Bay Cities Italian Deli and the Godmother: a Santa Monica century

There is a sandwich in Los Angeles that people drive across the county for, wait forty minutes for, and order by a single word — “Godmother, with the works” — and it comes from an Italian deli in Santa Monica founded in 1925 by Antonio DiTommaso, by deli lore a retired Chicago policeman who was told it was in his “best interest to move out West” ^[1]. Bay Cities Italian Deli & Bakery turned 100 in 2025, which makes it one of the genuinely old businesses in a city — and a state — where “old” usually means the 1970s. (The 1517 Lincoln Blvd landmark people line up at today is not the original site — the deli moved into that building in the 1970s — but the recipes go back to the start ^[1].)

What it is

Bay Cities is three things in one building: an Italian deli (the sandwich counter and the case of cured meats, cheeses, salads), an Italian grocery (imported pasta, oils, tinned fish, the pantry stuff), and a bakery — and the bakery is load-bearing. The rolls are baked on site through the day, and they have a particular character: a thin, steam-blistered crust that shatters and a soft interior, the structural reason the sandwiches work ^[3]. A great sandwich on a mediocre roll is a mediocre sandwich; Bay Cities solved that by making the roll itself.

The Godmother

The famous one is the Godmother: five Italian meats — capicola (coppa), mortadella, Genoa salami, prosciutto and ham — with provolone, and — the phrase you actually say at the counter — “with the works”: mayonnaise, mustard, onions, pickles, tomatoes, shredded lettuce, mild or hot peppers, oil and vinegar ^[2]. It was created in 1952 by founder Antonio DiTommaso, named because “a godmother takes care of the family” ^[2], and it is regularly named among the best sandwiches in Los Angeles, full stop. (The line for it is a known quantity; Bay Cities runs a call-ahead / online order system precisely because the in-store wait can be long.)

Why it’s in the directory

Bay Cities is an LA legacy-food landmark and a “founded here, still here” story — 1925, the Godmother circa 1952, the 100-year mark in 2025 — and it should be carried with that on the page: an Italian deli + bakery + grocery, the on-site bread program (the steam-blistered crust), the Godmother / “with the works” as the signature, the call-ahead system as a practical note, the Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica location. It sits in the same tier of the directory as the other century-or-near-century LA institutions — Philippe’s and Cole’s (1908), Pacific Dining Car-era spots, Musso & Frank (1919) — and on the Santa Monica map specifically it’s the legacy anchor alongside The Galley (1934, the oldest restaurant in Santa Monica) and Chez Jay (1959).

Draft — Search session, 2026-05-11. Fact-checked & citations hardened 2026-05-12: founding year 1925 (founder Antonio DiTommaso), Godmother created 1952, 100th anniversary 2025, the 1970s move to the current 1517 Lincoln Blvd building, and the corrected meat list (capicola, mortadella, Genoa salami, prosciutto, ham + provolone — the earlier draft listed provolone in place of ham) confirmed via Tasting Table, the Daily Bruin “prime” feature, and the BC Deli order page. Companion: the Santa Monica neighborhood notes (from neighborhood-santa-monica-coast), what-la-lacks-and-what-it-does-best (the sandwich/deli discussion), french-dip-philippe-vs-coles (the other LA-century-institution piece).