This Sandwich Chain Has The Best Italian Sub, Hands Down

There’s nothing like a good old Italian sub — the delicious, layered meats and crunchy vegetables, drizzled with oil and vinegar, make for an ideal sandwich-eating experience. There are plenty of shops that offer Italian subs, but few that do it just right. In our ranking of six sandwich chains’ Italian subs, one stood out for being unforgettable. Firehouse Subs’ Italian had the ideal balance of flavors, nicely toasted bread, and the right balance of seasonings to make this sandwich a 10 out of 10. 

Firehouse is a sandwich chain known for steaming its meats and cheeses, which intensifies their flavor. Indeed, the taste is superb, with melded ingredients that perfectly complement each other and bread that is soft without being too soggy. Firehouse also uses Italian dressing rather than oil and vinegar on its subs, which offers a uniquely tangier, spicier flavor. Customers have even claimed that Firehouse’s Italian subs are comparable to classic New York deli-style sandwiches. This one may need to be added to our list of the best Italian subs in the United States.

A traditional Italian sub should ideally feature capicola, pepperoni, and salami, with toppings like provolone cheese, shredded lettuce, onion, and tomato on a pillowy Italian roll. While Firehouse’s Italian sub delivered in every category of our ranked taste test, not all the chain subs we tasted were as delectable. Whereas Firehouse’s offering included everything you could want in an Italian submarine sandwich, we found Subway’s to be missing classic ingredients and lacking overall freshness. The type of bread used for an Italian sub also matters — besides taste, texture can make all the difference. Some sandwiches we tried had bread that was too dense or crusty, which negatively affected the sub’s overall taste. Others lacked the zest and spice an Italian sub typically offers. 

For a chain sandwich shop, Firehouse exceeded our expectations. Even without the traditional dousing of oil and vinegar, this sub didn’t lack flavor or seasoning. In an Italian sub, each flavor should be distinct, yet complement the others harmoniously, and not all chains we tried were able to accomplish this as well as Firehouse did. For our Italian sub needs, we’ll be going to Firehouse every time.