UCLA Westwood Village’s Roll Inn Sandwich a.k.a. “Buck Fiddy” Found Dead

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Roll out

Beloved sub sandwich shack, Roll Inn Sandwich, frequently affectionately referred to by UCLA undergrads as “Buck Fiddy” for its one-time $1.50 (pre-tax) sandwiches was found dead today on Gayley Avenue in Westwood Village, a “For Lease” sign hanging it its window.

As a reliable late night purveyor of alcohol-sopping subs to stumbling drunkards emerging from nearby Maloney’s after last call, the Roll Inn maintained a foothold in the area even as their prices gradually crept upwards from the 12-bit offerings of their glory days. It upgraded its exterior facade to a White Stripesy candy cane theme, added catering service, and expanded its menu, adding even a bulgogi beef sub. They even installed some of those needles you put on the roof to deter pigeons from landing and shitting you. Even with these improvements, its ramshackle shack sprit was in its bones, kind of like a girl that loses a lot of weight but you can still sort of see the fat girl in them.

For a local business that has hung on in the historically difficult retail climate of Westwood Village for upwards of a decade, the passing may come as a shock. Pending an autopsy, the precise date and cause of its demise was not known.

However, with the present glut of sub shops in the Village, perhaps it was only a matter of time before Darwinism eliminated the weakest of the pack.

At the south end, multinational conglomerates Quiznos and Subway dual to the death over for the Wilshire corridor M-F 9-5 worker bees’ lunchtime $5.

Socko’s Subs, nearest Roll Inn geographically, has has emerged to endear itself to the area in its couple of years of operation with its late hours, home delivery and relatively affordable prices, even if their workers are annoyingly loud when greeting you when you walk in and call you patronizing things like “Boss” and “Chief”.

The newest sub comer to the area, Jersey Mike’s Subs, stirs up a bit of suspicion, as an East Coast chain making their first foray into L.A. city limits. Under a charade of carefully set designed faux deli authenticity–hanging sausages, meat slicers as props, orders scribbled on old school pads–Jersey Mike’s has been schilling overpriced subs in the Trader Joe’s complex since late last year. Whether they are in it for the long haul remains to be seen.

Thankfully, Sandbags (admittedly more of a sandwich shop than a sub shop) and Sepi’s hang on as institutions of the Village, the latter of which is distinguished from the pack by beer, which it has. With any justice, they and not the corporate outlets will reap the benefits of the Roll Inn’s abscence, if any are to be had.