Matt Bonner's Sandwich Hunter: Jan. 4, 2010 - Milwaukee

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Entry #8 - Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches: Milwaukee
by Matt Bonner

It was 12:30 in the afternoon on the day after Christmas and downtown Milwaukee resembled a ghost town. Trying to find an open sandwich shop was going to be harder than finding a gangster rap album in Bill O'Reilly's CD collection. The snow steadily accumulating on the ground certainly wasn't making things any easier. I immediately ruled out a mom and pop shop. Locally owned businesses were surely taking off the holiday weekend to spend with their families. The only possibility would be a national chain. Sure enough, I found an open Jimmy John's a few blocks from the hotel.

Before I went in, I noticed an interesting sign in the front window. It said: "World's Best Gourmet Sandwiches". What audacity! According to Jimmy John's, my search was over. It reminded me of a scene from "Elf". When Will Ferrell congratulated a coffee shop for having the world's best cup of coffee after seeing a similar sign in the window.

Despite the arrogant self-proclamation, I am a huge fan of Jimmy John's. I went in and spotted assistant coaches Don Newman and James Borrego eating at a corner table. I approached them for the usual salutations and asked about a photograph for my blog. They obliged. I am certain Coach Newman's runway modeling career will take-off once this gets posted.

I went to the counter and ordered my usual at Jimmy John's: a Tom's Turkey sandwich, chocolate chunk cookie, and barbecue chips. Whenever I order at Jimmy John's, I always say "easy on the mayo". I've found that they tend to overdo it with the mayonnaise. As usual, they had my sandwich out to me before I was even finished paying. Jimmy John's is renowned for the speed in which they make sandwiches. It's unbelievable.

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