Mon 7 May 2007
The Chicago Epicurean restaurant review: Vinnie’s Sub Shop
Posted by Daniel under Chicago Epicurean
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 Vinnie’s Italian Sub (above), along with a Filbert’s soda are two of my new Chicago favorites (Photos copyright Daniel B. Honigman) |
Vinnie’s Sub Shop
1204 W. Grand Avenue
(312) 738-2985
9:00 am - 6:00 pm
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Closed Sundays
Menu
Get directions
Verdict: If you like subs, check this place out. STAT.
It figures that I’d write my first review of a sub shop, right? But after visiting Vinnie’s Sub Shop this past weekend with Mollie, I realized that there would be no better way to start off this feature.
After hitting up the Intelligentsia Coffee tour on Saturday, we walked along Grand Avenue looking for a place to eat. We decided to stop off at Vinnie’s Sub Shop in the River West neighborhood of Chicago.
Vinnie’s is a charming, family-run, standing-room-only establishment. Festooned with historic photos of Chicago, I was hit immediately with an old-school vibe when I entered.
And then there were the sandwiches.
The Italian sub was outstanding. It may, hands-down, be the best sub I’ve had in Chicago. Piled high with capicola, genoa salami, mortadella, provolone cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, a mix of hot and sweet peppers, homemade basil oil and balsamic vinegar, on a fresh French bread, this sub was a steal at less than $6. Mollie ate the Vinnie Special, which featured a mix of ham, salami and provolone (no tomatoes for Mollie!)
Vinnie’s bubbly proprietor, Darlene, directed us to try their homemade tuna salad. I don’t usually like tuna fish - at all. But, with Mollie nudging me, I gave it a try.
Now, I still won’t eat tuna salad. But I’ll make an exception for Vinnie’s.
“We make three big party bowls every day, and every night it’s gone,” she said. Darlene wouldn’t give us the secret recipe, but it was seasoned with basil, tomatoes and onions. It’s absolutely to die for.
Vinnie’s features soda from Filbert’s of Chicago, a family-run beverage company in the city’s Bridgeport neighborhood. The sodas are quite tasty, by the way.
Here are the ratings:
Food: 4 of 5
Decor: 1.5 of 5
Cost: 4.5 of 5
Bathroom: N/A
Total: 4 of 5
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May 7th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
This place definitely makes up for the lack of seating with its amazing sandwiches. Although I live pretty far from this establishment, I will definitely take time out of my day to get there early enough in order to snatch up a tuna salad sub before it is gone. Vinnie’s is worth the trek!
May 7th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
Hey man … I dig the blog. I’ll have to plow through a few more entries, but I like what I’m seeing so far. Mind if I put a link to it on mine? The restaurant reviews are pretty great.
May 8th, 2007 at 7:28 am
No, Bill. Go right ahead and link to my site. Hopefully you’ll get some traffic from my site as well!