Meet the Sandwich Slingers: The Sub Shop

The Sub Shop may sound like a generic name if you’re not from around here. But to 417 locals, it’s a proper noun and a household name.

The original location on 1721 East Seminole Street opened in 1972. Between its nostalgic exterior and the fact that it’s one of the few places left in town that still only accepts cash, it’s like a Springfield time capsule.

Behind the counter, you’ll find owner Ethan Seehusen dressing up sub sandwiches just the way his customers like them. Seehusen knows his regulars’ names and orders by heart, and he’s often been referred to as a “sandwich savant.”

“My time at The Sub Shop makes up a huge chunk of my life,” he says. “I want to be able to give awesome service to people and treat them like I’d want to be treated.”

Seehusen is a second-generation owner of The Sub Shop. His dad purchased his first location in 1977 from the previous owners and eventually went on to operate five of them. Seehusen now owns the one on East Seminole Street, while his brother owns the one on West McDaniel Street.

“Getting to grow up in a family business is a great deal to be in,” he says. “You get to work with your parents, learn a lot about life and interact with the public.”

Seehusen’s own kids are now in middle school and high school, and they are getting the same experience. In the summer, they enjoy partaking in age-appropriate tasks like pulling drinks in the shop.

When you place an order at The Sub Shop, you know you’re about to enjoy a quality sandwich made by a mom-and-pop shop that takes pride in its work. Seehusen and his crew make all of the bread and baked goods from scratch, and they also slice their own meat and cheese. But most impressively, they do this all on a daily basis. The toppings on their signature subs are mostly classic, but with a few surprises thrown in. Just trust us—don’t knock cashews on a veggie sandwich until you try it.

So what makes a good sandwich in Seehusen’s book?

“Fresh ingredients and being able to discern the flavors that are going on in the sandwich, and it not all coming out tasting like mayonnaise and lettuce,” he says. “Regardless of what’s on it, it needs to have a really nice balance, so not too much of any one thing. It needs good texture and flavor profiles, from crunchy to smooth, sweet to salty, spicy to vinegary.”

The Sub Shop makes the kind of sandwiches locals haven’t grown tired of eating for half a century, and they will gladly wait in a long line for one. So if anyone is qualified to be the official authority on good sandwiches, we’d say it’s Seehusen.