Sweetsalt Food Shop

Sweetsalt is a gourmet sandwich shop that Alex Eusebio (Season five of Top Chef) opened with his wife, Sara Mann, at the start of 2010. It can be described as small and charming with a rustic and no-nonsense appeal with long lunch lines and only a few tables to spare.

Born in Madrid, raised in the Dominican Republic and New York City, Alex Eusebio wasn’t always a chef. In an interview on Huffington Post’s Chef Speak column, Eusebio revealed that before becoming a chef, he was an FX trader on Wall Street working for Lehman Brothers at the World Trade Center until August 2001. He quit his stressful job and decided to go to culinary school, which was exactly a month before 9/11 happened.

The moral of the story? He boldly followed his dream, which also saved his life on the way—not only physically, but also emotionally and professionally.

So if you want a quick bite to eat from an inspirational chef with skill and passion, you know where to go.

Credits: Annie Suh