Wally’s Subs
6477 Stadium DriveGot a couple days off work and the house to myself. J went to a conference in Port Huron and there’s no way I can work my normal shift then get to the kids’ daycare in time to pick them up after school. Working a half day isn’t really possible either since most of the work I do is in the second half of the day. I’ve tried asking to get off early in the past and even though I’ve been told that wasn’t a problem, it turned out to be. It was easier and less stressful for me to just burn a couple of vacation days.
I had a couple of projects I needed to get done since I was going to be home anyway. I decided to go to Menards instead of Lowes like I usually do just for a change a scenery. I got what I needed then started back home.
I realized I was hungry as I was driving but didn’t really know what I wanted. I came up to the corner of 9th and Stadium and caught a glimpse of Wally’s Subs. I haven’t eaten there in years and a sandwich sounded good.
Wally’s Subs has been a staple on the corner of 9th and Stadium in Oshtemo Township for years. The small restaurant has been there since 1983 serving up quality subs. The property is a little trick to get in and out of because it’s on such a busy corner but there are entrances on both the 9th Street side and the Stadium Drive side.
This isn’t the first time I’ve eaten at Wally’s Subs but it is the first time in quite a long time. The only other time I’ve eaten there was back in 2011. I wasn’t super impressed but reading my old blog, it seems to be because of the sandwich I ordered. I didn’t even look at the old post before I went in and didn’t remember what I had ordered then so it was like I was going in fresh.
Wally’s is really proud of it’s modern (for 1983) decor. Not much has really changed.
The restaurant is set up in to two rooms. When you go through the door and to the right, you come to the order counter. It’s typically for what you’d expect of a deli. All the meats are sliced fresh when you order and you can watch the whole thing happen. Keeping with that 1980’s theme, there’s an old school Pepsi menu board listing off the daily specials.
The dining room on this side is pretty small and made up of just a few tables. The carpeted floor and green vinyl seat covers keep the theme going.
What really draws the whole “we haven’t changed anything since the 80’s” nostalgia together is a classic Ms. Pac Man cocktail table.
There’s even a handwritten piece of paper hanging on the wall with the high scores.
The menu at Wally’s Subs is pretty huge. They deal with three basic types of subs. There’s one-meat, two-meat, and specialty subs. The list of meats itself is pretty huge and you can pretty much make a sandwich with any combination that they have.
My pick was a large three meat sub. It’s number 58 on the menu. The three meats are pastrami, ham, and capicola. I got the sandwich on white bread, warmed up, with lettuce, pickles, the house dressing and cheese. Mayo, tomato, and onion are also options but I left them off.
It took about five minutes for my sandwich to be put together and warmed…not toasted. They basically just put it in the microwave for a few seconds to marry everything together. The cost was a little over $14 with tip.
I could have pulled up to a table and ate there but I was close to home and still had things to do so I opted to take the sandwich to go.
I was surprised when I unwrapped the butcher paper at home. The sandwich was quite hearty. Last time I blogged about Wally’s I complained about how thin the sandwich was. Not the case with this one. The fresh sliced meats were piled on pretty thickly and the lettuce and pickles really bulked up the sandwich. I’m convinced I just ordered wrong last time. After eating this sandwich, I can see why Wally’s has been around for close to 40 years.
Wally’s Subs blows away the chain sub shops (including the Subway that is/used to be across the street). This is a place I really need to include in my usual rotation. I really don’t know why I haven’t been back in 11 years but it won’t be another 11 years before I return.
SW Michigan Dining 