Birria is now being combined with a lot of things. People are just discovering it. Pho Wheels in Crystal City serves a birria banh mi. I didn’t realize they put cheese on it (a ton of mozzarella) or I would have liked it more. It’s an expensive sandwich. If I get it again I will definitely have them hold the cheese.
I believe that the pastrami at Langers, which is delicious, is cold smoked and then steamed, just like Katz’s and all other traditional pastrami. It clearly tastes that way, with a very light smoke flavor that is utterly unlike hot smoked pastrami.
I agree that the rye bread is generally better month West Coast, but no one comes close to matching the Manifest Bread rye at 2fifty.
The pastrami is made (by the specifications from Langer’s) at RC Provisions (like many places (west and east coasts use them as a general provider nit only for pastrami but many other things based on the customers specifications/recipes) and it’s hot smoked.
Admittedly it’s been a while since I ate at Langer’s, but the flavor was nothing like the hot smoked at the craft bbq places. Cooking with 100% wood as opposed to gas or electric heat makes a big difference, of course as does using the corporate setting set-and-forget method.
One comment I had was that they should be considered different dishes, and I think there’s justice in that. I’ve criticized mixing up brisket, pork, and ribs in “best lists” and will list them separately when I finally rate the DC area pastramis.
I wonder what kind of wood they use. And just how hot.
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