6 Frequent Customer Complaints About Jersey Mike's

Sometimes, you can spend all morning looking forward to lunch, only to be disappointed. Devastating, sure, but it happens. Jersey Mike's is one of the most popular sandwich chains in the U.S. right now, and while you'd hope that it would always deliver on a positive and tasty experience, that's not always the case. Hey, no-one's perfect, right?

We decided to take a closer look at some of the frequent complaints customers make about Jersey Mike's. It turns out that while complaints are serious, others are, well, not so much — although we are sorry if you've been a personal victim of The Juice (IYKYK).

In fact, after scouring Reddit and review platforms, we found that some of the biggest gripes relate to prices (surprise, surprise), but we also found some alarming claims about hairs in food and even concerns over the impact that the chain's new parent company has had on its business model. 

At the time of writing, if you head to Jersey Mike's for, say, a Big Kahuna Cheese Steak on a Giant base, it'll set you back just under $20. Now, for some, this is an acceptable price to pay for a sandwich they love (especially if they're going to share it with another person), but for others, it's simply too much. In fact, one of the most common complaints among Jersey Mike's customers is its prices.

"Yeah I like [Jersey Mike's] but it's gotten way too expensive and I don't go as much," said one Redditor in the r/jerseymikes subreddit on a post comparing the sandwich chain's prices with fast-casual restaurants. Another added, "I agree with you, I don't have a problem with the quality, it's just too expensive for what it is."

Other customers are particularly upset by the price of The Veggie sandwich, which is still just under $18 for a Giant, despite containing zero meat. "[It] should be much less," said another Redditor in r/jerseymikes. "It's basically bread and iceberg lettuce. I don't get cheese."

If you're paying a lot for a sandwich, it goes without saying that you want a decent portion. Lately, though, customers have been walking away from Jersey Mike's feeling shortchanged. In fact, some have speculated that, since Jersey Mike's was acquired by Blackstone (the private equity giant agreed to acquire a controlling stake in the chain in 2024), the regular sandwiches have shrunk in size.

If true, this would be a case of shrinkflation, and it's hardly unique for the fast food industry. In fact, lately, customers have also claimed that McDonald's has allegedly reduced the size of its Filet-O-Fish, while In-N-Out may have shrunk its burgers and Subway might have made its sandwiches smaller. It's frustrating, especially as prices keep rising. "[Jersey Mike's] used to load up the meats but prices have been going up while meat serving has been decreasing for the past year I noticed," said another Redditor, in a post in the r/ExpectationVsReality subreddit.

Another post in r/jerseymikes compared the size of Jersey Mike's regular to a pair of sunglasses and claimed the meal definitely used to be bigger. While some replied saying they didn't see an issue beyond a badly cut sandwich, plenty agreed with the poster's observation. "Got one last night and could have sworn it was way smaller than previous times," said one Redditor. "Looked to be about 2 inches shorter. Not sure what's going on."

Nobody wants to eat in a dirty restaurant. In fact, messy tables and dirty countertops are actually health code red flags that shouldn't be ignored. And in some cases, they're a sign that the rest of the restaurant might not be as sanitary and hygienic as it should be. To put it bluntly, it's a big yuck. 

Unfortunately, many people have complained that Jersey Mike's restaurants aren't that clean. "Last week I went to a [Jersey Mike's] near me and I was appalled when I looked behind the counter while I was waiting for my food [and] the place was so dirty," wrote one Redditor in r/jerseymikes. To make matters worse, they claimed the employees were not making any effort to tidy up the mess.

Some stepped in to defend Jersey Mike's, claiming that all fast food restaurants get messy. However, others have also noticed that things can be quite grimy at the chain. People have noticed dirty spouts on the drink machines, for example, as well as countertops covered in crumbs, trash on the floor, and even hairs in the food. "Swear I ate there one time there was hair in my food and they remade it and there was another one," commented one Facebook user on a post about the Jersey Mike's location in LaFolette, Tennessee.

For some, the biggest issue with Jersey Mike's isn't dirty countertops or shrinking portions; it's wet bread. For the most part, this all comes down to The Juice. No, we're not talking about OJ, but the chain's signature dressing, which is a mix of red wine vinegar and olive oil. According to Jersey Mike's, The Juice is what helps make its sandwiches taste so good. Many agree, but they still don't like the fact that it ends up making the bread in their sandwich extra soggy.

Many customers say that the sogginess comes down to how effectively the sandwich is assembled and wrapped. "It's fine as long as [The Juice] actually gets on the lettuce/tomato/onion," said one Redditor in r/jerseymikes. "If you get it all over the paper then when you wrap up the sandwich it soaks into the bread and makes it all gross and soggy." Others say the trick is to eat the sandwich quickly, before The Juice has a chance to soak into the bread, while some say the answer is to ask for the dressing on the side.

When our taste-tester ranked Jersey Mike's subs, they found some of the chain's sandwiches to be a big disappointment. While they ranked some of its sandwiches highly, they had some pretty choice words for some of the other options on the menu. The worst offender, though, was the Tuna Fish. They said the filling tasted more like an off-putting seafood paste than good quality tuna. In other sandwiches, they said ingredients like ham, vegetables, and provolone lacked any substantial flavor.

Many customers agree that the quality of the ingredients at Jersey Mike's has declined, although plenty maintain that they used to be a lot better. "It isn't bad by any means, but it isn't nearly what it used to be," said one Redditor in the r/jerseymikes subreddit. Again, some have aired suspicions that the recent decline in quality might be linked to the Blackstone acquisition. "I got a sandwich with my points last week and it looked like they kicked the sandwich after they wrapped it up," said another Reddit user in r/jerseymikes. "Also the flavors were so much more muted than before."

Our final frequent complaint from Jersey Mike's customers has nothing to do with the food itself and everything to do with how fast that food gets into their hands. Yep, many people claim that the service is slow at the popular sandwich chain, and they can't stand it. "How do you feel about workers that look like they are moving in slow motion," asked one Redditor in r/jerseymikes. "So slow that you are almost impressed."

Some say it's especially frustrating when sandwiches are ordered online ahead of time, only for workers to delay making them until after the customer has arrived to pick it up. Some customers ordering in-store find it frustrating when workers don't greet them and they have to wait a while for their order to be taken. "I ended up walking out today after standing for 3 extremely quiet minutes while 3 employees refused to make eye contact, ask for my order or in any way create a positive environment for me," said one Redditor in r/jerseymikes. "The store was empty."

In Jersey Mike's defense, many customers say that the quality of the service varies by location, and some stores are much better than others. Employees have also stepped in to defend themselves, of course. Plus, it's always worth remembering that the employees have their fair share of complaints about customers, too.