Norton’s Deli to Celebrate 15 Years in Santa Barbara

Release Date: October 17,2019

Filippo Giordano, owner and general manager if Norton’s Deli in Santa Barbara, is celebrating 15 years during an event this Saturday. The deli will offer vintage $7 sandwiches. (Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo)

By Joshua Molina, Noozhawk Staff Writer | @JECMolina | October 17, 2019 | 10:29 p.m.

This Saturday, one of Santa Barbara's restaurant jewels is celebrating 15 years of delicious success.

Owner and General Manager Filippo Giordano of Norton's Deli will host "The Originals at the Original Price" on Saturday. Several of the original sandwiches on the menu when the sandwich restaurant opened will beon  sale for $7, the price in 1994. 

"People like our old school way of making sandwiches," Giordano told Noozhawk. "Every meat is top quality."

The New York-style deli has been featured on the Food Network show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and has attracted customers from around the world.

Most often, however, it's locals who pack the 600-square foot restaurant at 18 W. Figueroa St. for lunch every day except Sunday, when it's closed. 

The restaurant features tall tables with barstools, with the original 1924 brick wall on one side of the building.

Giordano also owns Kona's deli in San Luis Obispo, but jumped at the chance to purchase Norton's in 1994. 

"I thought this place was a good opportunity for me," he said. 

Despite the restaurant's diminutive size, "we make it it work, every square inch," said Giordano, whose favorite sandwich is "The Best Hot Ham & Swiss." 

 It's part of the restaurant's appeal. Big, New York-style, tasty sandwiches, in a crowded, small space, where the noise inside from conversation is louder than the construction workers on the street. 

"People like our old school way of making sandwiches," Giordano said. 

The restaurant is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., or until the meat runs out, Giordano said.

— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.