Gastown | Vancouver

If you often find the array of options on some restaurant menus overwhelming, don’t fear — a slew of new independent eateries are reining in their options to focus on a few select dishes, allowing customers to reap the epicurean rewards.

In the historic neighborhood of Gastown in Vancouver, British Columbia, the modern-industrial (1) Meat & Bread (370 Cambie St., www.meatandbread.ca) serves just four sandwiches — three meat-based and one cheese — each made with ciabatta bread and accompanied by a dollop of house-made mustard on the side. The Porchetta, made from slow-roasted free-range pork, is especially stellar. New York’s hole-in-the-wall (2) This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef (149 1st Ave., www.thislittlepiggynyc.com) makes choosing simple with four namesake selections, This Way, That Way, Something Else and the Other Thing — pastrami on rye. The sandwich you pick depends on your preferences of sauce, cheese (Whiz or real) and bread. And in Portland, Ore., the beloved (3) Grilled Cheese Grill (www.grilledcheesegrill.com) recently opened its second location — a retired English double-decker bus serves as its dining room. Though offering twice the seating of the original’s repurposed school bus, the new Southeast eatery boasts the same mouthwatering menu that made its predecessor famous: nearly two-dozen variations of the grilled cheese, ranging from the classic Kindergartener, with white bread and cheddar, to the Babs, with a gourmet helping of bacon, apples, blue cheese and swiss sandwiched between two slices of marble rye.