Mr. and Mrs. Chandler have been married for over 40 years. They have lived and raised their family in Knoxville. In 1997 Gwen Chandler was working at Levi's when they relocated their Knoxville plant. in 2000 as Charles Chandler was nearing retirement form K-25, the Chandlers began thinking of what they would like to do next.

Charles had always had a passion for curing meats and wanted to do that full time. After they were unable to find a suitable facility they decided to look into doing something else. One afternoon while giving his youngest daughter a driving lesson Mr. Chandler saw a building for sell. After looking at the building they wanted to do something simple - sandwiches. While doing the paperwork they decided on the name Chandler's Del. One day while looking for something to eat Charles realized that there were not any family restaurants where you could get a home cooked meal in the area. After thinking about it the Chandlers decided to do a full menu, dine-in restaurant.  

The Chandlers wanted something they could do part-time and something the whole family could be involved in. The Chandler's own personal skills fit perfectly into their new plan. Mr. Chandler loved to BBQ and Mrs. Chandler was a great cook.

On May 19, 2000 Chandler's Deli was opened for business!