stevez wrote:

GardenofEatin wrote:And Potbelly's, IMO, isn't all that bad. A roast beef with Italian seasoning and giardinara can be a fine thing.

Potbelly's is not even in the same class. They are a huge step up from bottom of the barrel sub shops like Subway, Quizno's and JJ's. They are in a middle tier between pure crap and handcrafted goodness ala Bari, Riviera, etc.

Ah, crap, I should have qualified my statement by saying JJ's is the best of the fast food cold subs places. Potbelly's is my favorite all-around fast-food sub place (I FAR prefer it to Quizno's). I simply detest Subway. The signature Subway smell makes me want to puke.

I personally don't understand the intense dislike towards JJ's here--most people I know like them just fine. They're bland, but not actively offensive. I feel the same way about a place like, say, Chipotle (which I actually do avoid at all costs, although I know it gets some love here.) Bland, but not offensive, as opposed to Taco Bell (and Mr. Sub or Subway for me) which actively insults my taste buds. I suppose it helps that I actually like the cottony sandwich bread JJ's uses.

Then again, maybe being a delivery driver unexpectedly skewed my tastes for them and imbued me with some weird college nostalgia. McDonald's is my favorite fast food hamburger place for much the same reasons--it takes me back to a certain time a place.

Upon tasting her first bahn mi from BaLe yesterday, my dear 19 yo daughter said the bread tasted just like JJ's. Fortunately I was not looking at her, for lightning bolts shot out of my eyes, incinerating the toaster, and I snatched the sandwich out of her hands. Then again, I too loved Subway at 19.

-ramon