There’s a new submarine sandwich place in town, perched on a prime corner lot by Wright State. DiBella’s is a small, regional chain sandwich shop based out of New York. And as you can see, they have a rather high opinion of their product.
Ever since Subway decided to become the WalMart of sandwiches, there has been a bit of a void in my culinary life. Quizno’s is okay, but a little bit heavy, and disappointingly inconsistent. There are a few local sub sandwich places that are excellent, but I seldom find myself near one. The new DiBella’s location is along a route I travel with some frequency, so I stopped in the other day to try them out.
I was back the next day. And the next day. I’ve eaten lunch from DiBella’s more times in the past couple weeks than I really care to disclose.
It’s good. It’s really, really good. They have a fun and friendly staff, sure, and the décor is pleasing enough, but the sandwiches are delicious enough to stand on their own. DiBella’s is short on gimmick and heavy on quality and flavor, and their staff actually pays attention to what they’re doing, which is a nice change (I’m looking at you, Subway).
But there’s a problem. You can see it just over the sandwich in the picture. DiBella’s decided to use a rather lofty slogan, and in doing so, set the bar impossibly high. As most men, I consider myself something of a connoisseur of big, sloppy sub sandwiches. I’ve had a lot of them from a lot of places, big and small, and there have been a handful that changed my life. The Super Italian from Submarine House comes to mind.
So when I read a slogan like that on the wrapper, my expectations are high. Felix Baumgartner high. And while the sandwiches I have sampled from DiBella’s (the Godfather, the Italian, the Tuna and the Old Fashioned, so far) have been totally acceptable, they haven’t blown me away. At least, they haven’t risen to the level set by their catchphrase.
Hey, maybe it doesn’t matter. I’ll certainly be back, and I’m happy to recommend them if you’re looking for a great sub. But I can’t help but feel a little let down, after getting my hopes so high, based on their marketing. Perhaps a wiser choice of slogans would let their sandwiches do the talking.