Port City Deli is pricey, not spicy

Oh great, another sandwich shop in Bainbridge. Anyone can make a sandwich at their own house for a fraction of the cost of one from any deli in town. But, at least at Port City Deli, in the Inland Port Shopping Center, your $8 sandwich-chips-and-drink meal will be good. They serve Coke products, which I guess is a Southern thing, Pepsi really tastes better, but that's just me.

The place was packed when we arrived at 12:15 and every table in the joint was full. Fortunately for us, some folks knew we were important and evacuated their seats before we had to kick them out. More patrons continued to flow in even after we sat down and the place kept rocking until around 1:15 when it looked like a ghost town.

I had the El Diablo sandwich, because it sounded cool and because I like spicy food. It was rather small for an $8 combo, but it did fill me up, so I can't complain too much. It consisted of a freshly baked hoagie bun topped with grilled chicken, jalepenos, picante sauce, mayo and jack cheese. It was far from the Diablo, not being very spicy at all, I'd give it an El Diablito - maybe. Either way it was tasty, just not as menacingly spicy as I had hoped for.

My lunch compadre (I call him compadre because we're already in Mexican mode with El Diablo) had the Godfather sandwich combo. It consisted of the same hoagie bun with roasted turkey, ham, salami and pepperoni, melted provolone cheese, the garden and Italian dressing. He said the sandwich was tasty, but for a name like Godfather it didn't amount to much. He suggested they name it Santino, for the Godfather's hot-headed son.

It took a while to get our food, but it was made to order and our server was friendly. They do serve Miss Vickie's potato chips which are premium chips with a premium taste. If you've never experienced them, you'll have to try them next time. You can also choose potato or pasta salad as your side. I didn't get to taste them, but I was kind of upset my dill pickle spear didn't come with my sandwich like listed on the menu.

They do offer free delivery for orders for four or more people, which is good for all you drug reps trying to get the doctors full before you give em' the spiel.

I was pleased overall with my experience but couldn't help but notice most of the picture frames in the front of the store were crooked. I guess when you spend so much time making sandwiches, you don't sweat the little things.

Nobody smiles on the Subway these days

The day after Christmas is probably not the best time to look for good service anywhere, especially at a Subway located inside of a Wal-Mart. It wasn't too much of a surprise when even without a big crowd, the service was shotty at best. The Wal-Mart was packed, but there weren't many people in line at Subway (They'd probably eaten there before). After my sandwich artist asked what I'd like for lunch in a mumbled voice with not so much as an effort of politeness, the next sandwich artist, who doubled as a cashier, just stood there without speaking as I told her what I'd like on the sandwich. I guess the sandwich artists didn't get any manners in their stockings for Christmas.

While the people ahead of me waited in line to pay for their food, she quietly continued to make the next several sandwiches with no words to anyone. Finally, she decided to talk when a desperate man pleaded for an orange juice for his apparently diabetic wife whose sugar had dropped and was in desperate need of sugar. "You'll have to wait your turn like everyone else," she snapped in a very Grinch-like manner. Even though the other customers graciously allowed the man ahead in line, the cashier never apologized for her remarks. Nor did I ever hear a "Thank You" or any other not-mumbled word my entire visit.

I ordered the new Flatbread Florentine Chicken and requested ranch dressing be added. The sandwich was good, but I'm not sure it was worth the over $6.00 I paid for the combo. Not quite sure it'd be worth eating at all without the ranch. It wasn't even as big as the 6-inch subs, and it cost a heck of a lot more. The chip selection was horrible with only a few flavors of baked lays and then Sun Chips galore. I mean, who eats Sun Chips? I thought you just fed those to sea gulls. 

Then, as I filled up my drink I couldn't help but notice someone had parked their shopping cart full of trash bags of Subway trash right next to the soda fountain. Hmmm, I wonder who it could've been. If you are going to be too lazy to take the trash all the way to the dumpster, you'd think you could at least push it out the door. Granted, they did seem short-handed that day, but an extra 20 steps to the door surely wouldn't have killed anyone. 

Needless to say, I didn't overly enjoy my lunch that day. But, understanding that every place has bad days, we at Second Helping are willing to give second chances. So, if any eatery isn't satisfied with their review, and thinks they deserve a second chance, we'll gladly grant them one with at least two weeks to get their acts together. Sorry, we won't call and say when we're coming or who we are, but we will tell it like it is as always.


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