Food Review: Yogi's Hoagies (Westerville, OH)

Last Wednesday I decided to add some local fare to my lunch and stopped by Yogi's Hoagies on the way to Downtown Westerville.

Yogi's shows some Buckeye pride before the 9/3/11 football game against the University of Akron Zips. 

This sandwich shop is known for their fully customizable, made-to-order subs and French bread pizzas. Yogi's also offers catering options in the form of large party subs of enormous proportions which are great for tailgates and parties.

Local store, local flare, local flavor.

For today's lunch, Matt and I tried the hot Philly sub and meatball sub, respectively. Both subs were quite tasty and flavorful. I was very impressed by the freshness of their sandwich bread, meats and toppings. The meatballs were seasoned quite well and tasted homemade. We also tried the garlic and cheese bread and found that to be quite delicious. To top it off, they served freshly-brewed sweet (and unsweetened) iced tea! The price was quite reasonable too; a standard 8" sub ranges from $4-7 depending on its ingredients. We were able to feed ourselves a very hearty lunch for two for less than $15.

Freshly toasted meatball with mushrooms. I can still smell that fresh sauce.

Yogi's Hoagies is a female-owned, private sandwich shop that has been in operation for over 40 years. The current owner, Sue Shields, has been there for 18 of those years. Thanks to support from the local community, it has managed to beat the odds and continue to operate, despite the competition of nearby, mainstream food establishments and fast food restaurants.

As a former small-business owner in California, I can understand the challenges of maintaining a business in the midst of heavy competition. It's one of the reasons that I take a little extra time to give local business owners an extra shout-out. If you're in the Westerville area, I encourage you to stop on by and try a sub. Or at least check out Sue's vast collection of random hanging clocks and houseplants.

Yogi's Hoagies is located at 475 South State Street, Westerville, OH 43081. You can also visit their website at http://www.yogishoagies.com/.