You might have caught word of new sub shop floating around- Jersey Mike’s. The sandwich shop, located just off of Yankee Doodle, is attracting a lot of attention lately, so I went there to try it out for myself.

First impression? The place is small! I don’t think it was as big as the interior of Burgers and Bottles off of Lone Oak Road here in Eagan, but it definitely wasn’t as small as the inside of our local Subway or Rita’s Italian Ice near Northview Elementary school. It was a bit cramped, with tables taking up a lot of space in the center of the room. It didn’t help that the place was crowded when I was eating there, either. The line wound in and around the tables, so people were standing and waiting in line about a foot from my table. This made for an awkward and unpleasant dining experience.

However, Jersey Mike’s still delivered in a lot of ways. As a customer, it was nice to be able to see the staff making my sub right in front of me and being able to control what went into it. It’s the same setup as you’d see at most Subways – a sort of sandwich assembly line, piling on ingredients as it moves along. The meat and cheese was even freshly sliced before my eyes. The staff was also extremely friendly and cheerful. The fact that they were so friendly made my experience a lot better.

Now, onto the food. I had the #8 Club Sub with turkey, ham, provolone cheese, bacon, and mayonnaise. The ingredients were not stacked very well, so it was hard to hold together as I was eating without things falling out. It was overflowing and a bit messy. The spice the bread came with had a strong flavor and didn’t taste bad. The bread itself was not too substantial- a bit mushy, but not quite wet. A friend who ordered the meatball and cheese sub complained that the sauce soaked into the bread and made it a bit too moist for her liking. She did enjoy the meatballs, though. My sub, overall, did taste fine. The meat and cheese was especially good – I could tell they were fresh. My only objection was that it seemed to me they put too many onions on- The bitter flavor was too much for me, so I pulled some out.

Each sub came wrapped in an individual paper bag, which looked nice, but didn’t serve much of a practical purpose. I discovered that there was a large amount of waste paper and packaging, which disheartened me. I felt as if they could be much, much more eco-friendly by making a few simple changes. The Jersey themed decor on the walls was a nice touch, though- it was bright and made the place feel more open, spacious, and welcoming. Browsing their website afterward, I found that the sandwiches looked nothing like they did on the menu- neatly stacked and visually appealing. The food I received failed to please me in looks, but it made up for it in flavor.

I walked out of the place not quite knowing what to think of it. It wasn’t mind-blowing or fantastic, but it certainly wasn’t bad. Would I go there again? Sure, given the chance. But would I rather go to another place such as Subway or Jimmy John’s? To be honest, yes. The food at those places seems much more flavorful, substantial, organized, and appealing to me overall. But perhaps that it just because I’ve frequented those locations so many times before. This was only my first visit to Jersey Mike’s, after all, and I only sampled one menu item out of many. After all, there are many variables that change how you view a restaurant. This new location definitely has it’s pros and cons, but I’m no professional: I encourage you to decide for yourself. So go on and give it a try: I’m sure they’ll be happy to have you drop by.