New Sub Shop Slated to Open in San Angelo

Ten cheeses, dried nuts, berries, fresh veggies and a spread of sauces ranging from BBQ to pesto to Sriracha are just some of the layers of flavor offered on the Which Wich menu, San Angelo’s newest sub shop slated for opening at the end of February.

Brad Baker, one of five local entrepreneurs behind the local Which Wich franchise, said the group has been looking to start a business for the better part of a year now, and finally selected Wich Which based on the unique experience offered by the location and the business model maintained by headquarters.

“This is a little bit of a different layout from the traditional sub sandwich shop…” Baker said, naming off a number of sub shop franchises. “…every single one of those that you walk into, you have to stand in line and basically watch your sandwich being made. When you walk into the (Which Wich) store you go up to the menu and there’s just a variety of what we call customizable wiches. It’s a little bit of a creative ordering system. You use our red Sharpies to mark our pre-printed menus.”

The pre-printed menus, Baker explained, are actually brown paper lunch sacks that have a couple of wich options on the front and are broken down into 10 bag categories. Most of the categories are based on meat selection such as ham and pork, turkey, beef and seafood, but there are also vegetarian, classic and breakfast bags, and each is customizable.

“For instance if you wanted a ham sandwich, one category would be ‘ham’, and your bag would have ‘ham’ on the top of it,” Baker explained. “Now with the ham, we have different types of ham sandwiches, or you can make your own.”

Unique ordering system aside, Baker described the overall atmosphere of Which Wich as attractive, noting the bold interior colors and the emphasis on fun and community bolstered by the brand.

“It’s got a different what Which Wich calls a vibe,” he said. “It’s kind of a magnetic environment. When you walk in, everything is black and yellow and white. We have a lot of neon signs. We actually encourage people to write or draw on their bags [and] we have a community board and people draw different things [on their bags and place them on the wall].”

The new Which Wich location will take the place of the empty Quizno’s at 59 N. Koenigheim, which shuttered its doors in 2014. Despite the closure of the previous Quizno’s, however, Baker said he and his partners have no concerns regarding whether or not sandwiches can be successful at that address.  

“We’ve got restaurant experience and we had the opportunity to go into the old Quizno’s building…just having that location available, certainly was a big motivator for us,” Baker said. “The reason why that store closed was due to the fact that Quizno’s filed bankruptcy. They didn’t put enough marketing into that location to make it successful, or any location for that matter.”

After considering taking over Quizno’s and building it up, the entrepreneurs decided instead to look at other franchises, such as Jimmy John’s, before settling on Which Wich.

“We liked the fact that it’s small,” Baker said. “When [Quizno’s] started, they were just like, ‘hey, let’s build as many as we can,’ where Jeff (Sinelli, the found of Which Wich) has taken just a completely different stance on that. He wants to actually grow slow and smart and we like that. There are only 400 Wich Which locations either open or in development.”

The store number at San Angelo’s Which Wich is 489, Baker said, and he and his partners are also currently working on opening a location in Midland. Construction is currently underway at both sites, and he hopes to have the San Angelo location open on Feb. 23.

“I’m very excited; my kids are really excited,” Baker said. “I’m looking forward to introducing San Angelo to the Which Wich brand and vibe and being able to serve San Angelo the best sandwiches in the world.”