Schlotzsky's Deli

First off, Schlotzsky's is not a deli.  It's a fast-food sandwich and pizza joint.  I'd actually never been to a Schlotzsky's until recently, since they were always out in the suburbs.  This place is big and clean, and the employees were nice.  I got the Original, which was a heckuva sandwich and pretty tasty.  It was a lot of food and the sandwich pretty much negated any chip-eating I would have done.  The sandwich was good but I don't think I'd go out of my way to eat Schlotzsky's again.  I would literally have to go out of my way to get it.  The tire smell some other reviewers have commented on was slightly noticeable, but not overpowering.  Perhaps if you're sitting in the back of the shop by the restrooms this place shares with Firestone, you notice it more.  The restaurant itself is great.  It's just way out in Edina.  Not a bad place for a quick lunch but nothing special here.

I love the food at Schlotsky's and I used to eat at the Apple Valley location almost daily (before they closed it down). Anyway, I think this is the last one of the franchisees left in Minnesota.

So anyway, I love the sandwiches. The crust is so good, the meat is nice, everything tastes fresh. So why two stars? It like eating in an auto shop. It shares a building with a Firestone and all you can smell are automotive fumes. They assault your nose and drive you crazy. The smell of new rubber is so strong. I can't even eat in there. Even if I have no plans of going anywhere else, I will get it to go and eat it in my car in the parking lot. It really is that terrible. It makes me gag and my stomach upset to try to eat food and smell brake fluid. It's really, really unfortunate that such a good sandwich shop is in such a poor location.

You know, I can't hate on this place. We get our car worked on at the Firestone, so when the rubber hits the pastrami - you kill some time here.

So considering my deli-fed heritage - technically I should hate this place and want to cry.  But I don't. I don't know why. Maybe it's because you can get a personal pizza that's technically truly awful and yet not. It's greaseless and actually feels healthier than Taco Bell crap and your other options in the immediate area when your car is up on a jack. Maybe it's that bread, like a commercial sourdough injera to put chicken and pesto on if you catch the chicken and pesto seasonal moment. It's truly weird.

One of the cleanest places, barring the vulcanized air currents, I've been in. Unsweetened iced tea is an option. I'm going to come out and put this on my I can't Explain list - because I like this place, with no truly good reason why!