Potbelly has this routine down the right way - a big sign in each restaurant that says "Hot Peppers - 0 cents," and little tubs at the ready at the register. They're pretty good, as well. One of the reasons Achatz wanted Potbelly at the Taste of Chicago instead of some of the nonsense currenty represented:

http://chicagoist.com/2006/07/06/taste_ ... _class.php

LTH,

A nephew on my wife's side bought a couple of JJ franchises in a college town after which he would ask, every time he saw me, how I liked JJ's. After the 5th or 6th time I said I hadn't had the pleasure I finally tried a JJ's. My recollection is spongy bread with a slight sour yeast scent, rock bottom cold cuts and cheese that did not come from happy cows.

Cheap, sure, fast, you bet-cha, but JJ's makes Potbelly look like fine dining in comparison. I should point out that my JJ's v Potbelly comparison is based on one, and one only, visit to each establishment. Take my opinion for what you will.

Enjoy,
Gary

I dont think anyone is arguing JJ's over Potbelly...I went to the original potbelly often when it was a real gem and as far as its fallen its still very edible and one of the better options. But again JJ's compared to Subway is good.

I think that the chicagoist in that link up above is dead on. People dont come to the taste for fine dining thats going to cost 14 tickets for a plate of edible art...Johnnies? Bari? yea they belong at the taste but fine dining and Potbelly do not. Potbelly is available in every city/suburb that people visiting the taste come from, they wouldnt eat there and something tells me the toasting of the sandwichs would not go over well with crowds. Im not saying that some of the places in the taste now are good and should be there but Potbellys doesnt belong either. Quite frankly Aschatz and Trotter sound "obnoxious" the taste is about the legendary Chicago street food and thats why people come. Isnt there already like a "fine dining gourmet fest" in Aspen or somewhere? Now that I think about it, maybe Trotters to go would be a nice addition to the taste but it still wouldnt be a reason people come down and plan a weekend out of it.

Well have to add my 2 pennies.
I dislike JJ as well. Ate their once and was utterly disapointed. Good bread, with little meat, lettuce, and sh**loads of mayo.
I have to place them in a tie for last with Subway, which I hate on many levels.
Then I go up to Quizno's though I was originally turned off by the place because of the commercials where the fat old guy in his underwear is making your sub. Still sends shivers down my spine
That leaves me with Pot bellies. Which I think makes a pretty decent sammy.

Since pennies seem to be coming in from everyone in pairs, I'll add mine. While I truly dislike Subway, something about seeing rainbows on their meats (oxidation) just doesn't do anything for me (although I do like the pretty colors). Also, the bread at Subway is really terrible...everything seems like white bread just in different hues. I don't think JJ is anything special either but I do like their bread, which is damningly faint praise admittedly. However, I think I dislike Potbellies the most of all. Granted this is based on a one time visit from me, and the wife swears by the chicken salad salad (salad salad just seems wrong on some level). I tried the roast beef from Potbellies and the only way to describe the actual roast beef is if you were to take Arby's "roast beef" and soak it in milk. It had almost no flavor and the consistency was appalling, the meat seemed to sort of disolve. Not pleasant at all...I actually took the rest of the meat off to eat the bread.

I used to be a JJ fan back when it was just getting its grip when I was a college youngster. now, I'll be at potbelly for a sammich and a cookie 100% of the time if I have to choose between PB, JJ, and SW. My little secret is that the potbelly oatmeal choc chip cookie makes up for the bad (but still better than others') sammy. I have a very unhealthy addiction to their oatmeal cookies. Maybe it's just me, but I REALLY think those PB cookies are some of the best around as far as a chain desert/snack item.

Wow - tough crowd!

Each within a block of my office is a Jimmy John's, Potbelly, and a subway. Potbelly is the closest, literally next door, and I like them the least. I think the quality of their sandwiches has dropped lately. Potbelly is even beat out by the unholy Subway but Jimmy John's is on top.

Ah, the Turkey Tom, no mayo, extra cucumbers(no charge). Freaky fast, freaky good.

I wouldn't just go there if I had a hankering for a sandwich though - I go there purely out of necessity. I'm hungry, don't want to traipse around the loop, and it's cheap. It hits everything I need and is still quite enjoyable.

My problem with JJs is strictly that it is too darned expensive. Nearly five bucks for a sub is just too much for lunch

jlawrence01 wrote:My problem with JJs is strictly that it is too darned expensive. Nearly five bucks for a sub is just too much for lunch

Yeah, but every 11th one is gratis...

DMChicago wrote:

jlawrence01 wrote:My problem with JJs is strictly that it is too darned expensive. Nearly five bucks for a sub is just too much for lunch

Yeah, but every 11th one is gratis...

So that brings down the average price to like 4.75?

I don't what JJ's you guys are going to, but you make it sound like they're forcing you all to have mayo on your subs. You do have the option of ordering it how you want it, just like any other sub place. It's not my favorite all time place, but everyone once in while, the veggie, with guac, tomatoes, cukes, provolone, sprouts, and GREY POUPON - (yes, they have THAT) is pretty delicious. The tuna with sliced cukes is also quite good, (and dijon mustard, of course). I ate there a lot in college, too, so part of the attraction is solely nostaglia.

In the area where I work, Bensenville, there are not many sandwich choices nearby. Subway, JJ's and a local place, Mario's. My expectations are not high for a lunchtime sammy out here. I like JJ's just fine for what it is: Fast, cheap and convenient. I'll do the occasional Subway and Mario’s can be good but they are slooooooooooooooooooooow. I need my sandwich fast so I can go park and watch the planes landing at O'Hare!

Oh, and I like the BBQ Jimmy Chips…

naperwino wrote:I don't what JJ's you guys are going to, but you make it sound like they're forcing you all to have mayo on your subs. You do have the option of ordering it how you want it, just like any other sub place. It's not my favorite all time place, but everyone once in while, the veggie, with guac, tomatoes, cukes, provolone, sprouts, and GREY POUPON - (yes, they have THAT) is pretty delicious. The tuna with sliced cukes is also quite good, (and dijon mustard, of course). I ate there a lot in college, too, so part of the attraction is solely nostaglia.

Obviously i am far from an expert, but i sure did not see the grey poupon option in place of mayo. Maybe i will try it again. To me, the redeeming features of fast food subs are the quality of the meats and the inspiration of the sauces. Given that ( and it is not much, but it is a fast lunch while I drive) Quiznos is hard to beat. If you want to spend a whole lot of money, Panera and Cosi are better.

I detest Jimmy John's. Rubbery bread, tasteless fillings, and the sandwiches seem to hemmorhage oil onto my desk whenever I try to eat one. I could also do without the unbelievably patronizing crap on the walls.

Milio's Sandwiches and Erbert & Gerbert's, which are owned by cousins of Jimmy John Liautaud and operate mostly in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, do the whole cheap, fast sandwich thing much better.

1. While most of JJ's sandwiches are bland as hell, the Gargantuan is a solid sandwich and a pretty good value at 7.99 or whatever it is now.

2. Unless it's a Gargantuan, I only get sandwiches on their wheat bread instead of the french roll. Thick cut, moist and fairly tasty even if the meat and cheese inside isn't.

3. The choice of all the different breads now at Subway has upped them a few notches in my book. I strictly order the roasted chicken sub, run through the garden and with extra peppers (giard, banana, and jalapenos).

4. The JJ's chips are pretty damn good, and while the sandwiches are now slightly overpriced after the recent increase the chips are a generous portion and good value.

5. The upcharges for peppers, etc. at JJ's drive me nucking futs...on my last visit two sandwiches (with minimal modifications) and two bags of chips came out to $16 and change. Pretty sure the manager/owner ringing me up snuck a BS charge on there, and like an idiot I walked out with no questons asked and he conveniently didn't offer me a receipt with my change.

Tony_Spilotro wrote:3. The choice of all the different breads now at Subway has upped them a few notches in my book. I strictly order the roasted chicken sub, run through the garden and with extra peppers (giard, banana, and jalapenos).

Haven't been to a subway in a while. I recall all of the "new" bread choices simply the same loaf of wonder bread with some "ingredient" sprinkled on top - like:
oats (whole grain bread!)
Italian seasoning mix (Herbed bread!)
Bad parmesan cheese (Italian Cheese Bread!)
And my favorite one was:
Corn meal (French Bread!)
To me, this does not make up for the fact that they still use whipped and reshaped meat style products instead of meat. They even paint a ring around their "turkey breast" so it appears as though it has some type of "skin." Sorry, not for me. Don't know what it is, do you? I have had turkey before, and it most certainly is NOT what Subway serves. Same with their roast beef. And they use that awful, vile sugary super sweet glop to make their tuna, chicken, and "seafood" (bwahahah!) salads. EEEEWWW. Just plain revolting. it's like have a seafood flavored ice cream with onions and celery sprinkled in it. not sure how sugary tuna appeals to the masses, but more power to them, I guess. How sad a time when I choose potbelly over other sandwiches because their roast beef is more similar to an actual meat than the others. I remember back in the day when JJ used to have real roast beef.....good times, good times.

I've heard somewhere that all the meats at Subway are from some kind of turkey-based product/substance.

I'll put it this way, if I am in a pinch, and their is not a good deli close by, I will go to Jimmy Johns.

I cant say the same for: Quizno's, Potbelly, Cosi, Subway, or Panera, all places I would never eat.

seebee wrote: And they use that awful, vile sugary super sweet glop to make their tuna, chicken, and "seafood" (bwahahah!) salads.

eh, im pretty sensitive to sweet stuff and i don't think their tuna is that sweet man

lougord99 wrote:Obviously i am far from an expert, but i sure did not see the grey poupon option in place of mayo.

It's under the "freebies"...it says "Dijon Mustard". All you have to say is "No mayo. Mustard". It's really that easy. If you don't want a ton of mayo, just say "Light mayo". You guys have ordered sandwiches before, right?

I don't get the outrage at the upcharges - they charge for extra meat and cheese (acceptable) and peppers. Everything else is free. It's all right there on the menu.

Eh, I guess I've never had an issue with the ordering process there or the resulting sandwich.

Evan B. Druce wrote:Milio's Sandwiches and Erbert & Gerbert's, which are owned by cousins of Jimmy John Liautaud and operate mostly in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, do the whole cheap, fast sandwich thing much better.

Wow thats suprising...I have been to Milio's (formerly Big Mikes) in Madison and I just dont see how a place that literally jacked JJ's whole concept is better. To me Milio's-Big Mikes, whatever they are now was always something that wanted to be like JJ's and I dont know if thats a good thing....trying to be like an average place.

It's under the "freebies"...it says "Dijon Mustard". All you have to say is "No mayo. Mustard". It's really that easy. If you don't want a ton of mayo, just say "Light mayo". You guys have ordered sandwiches before, right?

I have ordered sandwiches on many occasions. However, one night on my way to class, I ordered a sandwich at JJ's and asked for "no mayo". The guy behind the counter gave me a hard time about it, telling me "but that's the way the sandwich is made." I thought he was joking. I got to class, opened my sandwich and found a huge amount of mayo on the sandwich.

I called the manager afterwards, just because I was so annoyed by it, who apologized for it.

I'm going to open a sandwich place called "Mayo's" and all the sandwiches will have mandatory extra mayo.

12345ne wrote:I have ordered sandwiches on many occasions. However, one night on my way to class, I ordered a sandwich at JJ's and asked for "no mayo". The guy behind the counter gave me a hard time about it, telling me "but that's the way the sandwich is made." I thought he was joking. I got to class, opened my sandwich and found a huge amount of mayo on the sandwich.

Okay, you got bullied by a sub shop guy?? That's another issue entirely not for this board. Just be assertive next time - say "NO MAYO" with a menacing fist. LOL.

I'm off to Jimmy John's for lunch today looking for a fight. I'm having no mayo AND extra cucumbers. If they try to say otherwise, they'll have a force to reckon with...they wouldn't like me when I'm hungry.

teatpuller wrote:I'm going to open a sandwich place called "Mayo's" and all the sandwiches will have mandatory extra mayo.

I'll be there

lol poor 12345ne... he was bullied into mayo by the revolution... mayoists!

MBK wrote:mayoists!

re the hot pepper upcharge.

it doesn't say it on the menu where i go. i don't know which sandwich i order, i think it's the vito. .. i've had both, but the one i'm talking about is the more expensive of the two. it's bland without the peppers.

i did look at the menu as i passed by, and it does list hot peppers under the "side items" ... on the sandwich itself, the description says "(Hot peppers by request)" ...but makes no mention that it's a 45-50 cent upcharge... and when they ask you what you want on it, and query "hot peppers?" as if it's free... that's A) slimey and B) not a side item, it's on the sandwich.

btw, their entire menu is online for each location, since you can order online

and their sandwich menu in general runs along this whole theme... case in point, there's multiple italian sandwiches... all with different prices... and you have to sit and study why the one is so much cheaper.. (oh, it's just one meat, and no cheese... and when they say that's it, they really mean it... no lettuce even on this one...ooooh ok)

and they're not banana peppers or anything close to what potbellys/subway/quiznos/etc has. i can eat banana peppers like they're olives. they're cherry peppers. and they're bizarrely firey... though i know of a lot of peppers that are even hotter that i regularly eat, so i'm at a loss as to why JJ's somehow manages to produce the only food item on the planet that routinely and consistantly makes me sick.... to the point where i thought i had food poisoning the first time. i wonder what they do to them when they pickle them..

I'm the only one in my family who likes JJ's.
I get the vegetarian. I happen to like just a plain cold sandwich with cheese, lettuce, tomato and I get some onion on it too. No guacamole. Only mustard no mayo.

One reason my daughter doesn't like it is because you can only get provolone cheese - no other type of cheese on the sandwich - like cheddar for instance.

I'll admit it..when above all else is equal..distance, price, and taste of co-workers /friends/so's/family members...
Pb's has some fine and quite spicy hot peppers / Giardenera for $0.00.