I'll link you here to a list someone made up of the Ten Best Jewish Delis in Los Angeles. What it actually is is a list of all the major delicatessens in Los Angeles except Jerry's — and I'm not sure Jerry's, even back when it was good, qualified as a Jewish deli. It was (and is, assuming they haven't closed the last one yet) kind of a Jewish Deli in the same sense that Beefaroni is Italian Food.
Of the ten, my three favorites are — in this order — Canter's, Nate 'n Al's and Art's. Label's Table probably shouldn't be on the list because it's more of a sandwich place…though they will sell you a corned beef on rye that's as good as any in town for about 40% less. I haven't yet been to the newest one on the list, Lenny's. It's apparently doing well, replacing Junior's, a long-time favorite in that building that plunged in quality.
During my brief foray into the restaurant business, a man who was supposedly well-versed in that industry told me, "There are only two reasons why a new restaurant fails — bad management or bad location. And there are only two reasons why an old, established restaurant closes — bad management or new competition." I suggested a number of other reasons…like changing tastes in food or an outbreak of Hepatitis but to him, these came under the heading of "bad management."
Hepatitis was one of the reasons the Jerry's Delicatessen in Westwood went under. Those used to be great places to eat but they seem to be disappearing faster than Chris Christie supporters. They had great sandwiches, great potato latkes and the best chicken soup in town. The only downside was that if you went to the one in Studio City back in the late seventies, there was a good chance that your busboy would be Andy Kaufman, being obnoxious and inept for his own amusement…and no one else's.