One hundred and three years after it opened, Philippe the Original still has the best French dip sandwich in the city: a crusty baguette stuffed with beef or, better, lamb, some blue cheese if you want, then dipped or double-dipped in intensely flavorful jus. But the pleasure of this sandwich isn't limited to the thing itself; no, it's everything about the experience that makes eating this sandwich here that much more special: The lines full of tourists, cops and Angelenos of every stripe; the curls of sawdust on the floor; the strong, cheap coffee; the sinus-clearing hot mustard. Philippe's is more than a century old, and we wouldn't change a thing about it. 1001 N. Alameda St., dwntwn. (213) 628-3781, philippes.com. —Tien Nguyen

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