9 Sandwiches At Potbelly, Ranked

When I first started my career, I traveled constantly around the country reviewing restaurants and attending conferences. Wherever I went, I was greeted with immense amounts of food. Restaurant owners and chefs were proud of their creations, as they should have been, and they wanted to show them off. The foods were generally rich, indulgent, and heavy, and the trips were hectic and tiresome.

The only routine I had for many years was the Chicago airport I had to go through to grab a puddle jumper that would land me home. And that airport had a Potbelly. There I would seek refuge, a Diet Coke, and a peanut butter sandwich. It was simple. It was solace. It was easy on me, relaxing, and signaled that I would shortly be back where I belonged. So, Potbelly earned a very soft spot in my heart many years ago, and I was very excited at the chance to try the breadth of its menu.

If a peanut butter sandwich had been so impactful and pleasing, the other sandwiches had to be even more impressive. I expected great things from Potbelly's signature toasted sammies: fresh tastes, premium ingredients, and unique flair. Putting my own topping choices aside, I let Potbelly give me what it thought best and went looking for my new favorite sandwich — a warm meat and melted cheese creation that would take a spot in my heart and have me craving more. What I got was something more than surprising. 

I love chicken salad, especially when it comes on crusty, toasted bread. And I'm open to many ingredients being part of said chicken salad — grapes, nuts, green onion, celery, dressing, and mustard. I've had many different kinds. And while Potbelly doesn't say what all is in its chicken salad, it was easy to see that it was mayonnaise-based with chunks of celery, at the very least. But upon taking my first bite, I immediately feared I had been served tuna salad instead of chicken.

I checked the wrapper, which read chicken salad. I pulled a piece of the meat from the sandwich and pressed on it with a fork to see if it would flake. It did not. So, it didn't seem like it was tuna, but it didn't particularly taste like chicken. The celery was crisp in texture, but didn't add any flavor of its own either. There wasn't too much mayonnaise, which was good. The bread was a tasty whole grain, crispy, and flavorful. But bite after bite, something screamed tuna salad.

While I don't believe I was given the wrong sandwich, I do believe Potbelly needs to take another look at getting creative with its chicken salad. Possibly a more recognizable grilled chicken, another ingredient, or additional color. It definitely needs a flavor upgrade. But as it is, it's unrecognizable as chicken salad. And I undoubtedly will not be getting it again.

Oh, I do enjoy a nice chicken club. And I let Potbelly serve it up its way with its all-natural grilled chicken, cheddar, applewood smoked bacon, and nothing more. But as I was looking at the cross section, as I had requested the sandwich be cut in half, what was between the toasted bread had the visual presentation of egg salad: chucks of white with smaller bits of an orange-ish yolk color. On closer examination, obviously they were pieces of chicken with melted cheddar. However, the chicken, which was supposed to be all-natural, looked oddly both sliced and cubed.

Taking a bite, I noticed the texture of the chicken was strange. Along with the melted cheese, the chicken felt overly smooth between my teeth. There wasn't a meatiness or pull to it, and it felt pressed to the point of fluidity. It was a big turnoff. The flavor of the chicken, when I tasted a single piece, resembled something manufactured and artificial, as if it were something seasoned to taste like chicken.

The bacon was good, albeit slightly peppery. Pairing the bacon with the bread and the cheddar produced a great smoky, salty flavor that I could definitely get behind, but the chicken seemed like a very low-quality product that I wouldn't want to have again. And honestly, I didn't want to be having it at the time either. And while none of that was pleasing, it was at least recognizable, which places it above the chicken salad.

When plating this sandwich, I got a bit of marinara on my finger. Licking it off, the taste was warm, zesty, and rich. With just a small sample, it tasted generously spiced with a nice strong basil element. The smell of the sandwich was also delightful, hearty, and sat heavy in the air. I could see that beyond just the sauce there were chunks of tomato. And I was overly tempted to go in for a taste.

With just one bite an entire homestyle beef and pork meatball disappeared, as it was much smaller than I had expected. The meatball itself gave little to chew on, was salty, and tasted highly of parmesan. The salt hung on in the aftertaste with a bitter hesitance to dissipate, and I quickly sought out a bite of bread and sauce for a hopeful respite from the sharpness. What I got was an unwanted replacement.

The provolone had melted into the bread, and topped with marinara, produced a soggy texture where the chunks of tomato were lost, and a high concentration of basil came through. There was definitely flavor in this sandwich, but it was cutting and almost offensive. While the scent and slight teasing of the sauce hinted at something possibly homemade, this sandwich was sadly no better than one I would expect to get from the hot food section of a gas station. While it was better than the chicken, it really didn't have to try very hard to jump that bar.

As one might expect, this sandwich comes with a variety of cured meats — salami, pepperoni, capicola, and mortadella — and provolone cheese. What did surprise me was that it didn't automatically come with olive oil and red wine vinegar, a staple of a good Italian sub sandwich. So, I did right this and had it added, unlike the other subs, which I left as ordered.

I could visibly see the multiple layers of meat and cheese, but after taking my first bite, I realized I could not taste them. Bite after bite I only got pepperoni, a hint of fennel, and a spicy kick on the back end. I peeled the meats apart to taste them individually and was palatably shocked that the pepperoni had overwhelmed them all. Each one had lost its own flavor. Even the oil and vinegar were lost to the strong taste of the pepperoni.

The toasty bread, meats, and cheese, however, did give textures that were good, proper to all elements, and hearty. I feel like if this sandwich were built up with lettuce for texture, to net the oil and vinegar, and some pickle to add another level of texture and taste, this would be going somewhere. I don't know that it would go much further than a pepperoni sandwich, but I don't think I would dislike that. Overall, this sandwich wasn't bad, just not what was expected, which allows this one to rank higher than the lower sandwiches.

This prime rib steak sandwich comes with sliced prime rib, housemade caramelized onions, Swiss cheese, and garlic aioli. The aroma that wafted from its wrapper was heavenly and representative of all the tastes it promised. Giving it a once-over, I could see the cheese had melted and created a swirl throughout the middle, encircling the meat and visible rings of browned onion.

On my first bite, I thought, this is the kind of cheesesteak I've always wanted. While I like the idea of a Philly cheesesteak, I don't fully enjoy those specific ingredients as a whole. The peppers and onions always seem too chunky and not fully softened. And I'm not a huge fan of Cheez Whiz in the cheesesteak sandwich, or in general. But this was the flavor I'd hunted for: rich meat, smooth, slightly sharp cheese, and savory, sweet onions. Plus, there was a nice element of garlic from the aioli. The onions definitely elevated this sandwich and offered both taste and texture that were needed, even though the crusty bread held the highest textural element.

The flavor of this sandwich was very much on point, but the one thing that I didn't care for was the texture of the prime rib steak itself. The meat was overly soft between the teeth, almost the texture of a cold cut. It seemed to nearly match the melted Swiss in consistency. While the flavor was an improvement, this textural element took the level of ingredient quality down and doesn't allow this to rank higher.

This sandwich comes with slow-cooked pork barbecue, pickles, cheddar cheese, and a sweet heat barbecue sauce that is made with Potbelly's signature hot peppers. While my first bite did not garner me any of the barbecue sauce, I was able to get a nice chunk of the pulled pork. It was juicy, smoky, and tender and reminded me of something that would have come out of my own home smoker. I was impressed. And it's a good thing I was, because the rest of the elements were sparse at best.

I had to chase down the sauce, which ended up being more heat than sweet with a spicy kick that hung around for a few minutes. I also had to open the sandwich and remove the meat to find a paper-thin sliced pickle clinging sadly to the bread. And the cheddar, while visible, didn't add its signature rich sharpness in flavor.

Had this sandwich been piled higher with pickles, that vinegar and texture would have amplified the smoky aesthetics of the meat and paired exceptionally with the sauce, which also needed a good slathering. Had those elements been greater, the flavor would have been elevated, and so would the ranking of this sandwich. The meat seemed higher quality, unlike those ranked lower, and the taste was that of a low-and-slow-cooked pork, which I really appreciated. The bread was the perfect carrier, toasted to perfection. Everything is there; it just needs to be on the sandwich.

With salami, smoked ham, Swiss cheese, roast beef, and turkey on this sandwich, I understand how this could become a wreck. With so many toppings to add on, this could easily become colossal. And when I pulled the two halves away from each other, the Swiss held on tight and created a lovely, long melted string that none of the other sandwiches offered. It was quite enticing.

The Swiss introduced itself first to my palate, followed quickly by the ham. The roast beef seemed to come through on the end with a full and definitive beefy flavor. The bread stood out more in this selection, tasting fresher than the other ones. Perhaps because the cheese had been encased inside the meats and there was nothing to create a soggy aesthetic. I didn't get any hint of the turkey or the salami, so once again I went into dissecting the sandwich. The salami was incredibly subtle in flavor, which is why I hadn't been able to taste it on the Italian. The turkey had simply been overpowered by the roast beef and ham, with the ham being so strong it stuck around in the aftertaste.

This was a good sandwich, but it needs some help from lettuce, pickles, and possibly the hot pepper ranch Potbelly suggests trying with it — just to add some texture and a wider flavor profile. That is also why it doesn't rank higher on the list. However, I would order it over the ones ranked lower.

It seems hard to go wrong with such a simple sandwich as a BLTA, although it happens. The produce needs to both look and taste fresh. The bacon should be perfectly crispy and not seemingly microwaved, as so many sandwich shops tend to lean on. There's nothing worse than a piece of bacon you can't bite through that is almost all fat. Thankfully, for the most part, Potbelly got this one right.

The lettuce was ample and green, as well as crispy and refreshing to bite into. The avocado was thickly sliced, perfectly ripened, and had a not-too-firm feel between the teeth. The bacon was a good serving and looked pan-fried, darkly crisped, and evenly marbled. Although it did go a little too heavy on the peppering, leaving my mouth burning as if I'd bitten into an entire peppercorn. But it was otherwise a lovely, salty accompaniment to the other elements. The tomatoes were rather thin and very pale, however, which does happen when they are out of season, but should be manageable with a good produce house.

All of the different textures were present, and the bread was just the right size to balance out all the flavors. I would have liked to have tasted some mayonnaise on the sandwich, as that was missing. Had the bacon stepped back from the pepper and the tomato been both larger and fresher, this would easily have garnered the number one spot.

Out of all the options on this list, the Cubano was the heaviest sandwich to pull from the bag, which I felt boded well for a tasty outcome. And taking it from its white paper wrapper, I was overjoyed at how delicious it looked with all the proper elements of a Cuban sandwich visible: Swiss cheese, pulled pork, ham, pickles, and mustard. I absolutely love a good Cuban sandwich, and while the other options on this list had left me wanting, I held out hope for this one.

The pulled pork was moist, dense, and bursting with flavor, which met the strength of the ham at its peak, sharing the spotlight on the palate. The textures of the meat were coupled with a creaminess produced from the moisture of the acidic pickle, the thick tart mustard, and the melted Swiss cheese. The flavors melded together and then flourished apart, coming in and out with tang and cream, savory and salty. And the bread held everything together both in texture and taste expertly.

This was the taste and quality that I had expected from all the sandwiches — this was my new favorite from Potbelly, which I thought would have had much more competition. There was nothing to tweak or remove here. There was no need for additions to be made. I had no criticism for this sandwich at all. It was hands down the best sandwich out of all of the ones on this list.

Other than the Italian, I ordered all the sandwiches as is without putting my own toppings on them. I wanted to test the heart of the sandwich. Each sandwich was ordered as a slim, the smaller of the sizes. I tasted almost the entirety of one half of each selection. And with each, I pulled apart the meat and took individual tastes to try and capture the flavor of each separate option. Between tastings I cleansed my palate thoroughly.

I expected a step up from the likes of Subway and Jimmy John's sandwiches. I wanted prime cuts of meat, exceptional seasonings, fresh produce, and masterful pairings. It wasn't as if I went looking for gourmet, but I did expect something higher tiered than grocery shelf cold cuts and cellophane-wrapped cheese. Sadly, I was exceedingly disappointed by much of what I tasted, especially the overly manufactured artificiality of the chicken.

While I will always hold a special place in my heart for the peanut butter sandwich from the Potbelly in the Chicago airport, I do not think I care much for these sandwiches beyond that. Potbelly will not be a place I seek out or even stop at if there are other options, including making myself a sandwich at home. If you have no other recourse but grabbing a sandwich there, I highly recommend the Cubano or sticking with the simplicity of the BLTA. Anything else, I'm afraid, is just going to leave you hungry for something different.