Expedition-
My first quest is to the
growing community of Naperville, where Potbelly's has set the standard for not
only its superb sandwiches but addictive shakes and remarkable soups.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Potbelly’s Brings A Full Belly
A couple buddies and I wanted to try
something different from the average Subway and Jimmy John’s sandwich shops. So
we decided to up the ante and check out a local Potbelly's, which happened to
be in Naperville. Before we took the twenty-five minute trip, we did some research
on apps and the restaurant website.
Potbelly's was originally an antique shop
that was converted into sandwich shop and took up its’ name from the potbelly
stove. From the Potbelly’s website we were able to view a menu, which was quite
limited compared to our norm sandwich shops. After much debate and a 2 to 1
vote; Potbelly's was our destination.
Walking into to Potbelly’s my first
impression was a warm and welcoming décor, which was mainly dark colored woods
and a warm paint scheme. I then took notice to the line of people waiting to
order and thought "This might take a while". But surprisingly it took
me longer to figure out my order than wait in line. The line of people spoke volumes
that I was in for a good experience.
At this visit to Potbelly's I ordered a
great variety of food to get a well-rounded experience of their food. My
order included the following: The Italian Sandwich, with a bag of Zapp's Sour
Cream and Onion Chips, a side of chili, a large vanilla shake, and to top it
off a Dream Bar.
The Big Italian sandwich consist of Capicola, Mortadella, Pepperoni, Salami, Provolone Cheese infused together by the toaster to create an amazing sub that is steal for $6.00. My friend had the Pizza sandwich which was good but not as good as the Italian.
I added a bag of Zapp’s Sour Cream and Onion to add crunch to my meal for a $1.10.
I passed up the drink combo and ordered a large vanilla shake which ranks #1 on my “Top Milk Shake List.” If you’ve never had a Potbelly’s shake, you are not truly living. I highly recommend you try at least the regular shake for $3.00 but I know you’re going to kick yourself for not getting the large ($6.00) after your initial sip.
I ordered a side of chili but didn’t care too much for it. I regretted getting the chili after I tried my friends’ enchilada soup of the day which was a taste bud sensation. The soup of the day is $2.60 whereas regular soup is $3.50.
To top off my lunch I couldn’t resist a sweet treat. So once I laid eyes on the Dream Bar, which is a soft-squared cookie that has chocolate chunks, caramel chunks, and oatmeal oats. The Dream Bar in my opinion was a little too much to handle and the cookie was very doughy. Next time I think I’ll settle for the ice cream sandwich since Potbellies in known for their sandwiches.
The Service
Potbelly’s had a full line of people to serve my entire visit there but they kept the line moving and the food was worth the 10 minute wait. The employees were very personable for the 2 minutes I interact with them. Although the employees were nice they had no answer to where the live music was.
Cost:
Paying for quality food always hurts your wallet, but at Potbelly’s you don’t have to cringe when reaching for your wallet. If I didn’t go overboard with my meal, then I wouldn’t have spent $18 but its “eat big then go home” for this guy, so that’s what I did! With $10 you also can enjoy a well deserved lunch.
Overall Expirence
My overall experience at Potbelly’s was greater than any other sandwich shop has ever offered. They really do live up to their motto of “Good Vibes, and Great Sandwiches.” But the only problem with Potbelly’s is that they scheduled live music between 12pm to 1:30pm on the Saturday I visited but there wasn’t any live music which was what I was looking forward to. I had the image painted in my head of eating a mouthwatering sub to a good tune and enjoying my day off but Potbelly’s fell short there. Some highlights that are worth revisiting Potbelly’s were the crunch of the bread with the contrast of a smooth shake to really knock some sense into your taste buds.
Personal Rate
Menu: 4 out 5
Service: 4 out 5
Taste: 5 out 5
Cost: 4 out 5
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