you won't get the deli experience
This place attracts all walks of life: Jewish, old, young,college students, families, big groups, breakfast dates, birthdays, etc -
Review from James S.
2/5/2012 3 Check-ins Here
Maybe my third favorite deli in the L.A. area. It's behind Nate n Al's, and the Westlake Village edition of Brent's. If we're talking strictly apples to apples, here's the breakdown between the two Brents:
Matzo Ball soup amazing and huge at Westlake Village while at Northridge, it's almost as good but not as big. The carrots that come in the soup at this location are kind of sad. I've had this more than once at both locations, by the way.
Same situation regarding the lox, onions and egg scramble. It's smaller here, and frankly, the lox is chopped, almost diced here. This is tasty but never seems to satisfy as much as the other location. At Westlake, the same dish is bigger, but the lox itself is thicker, and appears more from the same part of the fish. Much chunkier. In fact, at Westlake, I can barely finish it.
In regards to Nate n Al's: Well, I think Brent's soup is better. However, I don't order lox and eggs there. Rather, I get the whitefish, onions and egg scramble. Similar but not the same, and frankly, it's better than the lox, onions and egg scramble.
I appreciate how you can swap fresh fruit for your side (though it doesn't mention that on the menu). In terms of to-go stuff, the rye bread is simply outstanding (at both Brent's). The black and white cookies are a little inconsistent -- sometimes almost a tad lemony. And, though I've sometimes gotten the mini 5 Pack of B&W's, the larger, individual cookies taste better, and a much better value.
I love the vibe and the decor here. The music is a bit predictable what with the constant flow of Top 40 from the sunny side of the 60s and 70s.
If you sit at the counter (I've done so only once), you might get a little forgotten. But hey, they get busy here, and not without reason. -
Review from Louis B.
West Hills, CA
4/16/2012
There is not better deli in LA, bar none. We have been regulars since the '70s - we have seen Ron's kids grow up and have their own kids as Ron (and several of his servers) have seen with ours! Even the busboys are outstanding. Always!
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Review from Tony Y.
12/29/2011 2 Check-ins Here
we've been going to this place forever, and the quality and food NEVER changes. when i say forever, i mean like 20+ years. NOT ONCE has the fish smelled, bagels been hard, or the service been subpar. The only thing thats changed in 20+ years has been the price, but its always been worth it.
This place is the mecca of bagels and fish; there isnt another place with the same quality of lox, creamed herring, white fish. Even the pickles are ripe the way you want it (either radioactive green, or swampy green).
i've yet to try much else at this place, or eaten here other than breakfast, but with that kind of consistency, there's never been a need. you walk away feeling great. go now. -
Review from Nicole Z.
La Crescenta-Montrose, CA
4/11/2012
LOVE this place! Every time I go I have no complaints. They are always super busy but I never have to wait for anything or sit there for 5 minutes and flag down my server for a refill on coffee. Their eggs benedict is the shiz and their pasteries are phenomenal. A little expensive, but worth the cost.
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Review from Elayne L.
1/17/2012
As far as I'm concerned, no other deli exists in LA. Don't talk to me about Canters. Don't even mention Langers (okay fine their pastrami is still quite amazing). Don't utter Jerrys, Solleys, Arts or any of the like.
Brents. That is the only name I want to hear in the same sentence with the words "deli" and "Los Angeles" (except that Brents is actually way out in the netherlands of the Valley) but it's totally worth the drive for some of the best deli food ever made.
I've been to NYC on multiple occasions. I've eaten at Katz's and in comparison to Brent's, Katz's is "meh". Toronto has a bunch of great delis and I've been fortunate enough to grow up with some amazing corned beef and pastrami sandwiches but Pancers in Toronto can't hold a candle to the this time warp of a deli in Northridge, CA.
The decor/setting is definitely a throwback to the 1960s/70s. It hasn't changed one bit but that's part of the charm.
Now onto the food (the main attraction). Order these dishes and thank me later:
- cabbage soup, mushroom beef barley soup or the matzo ball soup (all are outstanding)
- corned beef on rye (their bread is so fresh and amazing and their corned beef is super lean)
- the blintzes (why did I even type this? now I have a craving...)
- the latkes (if you dig latkes, these are really incredible ones. I can't explain why. You just have to try)
I'm sure everything you get on the menu will be great. I have not experienced anything but extreme happiness from the food on my plate here. -
Review from Susan N.
1/21/2012
Love this place! Huge deli sandwiches! It's always crowded, but worth the wait.
The waitstaff is very accommodating and always there when you need a beverage refill, but they don't hover. Our waitress noticed that I had removed half of my pastrami (I prefer a smaller meat to bread ratio so I can actually bite into such a large sandwich) and gave me some extra bread so I could take a whole extra sandwich home. Great customer service!!! -
Review from Sea S.
Woodland Hills, CA
5/9/2012
I must say the sign of a good deli is old people eating there. When I saw that Brent's had old people from the nursing home being accompanied by their nurses!! I knew this place was going to be awesome!! On top of that, the old people were willing to wait for a table. So awesome and worth the wait. On top of that there's a dive bar next door with the usual dive characters that made the wait more bearable. I had the pastrami reuben, sweet potato fries, macaroni salad. Everything was delishes!! Can't wait to go back!!!
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Review from Ruby G.
La Mirada, CA
5/11/2012 1 Check-in Here
This place is spectaculars a place you have to eat @. The Best sandwich's the pickles are wonderful.homemade.Fast service very nice staff very happy people.We will drive an hour to this place.My husband was in Aw with this place never had a great sandwich like we had @ Brent's Delictessen&Restaurant.All i can say is Yummy.
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Review from Matthew P.
Los Angeles, CA
Came here last week with my friends for dinner and man, was I surprised by their quality and flavor. The only reason why we came here was based on my yelper friend's recommendation and my craving for some good pastrami. Other than that, I would have never found this place and mainly because from the outside, it looks like any other deli/diner type of look.
As we arrived, you can tell that this restaurant is doing well based on its sheer number of diners at 7-8 PMish and their vast amount of customers doing togo. We were luckily seated right away and took a glance at their menu. My friend assured me despite their kind of high price (13-16$) their portion size is ridiculous. Since I was craving pastrami, I ordered the turkey and pastrami (3 decker) with a side of curly fries. The waiter also came to our table with some complimentary rye bread with some pickles and cucumbers. The rye bread and pickles was a great starter to our deli experience.
Our order came out quickly and I was amazed by their portion size. My pastrami and turkey sandwich was HUGE! I wasn't even able to fit the sandwich in my mouth so I had to nibble the sandwich just to eat it. At the end of the meal, I wasn't even able to finish the 2nd half of the sandwich and I can confidently say that I have a reasonable appetite.
Overall my experience here was great and I can see myself coming back here many times whenever I have a itching for some pastrami! -
Review from Diana T.
1/13/2012
I absolutely LOVE this place.
All the hustle and bustle of the busy servers are like music to my ears.
HIGHLY RECOMMEND:
Roast Beef on Rye. Meat stacked high with a side of coleslaw, pickles and their delicious russian dressing. Oh, the steak fries...mMmMm...extra side of russian please!
I crave this place on any given sunday afternoon.
Go! You can thank me later.
Parking is super easy since it shares a big lot with Office Depot. -
Review from Jeff M.
Winnetka, Los Angeles, CA
1/27/2012
Brent's deli makes you feel right at home.
Motzah ball or Kreplach soups are no nonsense and delicious.
One bite of the Ham and Cheese melt brought the highest praise from my Girlfriend.
Highly rated for a reason. -
Review from Melanie K.
Oakland, CA
12/5/2011
Being a nice, Jewish girl from Montreal, I love my deli.
Brent's is, thus far, the best deli I've found in California. The pastrami is the best - it's delicious. Order it medium with a black cherry soda and it's a party for your palate!
The matzo ball soup is good, but not salty enough... I am not a "salt everything" person, but the soup always need salt...ah well...
Most recently, I had a poppyseed hamantashen which was decent.
I do love me some Brent's. -
Review from Paul L.
Los Angeles, CA
1/28/2012
Came across this place via yelp. Didn't even know this place existed and I pass by the area everyday!
My brother and I went around dinner time and it was really packed. We both got the pastrami combo sandwich, and oh man was it good! I took my first bite and I could immediately tell the good quality in the bread and the pastrami. It is kind of pricey for pastrami sandwich, but I guess you're paying for the quality. Definitely a place if you're a big fan of pastrami or deli sandwiches! -
Review from Berj T.
PORTER RANCH, CA
4/6/2012
I had a wonderful experience at Brent's. I enjoyed a late breakfast/early lunch. The wait on a Sunday around 11:00am was only about 15 minutes despite the place being PACKED. The server was top notch, she was polite and helpful. Our food was prepared extremely fast. I ordered a standard breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, and french toast. Their bacon was the perfect blend of chewy and crispy. The sausage flavorful. I also ended up eating half of their "famous" pastrami sandwich. It is definitely in my top 3 best pastrami sandwiches.
I had such a pleasant experience there. The food was tasty, the service impeccable, the pricing very reasonable, and the atmosphere appropriate. It is definitely worth a try if you are looking to try a deli or diner and live in the valley.
This place blows IHOP or Denny's out of the water. It is worth the trip. -
Review from Samuel H.
12/31/2011 1 Check-in Here
I'm sorry Yelpers, I can't see why this place is so special. We ordered the beef brisket and pastrami, and they came to us pretty cold! The matzo ball soup was the only thing DECENT...but the soup was lukewarm at best. Our waitress also served us this mushroom barley soup and celery soup...which had a weird texture and taste...one of them was ridiculously sweet.
I also wasn't impressed with our service; the waitress tried to talk us into getting a full dinner (which she implied she wasn't going to charge us more for) and ended up charging our group 30 bucks for a dinner plate. Talk about service...
Overall, I can't say I'm impressed and don't see why this place has such high ratings. The soup and main entrees definitely need more flavor and more warmth... -
Review from Ben V.
12/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
Brent's Delicatessen is truly one-of-a-kind.
Honestly, I wasn't expecting the place to be so BIG -- but after waiting 30 minutes for a table, I guess it could be a little bigger!
Taking cues from this wonderful Yelp community, I went ahead and got the Matzo Ball Soup and the Black Pastrami Rueben. They were both nothing short of amazing. Although I can't say the pastrami was to the drug-like status that you find at The Hat, it was very unique and tasty. It was my first time having Matzo Ball Soup, and it most certainly won't be my last.
I'll definitely be back... I just wish it didn't hit the wallet as much as it did. -
Review from Stevenenen N.
Orange County, CA
When someone ask me, "How adventurous I am?" I kind of take it as a challenge. Do they think I'm OC Bland?! I'm from "The Valley" yo! The Saturday before Diet Dan H was going to hit the scales, I get a call from Dan asking me how adventurous I am. With confidence, I replied, "I'm the most adventurous person you know!" That's really no special feat since Dinosaur Dan hangs with peeps at Zubies. And every time Mary R hears the name Zubies, she shakes her head.
So this "Valley Dude" and an old man from "Santa Ana By The Sea" made a pilgrimage up to what is considered the Holy Land of Jewish Delis. I had no problems with the 120 mile round trip journey after talking to my Jewish Yelp friends Dave G and Al S. They both said this is the best Jewish Deli here in Cali.
I had the best Nova Lox ever! This appetizer alone was worth this long trip. It had the cleanest cold smoked taste with the perfect amount of brine. Put this tasty salmon on an onion bagel with cream cheese, tomato, onions and I was in heaven. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
I also had an excellent pastrami on rye with Swiss sandwich. http://www.yelp.com/bi... I savored each bite of the soft, tender and peppery meat. Two slices of tasty rye held the tall stack of delish meats and cheese together. This rye was pretty good, but I still think Langer's has the best rye around. Nevertheless, this sandwich was excellent!
Dan also invited one of his Jewish friend that lives around the corner to break bread with us on this special Last Supper before hitting the scales. His friend made an interesting comment while we were eating our meal. He said, "I like eating with Yelpers. You guys seem to enjoy your food much much more than everyone else." It really showed how much Dan and I enjoyed this meal because all you could hear was the sound of chewing coming from our end of the table.
This was the best Jewish Deli experience and I will gladly make this pilgrimage again. This concludes this eating adventure of En and The Danimal.Listed in: My LA, How about OR?!, Looking for a Sammich?!
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Review from Jewelyn T.
Las Vegas, NV
Thank you Northridge yelpers for the awesome reviews!
I was in town this past weekend for work and stayed in Woodland Hills. I was looking for a place to have lunch before the long drive back to Las Vegas and I ended up at Brent's.
My gf and I did have to wait about 15 mins or so to get seated. But it was worth the wait. I haven't eaten at a deli since I've been to NYC back in 2009 so I was really excited to see what Brents had to offer.
I tried all the popular items on yelp. We had the matzo ball soup, potato skins, black pastrami reuben, curly fries...
It was my first time eating matzo ball soup :)
I'm a huge fan!
When I visit LA I'm never in Northridge so my chances of coming back here is slim to none. But if I'm ever back in the area... I would love to have lunch here again.
Eating here is pricy!
Great customer service! Love it here!
-Miss Yelp 2011 -
Review from Michele G.
WOODLAND HLS, CA
12/23/2011
We've been going here for 20 years for a reason - the outstanding food, service and neighborhood vibe, so good!
I always get the pastrami Rueben on rye, with slaw and fries. Sooooo goood, juicy and flavorful. My taste buds scream with pleasure when the salt from the juicy pastrami collides with the creamy, sweet thousand island dressing, the snap of pickle and tang of the sauerkraut on toasty rye. It's ecstasy!!
I go weak for a good Reuben. So when I get to go to New York, I have to have at least one pastrami Rueben. Brent's Rueben is up there competing with New York delis I've tried. I love Brent's more than the one I had at NYC's Carnegie Deli, but it was just shy of Katz's Deli on the Lower East Side. But it's hard to beat having my juicy meat sliced and handed me to taste by a handsome Italian guy who kept calling me baby at Katz's.
So Brent's Deli guys don't call me baby, while handing me sliced meat. But I don't have to fly to New York City! Lucky me, Brent's is only a few minutes drive away - and then I'm in Reuben nirvana. Bring on the thousand Island dressing and the slaw! I'm getting in my car now and heading to Brent's. Bye... -
Review from Claudia B.
Simi Valley, CA
Updated - 2/23/2012 2 photos
This is a review for the CATERING DEPT. ONLY. Their in-restaurant dining quality is still top notch, but I do have a bone to pick with their catering department. Last week, in anticipation of feeding some 70 people after burying my father (yes, it is very sad and a harsh reality), we ordered the traditional deli platters, and then some, as is most common and traditional in my religion/culture. We did this 2 years ago when my mother passed, and while it was much too soon to have to do this again, we were faced with having to do so, and because Brent's really outdid themselves 2 years ago, I figured, go with the same. I was wrong.
First of all, when speaking to the Catering Dept. employee, someone who JUST takes catering orders, one would think she would know what she's talking about, given that that is all she does. I was wrong again. She said that for the amount of people we were having (70), we should go with 5 choices of meat. Okay. I went with roast beef, salami, corned beef, pastrami, and turkey. The turkey, however, was actually going to be doubled, so that was 2 right there, while the corned beef and pastrami were going to be split in 1/2. It still adds up to five overall. Fine. The problem was this...... either they spread them out unnecessarily over 2 trays, or they cheated us on the amounts. Either way, it looked too thinly spread out, and even with the doubled amount of turkey, it looked way less than I thought (or remembered from 2 years ago). Let's just say, I ordered for the same 70 back then and didn't ever feel like we didn't get enough or that it looked sparse, and I know we had 2 trays then, as well. This time, I was worried to take salami because I feared there wasn't enough for even 10 people. It was weird, but the result was that I was pissed off. Something was wrong, but I don't know what. Maybe we should have only had FOUR choices of meats. Maybe just pile the meat higher on one platter. Maybe we were cheated out of what we purchased. I really don't know.
One more issue on the meats......while Brents is known for their pastrami, I was quite upset with the quality, or lack thereof, of the pastrami given to us on platters. Maybe because it was cold, I don't know, it was NOT the same. I didn't heat it up, and perhaps, I should have........it was just not what I am used to.......supreme quality pastrami. Perhaps I should know to never get pastrami on a deli platter. I don't know. The salami was delicious, but as mentioned above, not enough of it. The roast beef, well, some slices were beautifully rare, while others were dark and old looking.... not impressive.... and definitely made me frown. The turkey, while not the cheap, slimy kind, was overcooked and broke apart too easily because of that. The corned beef at least looked good, but I don't eat it, so I don't know if it tasted good or not.
Second, and even bigger issue, the potato salad was downright spoiled. I took one bite and spit it out. TERRIBLE. Granted, with my sensitive palate, I taste bad things that nobody else ever tastes. This is ironic to me........if I even remotely suspect something is bad, I will refuse to eat it. So would anyone else.... who the heck wants food poisoning? Yet, most people ate the potato salad, and nobody got sick. I didn't eat the potato salad, but I ended up with the stomach flu a few days ago.....although totally unrelated. I just find it ironic. Okay, TMI. I digress.... Why the heck did they serve old, spoiled potato salad? I guarantee you this.... even if our guests ate the potato salad on the day we got it, by the following day, they did not. IT WAS CLEARLY BAD, and for sure, I threw it out. Granted, while deli food has a short shelf life, it isn't THIS short. We paid a lot of money to be THIS pissed.
I will say, though, it wasn't all bad......the other salads were fine........ macaroni salad, cole slaw, tuna salad, egg salad, and chopped liver, along with pickles, olives and plenty of condiments. All were Brent's excellent quality.... as were the breads. They brought plates, napkins, and plastic cutlery for 70, which was also of benefit, and the best part, they delivered it to us, which helped immensely.
Bottom line, for the amount of money we paid, and for the stellar quality that Brents is known for and USUALLY adheres to, it should have been FAR BETTER quality than it was. They need to really pay attention to how they serve large quantities of food. They were not on their game as far as I'm concerned.Listed in: What's Hot in the SFV, Crazy 'Bout Ya Baby, Which Oh Which Sandwich Should…, Don't You (Forget About…, DELIghting in DELI's
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Review from Raymond L.
Diamond Bar, CA
1/29/2012
I wonder if I'm wasting my time writing this review. I think everyone in the valley already knows about Brent's. My family has been going there since the 70's, and when I come to visit my parents in Northridge, this is always where we seem to wind up.
This is Jewish food the way it should be. On her best day, my grandmother could make some things as well as Brent's always does, and my grandmother was a great cook. Just like home made. The matzo balls are the best, the corned beef and the pastrami are great, and the soups and the double-baked rye bread are really fantastic.
I've seen other reviews comparing Brent's to other delis, and the reviewers are right. Brent's is better than Canter's, Jerry's, Nate n Al, and Juniors in LA and Carnegie deli and Katz's in New York.
If you haven't been there yet, it's definitely worth a try.
