The Sandwich Co.

We've got company

Maybe it's the Eurosnob in me, but I believe lunch isn't a throwaway meal. I try not to eat at my desk and to use the midday hour to fit some kind of joy into the work day. When I walked into the Sandwich Co. (at the corner of Michigan and Delaney avenues, in the spot vacated by erstwhile soup specialist Chili Daddy), the aroma of hot roast beef woke me up from my caffeine crash: This is a place that, like me, takes lunch seriously.

Service is helpful and friendly, emphasizing that everything on the menu is made fresh and in-house daily. I loved the Steak in the Grass sandwich ($8.95), which combines flavorful, hot sliced roast beef, sautéed spinach and melted provolone cheese on a hoagie roll.

The nine-buck price tag might seem steep for a sub, but it's large enough to save half for tomorrow and includes the choice of either a drink or one of the homemade sides. The rustic potato salad was good, but with another half-teaspoon of salt, could have been great. The cup of green lentil and sausage soup ($2.50) I tried was filling and savory enough to be a meal alone.

SoDo's full of prime lunch locations, but the Sandwich Co. is the kind of place anyone would love to have right around the corner from work.

> Email Holly V. Kapherr