The Hat (The Original)

The inspiration

The Hat started in 1951 as a small roadside stand at Garfield and Valley in Alhambra, specializing in pastrami dip sandwiches with generous portions and a focus on high-quality ingredients¹ . It built its identity as a fast, quality-driven alternative to the growing fast-food chains, a genuine sandwich stand of a vanishing kind^1,2 .

Who's behind it

Corky and Joe Conzonire bought The Hat in 1981, when it was due to be torn down, the Los Angeles Times reported² . The Las Vegas Review-Journal named Joseph Conzonire as the owner when The Hat opened in Las Vegas in 2026³ .

What to order

Popular dish

Pastrami Dip

the signature sandwich, on a French roll with mustard and pickle

• Pastrami Chili Cheese Fries: the shareable showpiece, chili cheese fries buried under a heap of meat³
• Chili Cheese Fries: a side that diners often single out⁴
• Pastrami Burger: Wikipedia says The Hat may have been an early adopter of the pastrami burger
• Orange Bang: the classic fruity drink to go alongside all that beef

What people are saying

Diners and writers keep circling back to the heaping portions and the no-frills, retro roadside atmosphere that has barely changed since the 1950s^2,4 . The neon chef's-toque sign, proclaimed a historic landmark by the city of Alhambra in 1989, comes up again and again as a symbol of the place's authenticity rather than a manufactured throwback^1,2 . The Las Vegas Review-Journal describes The Hat as famed for its pastrami dip sandwiches³ .

Why you should try it

This is the original 1951 stand that launched a Southern California pastrami institution, family-owned for three generations¹ .