Gandolfo's New York Delicatessen in Pasadena, Pasadena

Craig Gandolph entered the deli business on Long Island, making the sandwiches he’d always eaten growing up in New York. When love floated him to Salt Lake City, he missed the flavor of his hometown. So he opened the first Gandolfo’s New York Delicatessen and named his sandwiches after the Big Apple locales that he missed. Today, his little sandwich shop has grown to encompass dozens of franchises across the States, slinging sandwiches from both brick-and-mortar joints and gridlocked food trucks.

At the Pasadena location, a bold palette of red and black stretches from floor to ceiling. A strip of crimson marks the sandwich bar, where bread stackers display their handiwork. A flat-screen television flickers overhead, entertaining diners tired of starting conversations with brick walls.