One of LA's two contenders for original French dip title is a microcosm of the L.A. melting pot. The unpretentious Chinatown dining room, with sawdust-covered floors, minimally changed since opening in 1908, draws nearby project dwellers and Beverly Hill types, lawyers and tourists alike. It serves a full breakfast lineup (6 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., coffee included) and classic sandwiches (including made-to-order peanut butter and jelly), but French dip reigns here. Customers form lines that wind through the tables while they watch women behind the long deli counter carve glistening meat from the bone and pile it onto crusty, juice-dipped French bread. You can choose beef, pork, ham, or turkey, but you shouldn’t pass up the lamb with a double dip (especially heavenly with blue cheese added). Palpable history and tradition enhance the pleasure—for a real time-travel experience, order an unheard-of 45 cents-cup of regular coffee. But in the end, it all comes down to a seriously fine sandwich.