Lifelong entrepreneur Doris Glasper has always worked hard to make a new business idea a reality. While previous businesses have taken her as far as China, for her latest venture, Glasper decided to stay closer to home. In February, she opened Asa Bella Market and Delicatessen in Brentwood, a cozy neighborhood destination tucked into the shopping center at the corner of Empire and Lone Tree, behind the Arco station.

Asa Bella is cozy and inviting. The delicatessen features handmade sandwiches on your choice of bread. Standard sandwich toppings include mayonnaise, mustard, thinly sliced red onions, tomato, fresh lettuce and a generous helping of pepperoncini. If your tastes gravitate to other options, don’t worry. “We make a sandwich your way,” Glasper said. “You tell us what you want – or don’t want – on it and we’ll make it for you.”

Glasper is eager to give her customers what they want. “One person asked for bologna,” she remembered, laughing about the store’s opening day. Instead of bologna, Glasper had chosen to offer hard-to-find meats such as pancetta. “But we learned from that, and now we’ve got the best bologna for our customers.”

Asa Bella’s deli meats and cheeses, displayed in full view, include turkey, ham and cheddar as well as Italian favorites such as spicy cappicola, prosciutto and provolone. The meat and cheese for each sandwich is cut fresh for every sandwich to ensure quality. “All of our bread comes freshly baked from a bakery in Pittsburg,” Glasper’s son LaRue said as he assembled a sandwich.

To accompany an Asa Bella sandwich, the market provides an array of popular beverages and snack foods. One of the store’s more unique offerings is Activate, a new type of vitamin-enhanced water in which the vitamins and water are stored separately. The drink is popular with her customers, especially the ones that work nearby. “I’ve had quite a few people coming by just to grab this,” she said.

The market currently offers wine and beer. “We’re also working with local wineries to stock their wines here,” said Glasper, expressing enthusiasm for working with the community. The store will be offering a wine tasting showcasing local wines on Saturday, March 26. Glasper plans on expanding her current offerings by adding popular spirits and hard liquors.

Asa Bella Market and Deli, located at 2415 Empire Road in Brentwood, is open seven days a week from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.