8 Jimmy John's Sandwiches You Should Think Twice About Ordering

Oh, Jimmy John's. It was the place that you ordered from at 3 a.m. in college when the idea of microwaving a plastic cup of mac and cheese sounded downright repulsive. You may know it as the best sandwich joint to eat from if you prefer a really, really soggy sandwich, or perhaps you're more familiar with its history of union-busting and preventing its workers from organizing for fairer working standards. Despite those issues, it's a sub chain that has its fair share of followers.

But even if you love the sandwiches the shop is serving up, you've probably already realized that not everything on the menu is particularly delicious. Although some sandwiches from Jimmy John's are well-balanced and well-constructed, still others get the flavors all wrong, don't deliver the proper ratio of meat to veggies, or are otherwise no-gos on the chain's menu.

We've consulted the internet — and done some tasting of our own — to bring you the Jimmy John's sandwiches you should think twice about ordering. If one of these sandwiches is already your fave, go ahead and enjoy. But if you're trying to find something new to try from the chain, you may want to steer clear of these specific selections.

There are times when a simple, unfussy sandwich is just what you're craving. You may not want anything too overpowering or bold, instead preferring a standard, deli meat sandwich that will satiate your hunger and won't have you regretting a more adventurous selection. At those times, you may find yourself attracted to Jimmy John's Country Club, also known as the No. 11. However, unless you want an incredibly average sandwich, you probably shouldn't order this selection.

According to one Reddit user, this is the most boring sandwich on the entire menu. We have to agree — it features only roast turkey breast, sliced ham, and provolone. It sounds like something you'd get in a school cafeteria, not at a specialty sandwich shop. Of course, you can add different veggies and toppings to make things more interesting, but there's only so much you can do with a sandwich that's as plain as this one. Unless you're craving "boring meat X boring meat," according to another Redditor, you can easily skip this menu option.

Listen, whenever we find a vegetarian option on a mainstream chain restaurant menu, we really, really want to like it. After all, there are too few vegetable-focused items on these menus, and if you don't eat meat (or just don't want to eat it all the time), your options are usually limited. Therefore, we appreciate Jimmy John's for at least including a veggie option on its menu lineup.

That being said, like so many veggie sandwiches from sub shops, The Veggie from Jimmy John's isn't particularly good. According to a Tasting Table tasting and review of 10 different Jimmy John's sandwiches, this is actually the worst of the bunch. It's missing a centerpiece — without any meat, it needs a better-quality cheese (or a vegan protein source, like tempeh or tofu) to make things more interesting. Otherwise, you're just getting some lettuce, tomatoes, and a few other toppings served in an overly soft sub bun. We definitely don't want to pay restaurant prices for a sandwich so sad.

Roast beef can be pretty hit or miss as a sandwich topping. When it's good, it's shaved extremely thinly and is soft and tender. However, bad roast beef can be really, really bad, with a toughness that makes you feel like you're eating leather. Although our taste tester and reviewer at Tasting Table liked the roast beef in the Big John back in 2023, calling it "moist" and "delicious,' we've found that at other times, the roast beef at the chain can be quite chewy. Therefore, it may be a gamble to order this sandwich on the meat front — you can't be 100% sure what you're going to get.

The real issue with this sandwich, though, is the condiments. The default sandwich spread for this sub is mayonnaise. Now, we're huge fans of mayonnaise (take a look at our favorite mayo brands), but it just doesn't belong everywhere. A roast beef sandwich, as unassuming as it is, really needs a pop of something more flavorful than mayo. Where's the Dijon mustard? If you're looking for a particularly well-balanced sandwich, the Big John probably isn't for you.

Italian sandwiches are one of the best bread-based dishes to have ever been invented. All those layers of thinly sliced deli meat, the crunch of shredded lettuce and sliced red onions, the delight of finding a particularly big piece of banana pepper in your sub — these factors all converge to create an incredible sandwich. So, it only follows that the same ingredients would be just as good in wrap form. Right? Well, if we're talking about Jimmy John's Tuscan Italian wrap, maybe not so much.

First of all, the tortilla is just too thin. Think about how wet Jimmy John's sandwiches are. That quality just doesn't mesh well with the especially thin layer of bread you'll get in this wrap. Plus, as one Reddit user points out, you can simply take one of the chain's existing Italian sandwiches and turn it into a wrap anyway — we're not sure why it needs its very own entry on the menu. Regardless, there are still other, better sandwiches from which to choose.

If you're craving another boring, bland sandwich, do we have a treat for you. It's Jimmy John's Turkey Tom, and it's a sandwich that you could very easily make at home. As the name of the sandwich implies, turkey is the source of protein in the dish. The sliced turkey, according to Tasting Table's Jimmy John's sandwich reviewer, is rather flavorless at first. Even with the addition of lettuce and tomatoes on the sandwich, you're not going to get much on the flavor front with this dish apart from a mild saltiness that's not altogether unappealing (but also isn't anything to be particularly excited about either).

Additionally, the portion size of meat you get in this sandwich just isn't that impressive. If you're paying a premium to get your turkey sandwich at a sub shop, you expect it to have a decent amount of meat on it. But this sandwich just feels like the chain is skimping. Chances are, the turkey sandwich you make at home will be way, way better than this one.

On a Reddit threat questioning users about their least favorite sandwich at Jimmy John's, there was one sandwich that kept coming up again and again: the Cubano. One user said that they and several of their coworkers find the sandwich straight-up disgusting. Another claimed that the pickles and mustard were just too much on the sandwich, likely because of their searing acidity. Still another said that anyone who's ever had a real Cuban sandwich should understand why the Jimmy John's version of the sandwich is just not good.

The sandwich comes stacked with bacon, ham, and provolone, with mayonnaise, mustard, and, of course, pickles. It's a combo that sounds good in theory but simply isn't executed well here. It doesn't have the melted, slightly crispy deliciousness of a real Cuban sandwich, and trying to paint it as one is a mistake on JJ's part. Instead of ordering the Cubano, just try making this all-out Cuban sandwich at home.

Ordering a tuna sandwich at just about any establishment can feel risky, but sometimes, it can be worth the risk that you're going to get a mayo-heavy, fishy mess. But at Jimmy John's, we think it's better to pass up this option altogether. The No. 15, also known as the Club Tuna, comes with a house-made tuna salad that's adorned with lettuce, tomato, and provolone cheese. Sounds pretty basic, right?

Unfortunately, several Redditors say that the tuna is not good. One user who said that they used to work at the chain said that they were disgusted by the store's "tuna buckets." Another said that although they don't hate the tuna salad itself, the fact that this sandwich is topped with so much cheese ultimately makes it unappealing. Our advice? Just make your own tuna salad at home, so at least you're not paying a premium for this less-than-delicious menu item.

We get it: Fast food restaurants have to compete to have the most over-the-top, Instagrammable food items on their menus. But if we're being honest, Jimmy John's was never going to win that competition anyway, so the fact that the chain still came out with its J.J. Gargantuan sandwich is unexplainable. This sandwich — as the name suggests — is gigantic. Although this isn't necessarily a bad thing, considering the complaints about how little meat comes on some of Jimmy John's sandwiches, the amount of meat in this sandwich is way over the top. There's so much meat there, in fact, that it's actively hard to enjoy what you're eating. All the fresh toppings are completely overpowered by that mountain of meat.

The capocollo and salami are solid, and we can't get too mad about the additions of ham and turkey. But adding roast beef on top of that (in addition to provolone cheese as well) isn't necessary and makes for a sandwich that's texturally all wrong, not to mention incredibly salty. Opt for a sandwich with more restraint for the most delicious experience possible.

We determined which sandwiches would appear on this list by consulting Tasting Table's own taste tests, perusing Reddit for comments about diners' least favorite Jimmy John's sandwiches, and through our own personal tasting experiences. 

The sandwiches that appear here are either unbalanced on the flavor front, lacking in flavor entirely, or are too soggy to truly be enjoyable. Others are just downright boring, even if they're not actively terrible.