I just got a "sandwich" at this place and would never go back. I ordered a sausage sandwich to go. I got a squarish piece of bread with a slight cut in it. The sausage was balanced on top with a spoonful of cole slaw slathered on top. That was it. The whole thing was put in a plastic container and the sausage and slaw predictably rolled off while I walked back to my office (I teach at Loyola). The piece of sausage was OK but the cursory way in which the whole thing was slapped together was ridiculous. Really disappointing.
Review Source:I've worked at four different sandwich shops, some gourmet, some straight up traditional sandwiches. Despite my experience, I'd like to think that I'm still a down-to-Earth gal who enjoys a simple sandwich--not a sandwich snob.
Leaving Around the World made me feel otherwise. I paid $15 for a Caribbean sandwich and a cup of chicken pot pie soup. I know they like to boast that they carry organic produce, but all I got were tomatoes in my sandwich, and they are definitely not in season right now. Along with the limp tomatoes, I had 2 thin slices of meat, and a couple of slices of cheese, and lots of pepper mayo and bread. For a sandwich that was almost $10, I certainly expected more. The soup was okay, but nothing great.
I will not be returning. The only reason I gave this place two stars instead of one is because of the nice guy behind the counter.
Let's get this out of the way: I hate cole slaw. I never eat it. I don't understand it. I grew up in the South, but I still don't like it. All that being said, I love the cole slaw from Around the World. It's crazy good. I want to buy a tub of it. It tastes like remoulade sauce. Go here for that if nothing else.
Okay, moving along. I don't understand the bad reviews. It seems like some yelpers don't realize there's a Subway across the street if you want a cheaper inferior sandwich. However, this place is a GOURMET sandwich shop. It says so right on the sign. The sandwiches are going to be more expensive and more delicious, and they are! I went here with my husband the other day and we both ordered the Mount Olympus. I had mine cold and he had his hot. We both ate every bite. It was really a great combo of ingredients. My only complaint would be that the sundried tomatoes were not chopped and it made them difficult to bite. You take a bite and pull a whole tomato off. They should chop them.
The interior is small but very clean and nice. It has the feel of a cheesy 50s-style soda shop. Not saying that's a bad thing. The guy working there was nice and helpful with the menu. I'll definitely come back here for lunch whenever I want a delicious gourmet sandwich.
We were excited to try this place, since it is so close. Â Very friendly service, and an overall nice looking place. Â However the sandwiches are too pricey for what they give you. Â The Fighting Irish one I got, the cheese wasn't even melted, even though it was supposed to be done like a panini. Â I don't mind paying a little extra for a good, filling meal, but this place didn't cut it.
Review Source:I'm updating my rating to a five not just because they deserve it but because someone needs to counter the hilarious self-centered, cheapskate reviews that are on here. This place is delicious. But not only is it delicious, these guys are working super-hard to have a healthy, quick and LOCAL option for Rogers Park. All the hippies in Rogers Park say "screw the corporate man" but then they complain that this place is priced higher than Subway. Around the World is delicious and absolutely worth the price. That slaw alone is worth the price.
Review Source:I currently live really close to this place and at first I thought it was exciting that it opened. I give props to the people who work there who were nice however for the taste quality of food, service and price, I do not believe it was worth it. First off I ordered a vegetarian sandwich with ham. the ham was fresh and tasteful, however it was falling apart before I even took it. Then the bread was not fresh, it felt a few days old. On top of that the pickle sucked, and I'm not picky about pickles but it just wasnt crispy and then the side dish was a weird coleslaw with a tangy bbq sort of spice that did not hit the right spot. I picked it apart, ate the avacado, and then I ended up throwing the rest of it away without getting half way through. Plus I paid $11 for a freaking sandwich!!! I could have gone to Subway across the street and gotten a decent black forest ham footlong for $5 the price comparison isn't there. I know, I won't be going back.
Review Source:Overpriced for the taste but I hope it gets better. Â I ate the Fiting Irish. Â It's expensive--$9 for only the sandwich. Â The sandwich, while it has organic and high quality ingredients simply didn't taste good. Â The saltiness you would expect in a corned beef brisket just wasn't there and combined with the sweet honey mustard it ended up tasting bland to almost too sweet. Â It needed pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, seasonings, grilled onions, something to give it a more robust flavor that would make you say 'wow, now that's a sandwich!'
I live in the neighborhood and will try it again and report back. Â They're getting soups soon so hopefully they will be more flavorful.
What a gem! Lets get the first issue out of the way: money. The sandwiches run between $6.99-$8.99. Know this before you walk in the door ok? Add sides (why are you ordering sides anyway?) and you'll spend another $1.25-$4.99 extra.
If you're still reading, good. This is definitely a treat. The owner/manager and the chef are chatty, very passionate fellas who really believe in their sandwiches. Fan of locally grown farm fresh vegetables? You'll be eating them. **note to the owner(s), the slow-growing local farm movement in Chicago is blowing up. Capitalize on this market (place ads in places that cater toward this crowd, think Uncommon Ground)**
I ordered the Mount Olympus--delicious. I could actually taste the ingredients, which is important to me. Â It was quite large so I'll eat the other half of it for breakfast tomorrow (what's wrong with that?). I'll be back for the chili when snow falls.
Star taken off because there were only a few vegetarian options--I mean real vegetarian, not pescatarian-- if that's a real thing.
On a Friday afternoon exhausted from class and starving, this place looked like my saving grace. I wandered in, and was immediately greeted by who must have been the owner or manager. He introduced his store and gave me the sales pitch on the all-natural products they used. I was impressed, and ordered the Mount Olympus. It was reasonably priced for the large portion I received, but was still shockingly large. The ingredients defined my favorite flavor palate and included sun dried tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, red onions, and Kalamata olives. However, the sweet pretzel roll it was served on and sweet ham gave the sandwich an overall sweet note that was not balanced enough by other flavors. I searched for more pungent onions, craved more salty cheese, and longed for a more savory humus--anything to balance the flavors out. I did not find what I was looking for in this particular sandwich, but will definitely give it another shot.
Review Source:Went here yesterday with a mentor to discuss graduate school life. Guys behind the counter were super friendly, I got the United Nations which was really good but PRICEY! It had a lot of meat, and I know...it's Boar's Head and stuff. But still, being so close to a college campus you know us students can't afford a $12-15 lunch. I'd feel better about it if they offered like a student discount or even buy 5 sandwiches get the 6th free or something.
Also, two people asked how things were like thirty second apart. One guy walked by our table and asked, then another dude and I was in the middle of my conversation. I'm all for checking in on people, but when I was in food service I never interrupted a customer when they were talking to their party. And I felt a little over-serviced because two people came by in less than a minute.
All in all, you can tell the folks here are trying to make good food and provide great service. It's a new business, so you should definitely check them out. Just be prepared to pay more than Quiznos or Jimmy Johns for a good sized and unique sandwich. And watch out for the eager yet slightly overbearing staff.
Went in a few weeks ago when they opened and had a few thoughts:
1. They are a little pricey, but they do give a lot of food (especially for a college kid) so I'm willing to pay a little extra.
2. The sandwiches are a little extreme and they do have a lot going on, so if you're a person who likes turkey, mayo, and cheese go to Subway. If you like variety go to AtWGS.
3. The atmosphere in this place is surprisingly upbeat. Last time I was in there they were blasting French rave music or something. If you're into that, go to AtWGS, if not maybe Jimmy John's is more your style.
4. Tell them it's your birthday, you'll get a free desert (if you're lucky).
Recently stopped into Around the World (AtW) to grab a quick bite for lunch.  I skimmed through the menu without looking at prices and ordered a sandwich (AtW's take on the Reuben) and a bottle of water.  The total came out to just over $12 for the sandwich  and drink which caught me off guard since that didn't include any sides beyond their coleslaw and a pickle.  The sandwich was alright, more refined than Subway or Jimmy Johns, but it didn't really fill me up and I'm not a big guy by any means.  I understand that the prices are probably inflated a little because rental space on a college campus can't be cheap but at least provide a little more substance. Maybe offer the option of a bag of chips instead of the coleslaw and pickle.  The dollar to fill ratio just didn't do it for me especially with so many other options in the area.  AtW boasts using Boars Head meats instead of what they consider lesser quality products, but for the typical customer in that area (college kids presumably on a budget) it's probably not that high of a priority.
On the other hand if you want something a little classier than the typical sandwich joints in the area then check it out if you don't mind forking over a few extra bucks. Â If you're just hungry or cheap then stick to some of the other options in the area.
Strike one: Expensive. I ordered two sandwiches with no sides and it came to a hair under $20. Strike two: They forgot that one sandwich was to have no tomatoes. OK, they're new, they're busy, whatever. But do I go back to experience strike three? I don't think so. I'm sorry, but this sandwich shop is really just some random dudes who bought some Boar's Head meats. Go to Pillars instead -- my wife and I stopped into Pillars the next day and got two sandwiches to go, with fries, for the same price.
Review Source:Decided to stop in for lunch yesterday and try out the newest restaurant in my neighborhood. Â I was exciting that a sandwich place was opening up, but the experience fell a bit short.
The menu is pretty decent if you like a lot of meat and ham. I am a bit of a boring sandwich eater and I don't love a ton of mayonaise or chipotle based sauces. I asked if I could make my own sandwich and the owner said that I could if he had the ingredients. I guess I appreciate the flexibility, but I would expect that at a sandwich place there's automatically a build your own option. List the ingredients at the bottom of the menu and give me that option... easy peasy. i'm fairly certain that a lot of people like a plain ol turkey sammie.
I ordered a turkey sandwich with cheese on marbled rye. It was good, but it was expensive. Also, their bread is thick, so 3 pieces of turkey (thin, small slices) and 2 pieces of american cheese seemed skimpy. I took off one piece of bread and folded my sandwich in half, which made it seem more filling. Maybe most people like more bread than ingredients on their sandwich?
In addition to sandwiches they offer Sun Chips and Bottled drinks. They had Snapple, which is yum ($1.95), but no diet Snapple, which was disappointing.
Maybe I'm being too hard on a place that has only been open a short time and is working out their kinks, but some of this stuff is easy to fix. I hope that they do well, but for a $9 with little filling and only a small side of (not so good) chipotle cole slaw, I'm worried. Add some chips or lower the price maybe?
Also, please turn down the music. I know it makes me sound old and cranky (which I'm not), but we actually left so that we could have a real conversation and not be bothered by the loud music.
Ok, one more thing... sorry.
Please ask if your customers are staying or going. We thought we were staying and our sandwiches were still served in a plastic container. It seems like a waste of plastic.
Stopped in here today for lunch. Seemed like business was brisk which is good for them. As soon as I walked in, I was pitched by the owner on the fact they use all organic ingredients which sort of explains (what I thought was the exorbitant) $9 they were charging for their sandwiches. The heart of the sandwiches is really just Boar's Head meats which can be found at any local grocery store so the enthusiastic pitch about ingredient quality kind of fell flat once I heard that.
I had the Roman - their unorthodox name for what was essentially "an Italian" with spicy meats, ham, provolone, vinaigrette, greens, and roasted red peppers. The sandwich came with a very small serving of chipotle flavored cole slaw and a pickle slice.
The taste of the sandwich was pretty good. The ingredients were fresh and while I wouldn't normally put these meats on focaccia (vs. a baguette) or pair them with gourmet lettuce (shaved iceberg would be better) it generally worked. Maybe I just haven't spent enough time in Rome to know this is the exact staple sandwich that is eaten there every day!
Regardless, my main problem with the sandwich was the price. About a mile away is Piatto Pronto which in my opinion is the gold standard of sandwiches in Andersonville and Rogers Park. They charge $4.99 for a 6" sandwich that is better tasting and has more meat, and $6.99 for a 12" sandwich that is truly 2 or 3 meals. Of course closer is Subway and Jimmy Johns. Was my "Roman" better than Subway across the street? Yes, but not $4 better, especially when getting less. And there in lies the problem. I assume this shop is catering to Loyola students but with so many other lower priced options already in the neighborhood and more on the way, can you really get away with charging this much for an under-portioned sandwich?
I hope this place does well as it's nice to see indie shops open up in the 'hood and I suspect the high prices are needed to make the economics work. I for one though just can't stomach dropping $13 for a sandwich, chips, and a drink when there are a multitude of other options of either comparable or better quality within close proximity.
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