A Hampden storefront formerly occupied by Maillard Patisserie has a new tenant, and it moved in fast. Pressed, a panini and sandwich shop at 3528 Chestnut Ave., opened its doors on Oct. 29, just 27 days after chef Anthony Lanasa decided to start the business.
Lanasa’s timeline reads almost like a dare to Baltimore’s permitting process. According to Baltimore Fishbowl, he applied for the Chestnut Avenue space two days after being laid off from his job as head chef at Peabody Heights Brewery, reaching out to a leasing agent he had worked with before. He had told himself he would keep going only if he landed a lease within three days — he got a draft by day three and a signed lease the following Monday, the outlet reported.
From Credit Check to Health Inspection in Days
From there, the bureaucratic dominoes fell quickly. Lanasa passed a credit check and began the licensing process, which he said produced approval on its first steps by Tuesday, after which he started the health inspection process, per Baltimore Fishbowl’s account. He told the outlet that he already knew Baltimore could license a restaurant in 14 days, having done it in seven days once before in Baltimore County, and credited the city’s now mostly automated licensing systems for the pace.
While the paperwork moved, Lanasa and his business partner, Tony Levan, were doing the physical work of turning the old patisserie into a sandwich shop. The two spent nine days cleaning and organizing the space, placing furniture and equipment, and preparing it to meet chemical and sanitation codes, Baltimore Fishbowl reported. Pressed passed its fire marshal inspection and its building inspection, and Lanasa made the rounds to the permits office, health department and circuit court to finalize the license.
Sandwiches Hit the Counter the Night Before Opening
Pressed began preparing food on a Wednesday night, started taking orders on Oct. 28, and opened to walk-in customers the next day, according to the outlet. The shop is now open Wednesday through Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., offering cold and hot sandwiches, snacks and drinks, along with advance online ordering. The menu rotates, but Baltimore Fishbowl reported two current offerings: a Crandaddy with roasted turkey, cranberry pesto, spinach and swiss on ciabatta for $6, and an F&M Press with fig jam, Manchester Fungi oyster mushrooms, red onion and spinach on sourdough for $12.
Levan, who worked with Lanasa at Peabody, joined Pressed as both an employee and a business partner, as The Banner reported ahead of the opening. That outlet also noted the storefront at 3528 Chestnut Ave. was previously home to Maillard Patisserie, and that Lanasa wanted Pressed to serve affordable, healthy food — pointing to a tuna salad sandwich he hoped to offer for just $7 as an example of that goal.
A Chef Who Has Done This Before
Lanasa is a self-trained chef who began opening businesses around 2011, and he told Baltimore Fishbowl he opened his first restaurant at age 21. The Banner reported that first venture was Towson’s Court Towers Cafe, followed later by a Fleet Street eatery called B3. The Capital Gazette covered the shop days before its launch, describing Lanasa and Levan as opening Pressed the following week after less than a month of planning, with sandwiches, salads and snacks on the way.
Beyond the speed of the build-out, Lanasa has framed Pressed around a particular philosophy of ownership. He said he believes in being a working owner-operator with a worker-focused business approach, and that Pressed can offer more competitive prices by not seeking profit outside its labor force. He also said he plans to return a smaller share of earnings to himself and give more to employees, adding that he opposes discrimination and believes businesses can be built in a better way.
Lanasa is already looking past the opening rush. He said he is considering nutritious, affordable breakfasts, hopes to grow Pressed through catering, and wants to offer affordable dinners sized for families of four to six people to heat at home. The shop also plans to work on family meal plans and affordable meals for neighbors, according to Baltimore Fishbowl’s reporting.
