Firehouse Subs
http://www.firehousesubs.com/

I have heard a lot of good things about Firehouse Subs from readers on the blog and general buzz around town once it opened.   I hate most chain subs as they mostly have low quality meat and very little of it as well.   I was running short on time and grabbed this one in Atlanta, GA.   IndianapolisEater had the Italian Sub and seemed to like it quite a bit.  I thought that I would be crazy and…try the exact same thing.

What I Ate:  The Italian Sub.  Drinks and chips brought the combo around $8.50.

Geona salami, pepperoni, ham, melted provolone, Italian dressing and seasoning.  I took a look under the hood and I thought that the bread to meat ratio was pretty fair for a chain.  Quality of the ingredients was decent.  For as many salty meats that were on the sub, this wasn’t very salty.   I really didn’t like the Italian Dressing.  I far prefer oil and vinegar.  It tasted cheap, which was a shame.   With 2430mg of sodium, you would think it would taste salty.  Yes, that is more than two Big Macs of salt.  Yikes.

Would I Buy It Again?  No to the Italain.  Firehouse, probably.   I didn’t love this sandwich.  All of you know that I can’t stand Subway and this was surely better than that.   If I had $8 for a sub, I would probably pick Firehouse over Jimmy John’s, but Jason’s Deli would probably get my business for the chain sub market.  Plus, this sandwich is horrible for you packing in 910 calories and 57g of fat.

-wibia

Greek Tony’s Pizza and Sub Shop
1732 East 116^th Street
Carmel, IN 46032

For a year, I rented a place near Tony’s and I frequently visited for my ritual Friday night pizza.  Although it does not make my list of top 2-3 pizza places, it is a solid local choice offering a good variety of pizzas that are heavily covered with toppings and a good thin crust.  Although I always carry out, the inside is very casual with a dated décor including checkered table coverings and environment that just does not feel all that clean.  You serve yourself your own drinks and the only service is someone dropping your food off at your table making Tony’s a carry-out destination for me.  On this trip to Tony’s, I decided to try a couple of subs from their large range of choices.

What I Ate:

Tony’s subs can be ordered as a half ranging in price from $4.30-$4.90 or a whole usually around $9.

Stromboli Sub (half):  I am always on the lookout for a good Stromboli and recently had a good one that I reviewed at Lennie’s in Bloomington, Indiana.  The Stromboli at Tony’s was a more traditional Stromboli on a soft white bread that tasted so fresh that it reminded me of bread made in house even though Tony’s does not seem like the kind of place that would make their own.  The Stromboli had a heavy layer of Italian Sausage that had good seasoning and was ground to the texture that I like on a Stromboli.  Although the ingredients listed green peppers and onion, there was so little on the sub that the meat overpowered any taste the vegetables may have given.  The sub had a thin layer of cheese that was sufficient but the sub was very dry with only a small amount of red sauce.  All of this combined with the sub being served lukewarm on a day when they were not busy left me disappointed.

Italian Sub (half):  Although I favor a good cold Italian sub, on this day I decided to try Tony’s toasted version.  Like the Stromboli, this sub was served lukewarm at best.  I tasted the meats individually on this sub in an effort to try and determine what they actually were and what kind of quality they had individually.  I believe the meat on the top in the picture is a Capicola which comes from the shoulder or neck and usually packs nice flavor as a fattier meat.  The quality was low missing most of the flavor that one would enjoy from a good Capicola.  Below that was just a basic pepperoni and my least favorite meat, bologna.  A good quality bologna has potential but this was just some average process bologna you could buy anywhere.

Under the meat was a heavy layer of head lettuce, which for me is always a big turn off.  If that wasn’t bad enough, some of it was turning brown as it was clearly on its last day.  Under all the ingredients was a layer of what must have been 5-6 tablespoons of mayo that shot out from all sides when I took my first bite completely overpowering any other ingredient on the sub making it almost tasteless.  I have had some bad subs over the years but this one ranked among the worst I have ever had and I ended up throwing almost all of it out even after scraping off a good amount of the mayo.  Where were the onions or some vinegar and oil like you find on a good Italian like you might get at Jersey Mike’s?  Dreadful!

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes for pizza, but no for Tony’s subs. When the best part of your meal is the bread, much like the breadsticks at Olive Garden, it is not saying much for the product.  The subs were lukewarm at best when served and either had too much in condiments or too little sauce in the case of the Stromboli, and lack proportional distribution of ingredients as any good sub should have.  If you visit Tony’s, stick with the pizza.

-EatHSE

Albano’s Villa
1612 Franklin St.
Michigan City, IN 46360

Food is a vehicle at times, it can take you back to a place that you fondly remember.  Sometimes you share this with treasure with other people and they don’t get it, other times they do.  I grew up eating Albano’s Villa.  If I had to define pizza, it would be this pizza…just based on the fact that I have had about a football field’s worth.  Every time I visit my mom, we pick up Albano’s and I don’t ever see that changing.

Family owned since 1957 and if you want to know how good it is, they DO NOT DELIVER!!   53 years without delivery, wow.

Large Pizza:  $11.00 + .80 a topping.  This was sausage, pepperoni, mushroom and extra sauce.

This pizza is the bomb.  Honestly, one of my favorite pizzas that I have ever had.  The sausage is in hand pulled chunks and extra fennel-y, the sauce is zesty and the pepperoni is nice and salty.   Cornmeal dusting on the bottom.  The crust is what chains would sell as hand tossed.  You can’t fold this pie!  Now, I know that you see those canned mushrooms.  I know what you are thinking..and you have every right to but for some odd reason, they work here.

The pizza is cut in half and then strips.  Not sure what that does, but I have had it cut like a pie before and…no dice.  If I make a frozen pizza at home, I cut it this way!

Hot Submarine: 12′ $8.00

There is crack in this thing.   Seriously.  Bottom of the lunch counter meat.  To be honest with you, I am not sure what kind of meat is on here.  I really don’t even look at it, I just shove it in my face.  I am going to guess, pepperoni, ham, and salami.  Then onions, banana peppers, their awesome sauce and cheese that sticks to the paper.   It doesn’t sound that good, but trust me, it is top shelf.

Would I Buy It Again?   Yes.  Hall of Fame. If you go there, you might not get it.  The place has done lights out business for 53 years and counting.  I love their food and will continue to eat it for as long as they are open.  I took a girlfriend home to visit family and we got Albano’s and I asked her how she liked the pizza and she said, “um…it is ok…”  OK?!?!   I knew at that point, it was game over for that relationship.   I still can’t tell if my wife likes Albano’s of if she just likes seeing how happy I am when I am eating it.  Either way, I’ll take it.

-WIBIA

Love the t-shirt.

1/2 of a regular

Jersey Mike’s Subs

http://www.jerseymikes.com/

They closed in Indy for about a year and it made me cry. I wish that I was joking.

What I Ate: #13 Original Italian Sub. Regular Size $6.89
Provolone, ham, prosciuttini, cappacuolo, salami, pepperoni.
Mike’s way is Onions, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Vinegar, Oil & Spices.
I add extra banana peppers… just how I roll.

This is an awesome sub. Meat and cheese are fresh cut out of the case. Toppings are always fresh year round. What else is there to say?

Would I Buy It Again: Yes, easily. It is my favorite cold sub from a chain. JM’s are all across the country, if you run into one…stop by and throw down a #13.

Instead: Lenny’s Sub Shop has a similar sub. Both are levels above the competition.

Rambling: I have never had anything else form Jersey Mikes. My wife used to get the Turkey, she now gets the #13. List your favorite at Jersey Mike’s and I might have to try something different.

-WIBIA