Everyone has a favorite Sub Sandwich. Some combination of meats and toppings that you always look forward to and order. They are often found (under various names) at all the chain Sub shops. I always look first for a sandwich with roast beef and perhaps another meat too. Or I look for a combo of turkey and ham on a sandwich.
My specific top three are
Jimmy Johns calls a Bootlegger Roast beef, turkey breast, lettuce, tomato & mayo. I tell them no tomato and add provolone cheese
Jimmy Johns Hunter Club - Double roast beef, provolone, lettuce, tomato & mayo. again, no tomato
pretty much the same sandwich except the Bootlegger has turkey on it too. yeah, I like roast beef. A lot,
Jasons Deli - Club Royale - ham, turkey beast, bacon, Swiss and cheddar cheese lettuce, tomato & honey mustard on a Croissant. hold that tomato.
nice change of pace from my other two sandwiches.
we never visit Subway. Neither me or my wife like all the veggies they try to pile on a sandwich.
Classic Italian Hero. Ham Cappicola, Genoa Salami, Provolone, onions, roasted peppers, oil & vinegar.
Meatball Parm Hero, with extra mozzarella.
I love a good New Orleans po’ boy, fully dressed. I find I can get these in New York if I order Black Forest ham and Swiss cheese (roast beef add-on is optional)…put it in the oven until the cheese melts, then…tomato, shredded lettuce, onion, pickles, mustard, and mayonnaise.
I went to college in New Haven, Connecticut. I still dream about the grinders at Yorkside Pizza on York Street. Particularly the hot Tuna grinder with rat cheese (white cheddar popular in southern New England), “just enough tuna to hold the mayonnaise together,” shredded lettuce, tomato, and onion. I cannot get this in New York, but New Haven is only two hours away.
Philly Cheesesteak. These are all over NYC these days. They may not be as good as they are in Philadelphia, but they are still DAMN good.
Any kind of Italian-style sub. At some places, this will lead to multiple possibilities, but typically what I look for is capicolla, salami, and provolone, so whatever is closest to that.
The local place has a sub called an “Avogobble.” Turkey and cheese with avocado. Quite tasty. Of the chains, my tastes tend towards Jersey Mike’s Big Kahuna Chicken and Subway’s Meatball.
Picking a sandwich from a sub or deli menu always takes some thought. I always start with what meat is on it. Then the toppings. Figure out one I can eat with minimal changes.
I like a chicken salad sandwich once in awhile. But only if I’m convinced it’s made fresh at the restaurant.
Last resort, I ignore the menu and just ask for a ham sandwich. They can usually whip up one of those.
Back thirty years ago, Pizza Hut had a very good Italian sub sandwich. I can’t recall what was on it, but it was delicious. I haven’t been in a Pizza Hut in at least 15 years. Don’t know if they still have that same sub or not.
firehouse subs has a meatball with cheese, broiled, that is really good. Why other folks’ meatball sub doesn’t turn out as well, I can’t say. this is richly flavored, great texture, etc.
I want an Italian sub. Some kind of ham, salami, and provolone. Lettuce, tomato, onions, some dressing. There’s plenty of other subs that are good, but when I think of a sub or a hero or a hoagie or a wedge or a grinder or any other variation of the name, I think of an Italian sub.
I like tuna salad with just lettuce and onion. No other toppings or condiments. Or, turkey with lettuce and mustard. I like roast beef too, but I never order it when I’m out because I’d have to deconstruct it, peel off any icky fat globs, and put it back together. Not a very attractive sight for others to watch, so I just eat roast beef sandwiches at home. When I do, I just like mustard on them.
My favorite sub shop by far is a chain, but sadly not one that exists within about a 100-mile drive of where I live. It’s called Port of Subs, and my favorite sandwich there is a #5 (smoky cheddar, ham, and turkey) with extra cheese (provolone) on white.
I am irrationally happy any time we have to drive anywhere close to where there’s a Port of Subs, because I get to have my #5. Every six months or so I hopefully check their website to see if they’ve opened any locations within reasonable driving distance, but so far they continue to disappoint me.
Of the stuff we actually have around here, I like Which Wich.
Subway and Jersey Mike’s are icky (the latter’s white roll tastes like Milk Bones. And yes, I have eaten a Milk Bone in my misspent youth. )
There’s a tasty place in San Luis Obispo called Kona’s–we usually eat there when we go down to visit (it’s our college town).
I’ll go for an Italian sub with pepperoni and salami (no capicola for me, thanks). Lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, hot peppers, provolone, mayo, oil and vinegar.
We have a local chain called Meconi’s that makes subs the east coast say and does one exactly like that, that’s both cheaper and bigger than a similar sandwich at Subway.
Wherever I go… chain or local, I look for anything called Italian. I like many others, but usually on my first visit anywhere I’ll pick the Italian and see if it stacks up enough to come back and try another.
)